Currently, the core trio of The Why Because is Michael Henning, Gabriel Raines, and Brian Relph, but we occasionally have a few guests here and there...............
Past, Present, and Future members, guests, and collaborators: Raj Ojha (aka OKR), Ryan Miyashiro, Dave Sloves, Counterwave K, Michael Shaw, Erin Raines, Erika Hauskens, Josh Russell, Dan Wooldridge, Brian Michelson, Elisa Ferrari, Tim Wilson, Marty Dowers, Dax Pierson, Angela Hsu, Marcy Saude, Craig Detwiler, Billy Sprague (aka Galena), Jonah Tice, Juan "Wonway" Amador, Ayentee, Ben Knight, Nathan Hubbard...
Influences
Sound in general, the history of sound and music, the nature of sound, the sounds of nature, the nature of life, the lives we live... pretty much anything and everything is inspiring to us in some way...
As for music, musicians, and artists, some of our favorites include: Can, Sun Ra, Mimir, This Heat, Faust, Boredoms, Idyll Swords, Harry Partch, Codona, Gamelan music, Alice Coltrane, King Tubby, Bayon, Gang Gang Dance, African drumming, Valerio Cosi, John Giorno, Caetano Veloso, Art Ensemble of Chicago, James Joyce, Herbie Hancock, Conrad Schnitzler, Panda Bear, Peter Whitehead, David Lynch, Cul De Sac, Indian Ragas, AMM, Wong Kar-Wai, Lou Harrison, Cluster, Brian Eno, Juana Molina, Flying Saucer Attack, Akron/Family, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Chris Watson, Bembeya Jazz, The Orb, Luigi Russolo, John Fahey, Mbira music, Rollerball, Os Mutantes, Black Dice, White Rainbow, Thelonious Monk, Fennesz, Italo Calvino, MEV, Amon Tobin, Harry Bertoia, John Cage, Tom Waits, Georges Braque, No-Neck Blues Band, Teeth Mountain, Emeralds, Bobby Hutcherson, Alexander Jodorowsky, Califone, Celia Cruz, Neu!, Bird Show, Lee Perry, My Bloody Valentine, the Secret Museum of Makind series, OOIOO, Duke Ellington, Cosmic Jokers, Glenn Kotche, Talk Talk, Morton Feldman, Physics, The Books, Orchestra Baobab, Public Enemy, The Band, Stan Brakhage, Gastr Del Sol, Miles Davis, Tortoise, The Fall, Tim Hecker, Creation Rebel, Annie Gosfield, George Russell, Harmonia, Don Cherry, Animal Collective, Gilberto Gil, Mountains, The North Sea, Edgar Varese, Noam Chomsky, Cerberus Shoal, The Present, Tricorn & Queue, Talking Heads, Valet, Erkin Koray, Dorothy Ashby, Excepter, Climax Golden Twins, Richard Delaunay, Pocahaunted, Mouse on Mars, Fela Kuti, Thuja, Chris Marker, Magic Lantern, Arsenio Rodriguez, Clogs, Soft Circle, Timet, Seefeel, 23 Skidoo, Charles Mingus, Sun City Girls, Fabio Orsi, Neil Young, Richard Brautigan, Erik Satie, Frequency, Curtis Mayfield, Polvo, Toru Takemitsu, Lucky Dragons, Sublime Frequencies collections, Godspeed You Black Emperor!, and lots of other weird psychedelic stuff, world music, exotica, field recordings, recordings of early 78rpm records, sound collages, musique concrete, tape music, noise... etc.
The ever-changing roster of the impressive ensemble known as The Why Because is graced with numerous music luminaries from around the Bay Area. The line-up for Music shapes, their third release, is a six member crew including folks from Anticon/Lex avant-hoppers Subtle and Themselves. The disc's five lengthy improvised tracks (recorded live back in 2004) explore the far reaches of jazz, postrock, psych/space rock and ambient experimentation. And they incorporate an even broader array of instruments with trumpet, saxophone and percussion taking prominence amid the Fender Rhodes, other keyboards, bass clarinet, guitar, bass and melodica. Music shapes commences with "Fenced Bird Takes Flight" a barren landscape of faintly blown horns and Spartan drumming. This gradually blossoms into a more fleshed out and sprawling journey with many mesmerizing and meditative stretches as well as more kinetic cyclical passages. - Aquarius Records
Bringing to mind the spacious explorations of electric Miles Davis, the oddball structures and sounds of Gang Gang Dance, the repetition of Can, and even some funk and hip-hop influences as well. Their long list of influences may have played some part in the long run, but in reality, there is very little quite like The Why Because. Though only five tracks long, Musicshapes is a lengthy release, carrying each song with loose structures into unforeseen horizons. Truly captivating stuff. - Treblezine.com
It takes a terribly large amount of talent to pull off what The Why Because has done together on this album. It would take a group of average musicians years to fine tune the work that this collective created in one evening together. This is definitely a scene to keep an eye on. "8 out of 10" - The Silent Ballet
A musical collective of an amorphous nature, The Why Because are improvisers, explorers, alchemists, and seekers of new realms... Group personnel has evolved over time since their inception in 2002, allowing for consistently variable interactivity with each new recording or live show. The improvising skills of key members have been honed through several years of playing together in various contexts stretching back as far as the mid-1990's.
