Black meddlers

>> Ween is kind of like a golf club—with
a Satanic element

DIRGE AND DARKNESS: Ween

by JOHNSON CUMMINS

Dean and Gene Ween have been writing songs together and releasing them under the name Ween since the two met in junior-high typing class in 1984. Having slowed down their recorded output lately, the band embark on a tour on the strength of an EP that comes out this week. Ween’s continuing success could be chalked up to the band’s ability to blur any and all genre lines, and a razor-sharp sense of humour, but it’s their three-hour live shows that have really garnered them the love of their devoted fans. Ween, simply put, is like all of the greats—either you hate them or they’re your favourite band. The Mirror spoke with vocalist/guitarist Gene Ween (aka Aaron Freeman) over the phone from his home in New Hope, Pennsylvania.

Mirror: First off, what possessed you guys to name your last record Quebec?

Gene Ween: I just think that the name Quebec has a nice ring to it. We thought that the record kind of had a cold feeling to it as well, so that helped. It really doesn’t get much deeper than that. None of our record titles really mean much.

M: It seems though, over the last 20 years, you guys have slowly gotten more popular with each new release.

GW: I think it’s just out of default that we have gotten more popular because we certainly don’t try for it. I think being in Ween is just like being part of a golf club—we’re both members and we pay our fees and we just get along with our lives.

M: You’ve also managed to build up a very varied audience, and avoided falling into any particular niche.

GW: That’s really a compliment to us as a band. We started as two people who just liked a lot of different kinds of music. Growing up, we were really into punk rock, but at the same time I was listening to my dad’s Richie Havens records. I’ve never really understood musicians that just stick to one genre of music, which would be impossible to me.

M: You guys have always had a close relationship with your fans, and actually encourage live taping of your shows, and tape trading and file sharing. Is this close relationship important?

GW: No, actually, that’s more Dean’s thing. I can’t listen to what people say about us because it fucks me up. Ween fans are kind of like these people that belong to a club. I do like our fans, though, as they usually have a little bit of dirge and darkness going on even if they come from a jam-band kind of background. I definitely think that in Ween, there is a certain Satanic element going on, and our fans pick up on that.

M: So the new record that you guys are finishing up will be influenced largely by Norwegian black metal?

GW: Yeah, pretty much. Actually, Norwegian Black Metal would be a pretty good title for it.

At Metropolis on Saturday,
June 9, 8 p.m., $37.50, all ages