Louder Than You Think: A Lo-Fi History Of Gary Young & Pavement
Independent Project Records, 2026
REVIEW BY: Tom Haugen
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 05/12/2026
This soundtrack to the 2023 SXSW winning documentary Louder Than You Think explores rare and previously unheard tracks from Gary Young and Pavement, the band he played drums for from their inception until 1993. In addition, we’re treated to tracks from criminally overlooked bands from the Stockton, CA scene of the ’80s and ’90s, the area where Pavement cut their teeth before worldwide fame came their way.
Edward W. Dahl’s “Wink & A Nod” begins with a quick minute of spacey ambience before the driving and raw punk of “Achtung!,” by The Authorities. Fall Of Christianity then brings their dense guitars and scrappy drumming to the blistering “Feed ’Em To The Lions”, and Hot Spit Dancers balance shouting and singing via the old school punk of “Later Than You Think.”
Other bands before we get into the Pavement portion of the record include Crill’s turbulent rock across “No Sex” and Noah Georgeson’s “Glacial Victory” that wanders with bright keys and a cinematic mood.
The Pavement selections are live and from May 19, 1992, and include “Baptist Black,” “Lions” and “Summer Babe.” The recordings are raw but illustrate the band’s fractured energy and slacker-rock aesthetic well.
Young's solo contributions include the soft and cryptic “Refrigerator Light/Laptop Tanktop,” with Georgeson, and the quirky, pop fueled “Birds In Traffic” that turns into jam band fun. There’s even a track with both Young and Pavement at the end, as “Please Be Happy (For Us)” recruits atypical grooves and retro-rock moments into the quick song.
Young was nearly twice as old as the other members of Pavement when he joined them, and his unpredictable and odd behavior got him fired in 1993, though he did briefly play in the band again in 2010. He passed away in 2023 at the age of 70.
This record truly encapsulates the thriving Stockton scene from the viewpoint of Young’s LSD-taking, alcohol-consuming, hippie existence. It’s actually quite surprising that Pavement was the only Stockton band that made their way into everyone’s record collection, ’cause clearly there was a lot of great music going on there in the ’80s and ’90s.