by Tim McMahan,  Lazy-i.com

When the project first emerged in the mid-2000s, WHY? was classified as an “alternative hip-hop” band fronted by Cincinnati rapper/singer Yoni Wolf. And there certainly was plenty of rap to go around on their 2008 breakthrough album Alopecia (Joyful Noise Records).

And while there’s very little rap to be heard on WHY?’s latest, The Well I Fell Into (2024, Waterlines), the songs’ rhyme and meter often sound like sung rap lyrics, with their tumble-on lines that could have been spoken over a thick beat instead of sung atop the often dense, bouncing arrangements (produced by Brian Joseph of Sufjan Stevens/Bon Iver fame). 

In some ways, WHY? has evolved along a similar path as Beck, whose early nonsense lyrics left people scratching their heads at their meaning, which sometimes happens with these lyrics, though the album’s overshadowing theme involves moving through life with a broken heart, or as the one-sheet explains: “The new LP is an autopsy of heartbreak as it charts the ups and downs of a devastating breakup while trading bitterness for healing.”

While some tracks are slow-burn pain anthems (the forlorn “Marigold,” the downcast “Jump”), the album’s center pieces consist of more upbeat slow-burn pain anthems. At their best (“Atreyu,” “The Letters, Etc.”), the songwriting recalls Magnetic Fields or even Sufjan.

In addition to usual bandmates Josiah Wolf, Doug McDiarmid and Andrew Broder, that album includes collaborations with indie up-and-comers Ada Lea, Gia Margaret, Finom’s Macie Stewart, as well as Lala Lala’s Lillie West and Serengeti. 

In support of the Sept. 24 headlining show at Slowdown, we caught up with WHY?, who agreed to take the infamous Ten Questions survey. Here are the answers (presumably provided by Yoni himself):

1. What is your favorite album?

The Range of Light Wilderness s/t.

2. What is your least favorite song?

Some kind of loud white blues rock guitar shit that feels like it should accompany a commercial for Fireball or Jack Daniel’s. 

3. What do you enjoy most about being in a band?

Sitting in a van listening to audiobooks. 

4. What do you hate about being in a band?

Sitting in a van after my AirPods die.

5. What is your favorite substance (legal or illegal)?

Spring water.

6. In what city or town do you love to perform (and why)?

Omaha of course because it is objectively the greatest city in the world. 

7. What city or town did you have your worst gig (and why)?

Small town in Slovenia called Murska Sobota. We played for about 10 teenage boys at a tiny rec center, or maybe a halfway house with grease-stained walls. They were making fun of us the whole time and there was a threatening air about the place. Runner up would be the time we played a Quiznos in a student center in Michigan. 

8. Are you able to support yourself through your music? If so, how long did it take to get there; if not, how do you pay your bills?

Yes, I am. It only took a few years to be able to do this but I am very frugal and lived off of cans of beans for the first decade. 

9. What one profession other than music would you like to attempt; what one profession would you absolutely hate to do?

I think I’d like being a therapist or a visual artist. I wouldn’t be good as a cop or anyone that works in a hospital (phobias). 

10. What stories have you heard about Omaha, Nebraska

I just know about Warren Buffett, Conor Oberst, Saddle Creek, lots of steak, flatness, cows (alive), and people drinking a lot. It’s like a secular, sinful Salt Lake City.  

WHY? plays with NNAMDÏ Tuesday, Sept. 24, at Slowdown. Tickets are $20; showtime is 8 p.m. 

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Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2024 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.