This Is Our Jam: WHY?, “Sod In The Seed”

"He had better be rapping," was our first thought when we heard that indie/hip-hop act WHY? had released its first new track since 2009’s uncharacteristically mellow Eskimo Snow. Then comes lead-neurotic Yoni Wolf out of the gate, hitting-up nicely familiar territory: “I make decent cash, I'm a minor star / And we can't last if she don't drive a hybrid car,” with that sing-songy rhyme scheme fans know well.

While “Sod in the Seed” may be more upbeat than past records, it puts Yoni Wolf back on track as the poster boy for adenoidal anhedonic MCs everywhere (not the biggest category, but still). Between observations on indie fame and complaints about back pain (“threw out my lumbar picking up checks”), "Sod in the Seed" manages to sum up what WHY? is at its very core. “I'll never shirk this first world curse / A steady hurt and a sturdy purse” laments Yoni Wolf, neatly wrapping up a generation into one self-loathing couplet.