Ween

In the mid-1980s, Pennsylvania natives and childhood friends Aaron Freeman and Mickey Melchiondo began recording goofy, genre-hopping songs under the aliases of Gene Ween and Dean Ween respectively. Extolling the virtues of illegal substances and the Boognish, a deity of their own creation, Ween proceeded to accumulate a large following and, surprisingly, transform into a couple of rather remarkable musicians. A major-label deal in the early 1990s led to a bigger audience for Ween, with the duo eventually employing a full backing band and (for their album 12 GOLDEN COUNTRY GREATS) even veteran Nashville session players. By the late '90s, although still perceived as a novelty act by some, Ween had revealed itself as a formidable and dynamic rock band, with or without the jokes.

• rock
• electronic
• 1990s
• 2000s