Ween

BIOGRAPHY

Ween formed in 1984 in New Hope, Pennsylvania, when Aaron Freeman (Gene Ween) and Mickey Melchiondo (Dean Ween) began self-releasing cassette albums before issuing three lo-fi records, GodWeenSatan: The Oneness, The Pod, and Pure Guava, the latter landing them a deal with Elektra Records and a hit single in 'Push th' Little Daisies.' Four more polished Elektra albums followed, including Chocolate and Cheese and The Mollusk, before a move to Sanctuary Records produced 2003's Quebec, their first record to reach the Billboard Top 100. Freeman left the band in 2012 to address substance abuse; Ween reunited in 2015 for touring before entering an indefinite hiatus in 2024 tied to Melchiondo's mental health. Across four decades, the duo moved through funk, psychedelia, country, gospel, prog, and punk without repeating themselves.

WHY THEY'RE COOL

Ween's catalog resists easy description, which is exactly the point: critics have likened them to Guided By Voices for acid freaks with a dash of Frank Zappa, or a collision between the Grateful Dead and Tenacious D. What began as two middle-school friends inventing a mock deity called the Boognish grew into one of rock's most devotedly followed cult acts, prized for records that never sound alike and for an irreverence that, over time, revealed real emotional depth beneath the noise.

GEORGE'S PLAYS

First time on the station.

PLAYED ON WOKE1

• Tried And True1 PLAY