Biography

Introduction

Why? is an American hip hop and indie rock band. Originally the moniker of Berkeley, California artist Jonathan "Yoni" Wolf, Why? became a full band before their 2005 release Elephant Eyelash with Doug McDiarmid and Matt Meldon, as well as Yoni's older brother, Josiah Wolf.

When Matt Meldon left, the band became a three-piece, with Yoni as the primary songwriter and an additional keyboardist at live concerts. In 2008, the group added bassist Austin Brown to their lineup, making them a four-piece once again. In their arrangements, Why? leans more toward folk and indie rock, as opposed to the more hip hop styling of their label-mates. Their lyrics also tend to be very abstract, focusing more on imagery than on any particular story.

Why? is also a member of the Anticon collective of Oakland, California.

Biography

Yoni Wolf was born in Cincinnati, Ohio to Messianic Jewish parents. Before his first year in high school, Wolf discovered an old 4-track in his father's synagogue and began to experiment musically. His forays into rapping, drumming, and poetry followed.

In 1997, while attending art school at the University of Cincinnati, Wolf met fellow student Adam Drucker—better known as Doseone—at the semifinals of the 1997 Scribble Jam. Doseone and Wolf formed the live improvisational group Apogee, along with Yoni's brother Josiah and DJ Mr. Dibbs. The partnership of Wolf and Doseone continued for many years under many guises, including Greenthink and, most notably, Clouddead.

In 2005, Why? released Elephant Eyelash, which deviated considerably from their previous full-length Oaklandazulasylum, primarily as less of an independent solo project to more of the sound of a full indie rock band. To accomplish this sound, Yoni enlisted the help of his brother on drums, Matt Meldon on guitar, and Doug McDiarmid as a random task member. The group toured much of 2005 in support of the album as a four-piece; however, by the time of their May 2006 tour with Islands, the group had become a three-piece, because Matt Meldon moved to an island off the coast of Seattle to live with his girlfriend.

Why?'s discography consists of three full-lengths, four EPs, a number of singles, and a handful of limited edition CD-Rs. Further collaborative work has been done with a number of groups: Hymie's Basement, Miss Ohio's Nameless, Object Beings, and Reaching Quiet.

For their third LP, Alopecia, Why? asked fans to contribute photographs of their palms for the album's artwork. The album was released March 11, 2008 to positive reviews, with "The Hollows" as the first single. Two different European and US versions of the single were released, featuring remixes and covers by Boards of Canada, Xiu Xiu, Dntel, Half-Handed Cloud, Dump, and Islands on their respective issues.

In May 2009, it was announced in an interview with Pitchfork that a new Why? record would be released in the fall called Eskimo Snow. The ten songs on the album were recorded during the Alopecia sessions and are described by Wolf as "the least hip-hop out of anything I've ever been involved with".

Discography

Solo

Part Time People Cage…Or Part Time Key? (self-released, 1999)
Miss Ohio's Nameless (Anticon, 2001)
Oaklandazulasylum (Anticon, 2003)
Early Whitney (Anticon, 2003)

With band

Almost Live From Anna’s Cabin (limited tour release, 2003)
Sanddollars (Anticon, 2005)
Elephant Eyelash (Anticon, 2005)
"Whispers Into the Other" promo single (Anticon, 2005)
Rubber Traits EP (Anticon, 2006)
"Dumb Hummer" 7" Single (Anticon, 2006)
"The Hollows" 12" Single (Anticon/Tomlab, 2007) (tracklist varies between the US and European releases)
Alopecia (Anticon/Tomlab, 2008)
"A Sky for Shoeing Horses Under" promo single (Anticon/Tomlab, 2008)
"Fatalist Palmistry" promo single (Anticon/Tomlab, 2008)
Almost Live From Eli's Live Room (limited tour release, 2008)
Eskimo Snow (Anticon, 2009)

With Clouddead

Apt. A (Mush Records, 2000)
And All You Can Do Is Laugh (Mush Records, 2000)
I Promise Never to Get Paint on My Glasses Again (Mush Records, 2001)
JimmyBreeze (Mush Records, 2001)
(Cloud Dead Number Five) (Mush Records, 2001)
Bike (Mush Records, 2001)
Clouddead (Mush Records, 2001)
The Peel Session (Mush Records, 2001)
The Sound of a Handshake/This About the City (Mush Records, 2002)
Dead Dogs Two (Mush Records, 2004)
Ten (Mush Records, 2004)

With Odd Nosdam

Why? collaborated with Odd Nosdam to release a split EP under their own names on Anticon, and an LP on Mush Records under the name Reaching Quiet, as well as being featured on a compilation album.

Reaching Quiet - "113th Clean" on Ropeladder 12 (Mush Records, 2000)
Why? & Odd Nosdam - The Split EP! (Anticon, 2001)
Reaching Quiet - In the Shadow of the Living Room (Mush Records, 2002)

With other musicians/acts

It's Not Easy Being..., with Greenthink (1998)
Blindfold, with Greenthink (1999)
Object Beings, with Object Beings (2001)
"So Long, Mike, Pt. 1", with Madtoons Beat Orchestra and Black Light District {2001}
Hymie's Basement, with Fog, (2003)
"What a Day Day" remix from What a Day Day, with Fog (2003)
"Poison Pit" remix from The No Music of Aiffs: The No Music Remixed, with Themselves (2003)
"Into the Trees" remix from Men of Station, with 13 & God (2005)
"Freshman Thesis" from Monkey vs. Shark, with Thee More Shallows(2006)
"Crushed Bones" from The Subtle6 Mix, with Subtle (2006)
"Falling" from Yell&Ice, with Subtle (2007)
"The Wig Master" from Remixed & Covered, with Xiu Xiu (2007)
"Well Water Black" from Resurgam, with Alias (2008)
"As I Went Out This Morning" from Unusual Animals Vol. 4, with Cryptacize (2008)
"Rapping 4 Money" from theFREEhoudini, with Themselves, (2009)
"Dice Raw" from Anywhere Out of Anything with Telephone Jim Jesus (2008)