Inspired by everything from avant-rock, jazz, dub, and traditional world musics to ambient and electronic music, cinematic scores, found sounds, noise, and experimental sound art, The Why Because utilize various improvisational and compositional approaches and an eclectic array of instrumentation (including some homemade percussive devices) to create an unusually textured and imaginative form of music which defies easy classification. Ultimately interested in fusing elements from various existing genres of music together in order to create new hybrid musical forms, they aim to create an organic, cosmic soundworld which exists at the crossroads of the ancient past and the distant future.
Due to the improvised nature of their live sets, no two performances are ever alike. They have shared the stage with a number of diverse artists, including Valet, Climax Golden Twins, Glenn Jones (Cul De Sac), The Drift, MV/EE (ex-Tower Recordings), Silver Summit, Good For Cows, Inca Ore, Odd Nosdam, O-Type, Eats Tapes, Moodring, irr. app. (ext)., Bunky, Triangle, Painted Cakes, Flying, (VxPxC), Voices, Bulbs, Wobbly, Father Murphy, Sean Smith, Capillary Action, The Loyd Family Players, and Nathan Hubbard.
The Why Because have released 4 CDs on their own Musicshapes label, with a few more releases currently being prepared. Please feel free to contact the band regarding booking inquiries, to purchase recordings, to network for touring/releases/compilations, or anything else here on myspace or at thewhybecause (at) gmail (dot) com
Discography:
004 - 'The Maze Changes' was finished in October of 2008 on the eve of an East Coast Tour. Clocking in at roughly 48 minutes, it features the core trio and contains three recent tracks created at home in the studio and four excerpts from live performances. Spray-painted CD-r housed in a plastic sleeve with printed color insert. 2008 release. ~$6 postpaid in the US.
003 - 'Musicshapes' is a 55 minute long set of improvisations recorded by a sextet featuring Marty Dowers and Dax Pierson from Subtle, with no overdubs. Recorded summer of 2004 during the first meeting of this particular incarnation of the group, about 6 months before the accident which left Dax paralyzed. A portion of the sales from this CD go to the Dax Recovery Fund. CD in jewel case with hand glued cover photo fragment (each one is unique). 2006 release. ~$10 postpaid in the US.
002 - 'Impermanent Alloys' is an eclectic album (about 54 minutes of music total) culled from a series of improvisations during the period of 2002-2004, with some subtle studio touches added in a few places. Features contributions from members of several notable Bay Area artists, including Birds & Batteries, The Yellow Press, OKR, Run_Return, The Mothballs, Conspiracy of Beards, and Flimsy Vessels... Limited CD-r in black cardboard jacket w/sticker and hand-glued individual nature photo clippings. Released in 2005. ~$6 postpaid in the US.
001 - 'Universal Evolution' has a 32 minute live recording from 2003 featuring a 10-piece version of the group, plus another 13 minute ambient piano and electronics track from the duo of Michael Henning and Josh Russell. Limited CD-r in black cardboard jacket w/sticker and unique pen art covers. 2003 Release. ~$6 Postpaid in the US.
hey you guys ~ wanted to share. plus, how easy is it for you to play Boston? New York? gotta put something together for this summer. keep in touch ~ mali + jaggery
hey.. thanks for the note and happy to hear new music is being made. we would definitely be into playing again. we'll be on the road april so maybe sometime after in the spring?
yeah we were wanting to do something like that, we'll get back to you. We are starting phase 2 right now so we still need to get organized with that (which is top secret at the moment)
HEY- LOOK WHO'S PLAYING! The Why (film) and The Why Because both on the same night!!! & IF THE TICKETS ARE THIS RAD, THINK HOW RAD THE SHOW IS GONNA BE, AND THAT WILD CHILD YOU SEE ON THE TICKET, OUR KANGAROO KATE (SIERRA GRANGER) WILL BE HOSTING THE NIGHT WITH US. 2/28 GOODBYE BLUE MONDAY
hey, thank you so much, sorry for the late reply! fall is probably best for getting gigs here, it all goes a bit quiet during the summer and it can be more difficult to set up shows... not impossible though if you prefer then. let me know if you want help setting up some shows and I'll get on the case. I would love to have you play at Sonic Sanctuary! I will be coming (fingers crossed) to No Fun Fest in May, I can't resist the temptations of that lineup plus Brooklyn. charlie
not sure if/when Bonanza City will be playing again, but we'll definitely let you know if we head your way. you can check out the last show we played back in oct at the someday lounge. it's up on their virtual stage archives. it says "colt vista" on the video, but it says that through the whole show because they headlined. yes, that's me w/ the shaved head...no more braids. aki
OH HEY- I'M HIRING A PUBLICIST FR THE SHOWS The Why is a dark, surreal meditation on death, love lost, and the self-destructive nature of memory once it becomes obsession. It takes place "In Life" and in "The Nowhere Place". It’s about what happens…In The absence Of Love, In The Absence Of Hate…In the absence Of Reason.
MUSIC IN THE WHY FOR FESTIVAL USAGE: The Butthole Surfers, The Dresden Dolls, Trevor Dunn (of Mr. Bungle) Tim Barry (former frontman for Avail), Sxip Shirey, Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys, Mali Sastri (of Jaggery) FEEL FREE TO PASS US & OUR CLIPS AROUND. BIG LOVE- ELI
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