Artist bio

Any goofball with a few guitar lessons under his belt and a few more bong hits in his lungs can blather away into a four-track, but it’d be next to impossible to equal the fucked-up genius that is Ween.

With their twisted sense of humor (borderline offensive songs about AIDS, homosexuals, and the mentally ill are the norm) and ability to seemingly master any genre of music (hard rock, country & western, psychedelic pop), Aaron “Gene Ween” Freeman and Mickey “Dean Ween” Melchiondo have carved out a singularly amusing career over the past 15 years. Crude, narcotics-addled early albums such as 1990’s God Ween Satan and 1991’s The Pod set the table with songs that ranged from alternate-universe masterworks or listener-baiting mindfucks (the latter’s “Pollo Asado” is the band ordering a meal from a Mexican restaurant). Ween somehow got signed to Elektra in time for 1992’s Pure Guava, highlighted by the insanity inducing “Little Birdy” and the helium-voiced “Push Th' Little Daisies.”

From there, it was one triumph after another: 1994’s pop/soul plate of Chocolate And Cheese, 1996’s straight-up Nashville romp 12 Golden Country Greats, 1997’s nautical-themed, pomp rock powerhouse The Mollusk, and 2000’s mature but masterful White Pepper, the group’s final Elektra album. Ween is also a notoriously must-see live act, a fact documented by 1999’s double-disc Paintin’ The Town Brown and a series of self-released concert sets.

Albums by this artist

Quebec (2003)

Live In Toronto Canada (2001)

White Pepper (2000)

Paintin' The Town Brown (1999)

The Mollusk (Recommended) (1997)

Chocolate And Cheese (1994)

The Pod (Recommended) (1991)

Concerts

May 12, 2000
The Riviera, Chicago, Ill.

Interviews

Ween Wonderland
August 25, 2003

White Pepper Time!
September 1, 2000

Ween

Paintin' The Town Brown

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» TROY CARPENTER | CO-DIRECTOR

Ween Paintin' The Town Brown Elektra, 1999 RiYL: Captain Beefheart, The Flaming Lips, Syd Barrett, Frank Black

What can I say? It's loud, it's crazy, it's rock:

It's Ween.

If you're unfamiliar with the energetic, audacious, inventive and always fun duo from New Hope, PA, then please go purchase one of their five excellent studio albums. Paintin' The Town Brown would be too much for you now.

But If you're already a Ween fan, get thee to ye local olde record shoppe for an epic infusion of live madness from the kings of '90s quirky rock.

The first disc shows off the band's prolificity and versatility, as they range through songs from the trashy L.A. country of "Mister Richard Smoker" to the hillbilly punk of "Mountain Dew" to the trance funk of "Voodoo Lady," all on the first half of the disc.

But the second disc truly shows Ween's twisted potential, manifesting 67 minutes of material into only three songs, including a 25-minute "Poopship Destroyer" that must be heard to be believed.

You could pretty much say the same thing about Ween in general: Their combination of rock and humor is on a plane of its own. Paintin' The Town Brown captures the essence of their unique live shows.

TROY CARPENTER | Troy Carpenter founded NATN from a Chicago apartment during the ambitious winter of 1998 with co-conspirators Ben French and Jonathan Cohen. After a five-year stint in New York, he and wife Lourdes have recently relocated to Indianapolis, where he spends days listening to music and nights in the kitchen at Elements restaurant. Musical heroes: Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Super Furry Animals. What else makes life worth living: Sushi, Phucty, runs in the park, and the Atlanta Braves.