Pages tagged “why”

Of the five W's, "why?" is often the hardest to define. So it makes sense that WHY?, the unclassifiable Oakland-based band—consisting of speak-singer Yoni Wolf, his drummer brother Josiah, and pianist Doug McDiarmid—chose it as the group's moniker. What began with Wolf finding an old four-track in the basement of his father's synagogue has blossomed into a collaborative effort that blends underground hip-hop, neo-folk and art-house experimental music into a wholly unique sound fronted by Wolf's provocative half-sung, half-spoken words.

Some questions that might crop up when perusing the tracklist for the band's latest album, Alopecia (due out March 11 on Anticon.), include:

Q: What the hell is alopecia?
A: A skin disease that causes loss of hair across the entire body.

Q: Will I need a dictionary to decipher Wolf's always-verbose lyrics?
A: Probably. But you'll learn new things in the process!

Q: Does WHY? care about all the suffering in the world today?
A: Most definitely.

Q: Where can I get that sweet, previously unreleased, makeout-speed WHY? cover of The Cure's "Close To Me"?
A: Right here!

What are the songs on Alopecia?

1. The Vowels, Pt. 2
2. Good Friday
3. These Few Presidents
4. The Hollows
5. Song of the Sad Assassin
6. Gnashville
7. Fatalist Palmistry
8. The Fall of Mr. Fifths
9. Brook & Waxing
10. A Sky for Shoeing Horses Under
11. Twenty Eight
12. Simeon's Dilemma
13. By Torpedo or Crohn's
14. Exegesis

And one final question: Where can I see WHY? perform live?:

March
6 - San Francisco, Calif. @ Great American Music Hall
7 - Los Angeles, Calif. @ Natural History Museum *
8 - Tucson, Ariz. @ Solar Culture ^
9 - Phoenix, Ariz. @ Modified Arts ^
11 - Denton, Texas @ Rubber Gloves ^
12-15 - Austin, Texas @ SXSW
16 - Houston, Texas @ Rudyard's Pub ^&
17 - Baton Rouge, La. @ Spanish Moon ^ %
18 - Atlanta, Ga. @ The Drunken Unicorn ^
19 - Asheville, N.C. @ Grey Eagle ^
20 - Charlottesville, Va. @ Outback Lodge ^ @
21 - Philadelphia, Pa. @ First Unitarian Church ^ $
22 - New York, N.Y. @ The Knitting Factory ^ % +
23 - New Haven, Conn. @ Sundazed At BAR ^
24 - Northampton, Mass. @ The Iron Horse ^
25 - Cambridge, Mass. @ The Middle East ^
26 - Montreal, Quebec @ La Sala Rossa ^
27 - Toronto, Ontario @ Silver Dollar ^
28 - Ann Arbor, Mich. @ Pierpoint at University Of Michigan ^ #
29 - Newport, Ky. @ Southgate House
30 - Cleveland, Ohio @ Beachland

April
1 - Columbus, Ohio @ Cafe Bourbon Street
2 - Bloomington, Ind. @ Space 101
3 - Chicago, Ill. @ The Abbey Pub
4 - Milwaukee, Wis. @ Cactus Club
5 - Madison, Wis. @ Cafe Montmartre
6 - Minneapolis, Minn. @ 7th Street Entry
7 - Fargo, N.D. @ The Aquarium
8 - Omaha, Neb. @ The Waiting Room
9 - Columbia, Mo. @ Mojo's
10 - Lawrence, Kan. @ Jackpot
11 - Denver, Colo. @ Hi-Dive
12 - Salt Lake City. Utah @ Urban Lounge
14 - Missoula, Mont. @ Badlander
15 - Spokane, Wash. @ Big Easy
16 - Vancouver, B.C. @ Media Club
17 - Seattle, Wash. @ Vera Project =
18 - Portland, Ore. @ Holocene
19 - Eugene, Ore. @ Indigo District

* w/YACHT
^ w/Cryptacize
& w/Samara Lubelski
% w/ Panther
@ w/Doofgoblin
$ w/ Br. Danielson
+ w/Son Lux
# w/ Hopalong
= w/ Mount Eerie

Related links:
WHY? (Anticon. artist page)
WHY? on MySpace
YouTube: WHY? in Belgium

Got news tips for Paste? E-mail news@pastemagazine.com.

[Above: Yoni Wolf of Why?]

Back in June, we asked a very simple question: Can rock save the world? Results so far, of course, have been mixed. Lately, most of the news on the rock activism front has stemmed from prominent individuals compiling songs for worthy causes. Recently, however, we caught word of some prominent indie names teaming up to help those affected by AIDS in Africa.

On Nov. 16, Jamie Stewart of Xiu Xiu, Satomi Matsuzaki of Deerhoof and Yoni Wolf of Why? will all DJ at Give In, a concert to benefit Kenya's Nyumbani Children's Home. Organized by Stewart, the show will take place in his band's home base of Oakland, Calif. at the Lower Bottom Gallery. Attendees are asked to make a donation between $7 and $20 at the door, with Kill Rock Stars (home to Xiu Xiu and Deerhoof) matching all of the funds raised at the event.

Nyumbani (meaning "home" in Swahili) serves as a shelter for Kenyan boys and girls who have lost their parents to AIDS. Many of these children test HIV-positive at birth, despite the fact that some 75% of them never develop the disease. Parents, however, often abandon positive-testing newborns out of resignation. Nyumbani houses and cares for approximately 100 such children from throughout Kenya, and even boasts its own award-winning singing group, Watoto Wa Mungu (Swahili for "Children of God"). Even in the most dire of situations, music continues to thrive.

For more information on Nyumbani and how you can help its AIDS outreach programs, visit the organization's website.

Related links:
Xiu Xiu on MySpace
Paste: Peter Gabriel, Annie Lennox, Ludacris to play AIDS benefit
YouTube: Mashifta feat. Watoto Wa Mungu - "Mfalme"

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.