In my early years as a high schooler, my sister informed me that I would never be a true skier unless I had seen G.N.A.R. The Movie. I had maybe seen a couple of ski movies at that point, just the recent stuff, so I really had no idea what to expect. It, of course, blew me away, and lead me to explore this website, which lead to me following all of the social media accounts, which lead to an internship, which lead to a job.
That movie didn’t just lead to a job, though. Its soundtrack is entirely made up of songs made by two childhood friends in a small Pennsylvania town. Their band, formed in 1984, is called Ween. I wouldn’t say I became a Ween fan after that movie. I became a fan of the G.N.A.R. soundtrack, if anything. It wasn’t until I saw the band live for the first time in October of 2021 that I actually became a fan.
Ween For Boundless Ski Days
Last week, I had the incredible pleasure of watching Ween perform live at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheater. It was a remarkable 37 song set, featuring a whole load of awesome tunes (including Waving My D*ck In The Wind, Happy Colored Marbles, and Gabrielle). As the final song of the encore, Fluffy, was ripped out by Gene Ween, and as tears welled up in my eyes, something clicked for me: Ween is the best band to listen to while skiing.
The band’s placement in G.N.A.R. gives it some major points, but it’s Ween’s versatility that truly makes it so great for shredding pow. We all have different genre preferences when skiing. No doubt about that. And certain conditions or styles of skiing call for different types of music. Reggae rocks for deep powder skiing, punk rocks for crushing moguls, and heavy metal fits for ripping down groomers. Most bands have a few songs that work for a few specific ski related situations. Ween has a song that fits for every ski condition and ski style.
Ween Songs For Your Ski Playlist
Powder skiing? King Billy off the Friends EP will keep you flowing beautifully through the deep stuff. Friends, off the same album, gives you that eurodance feel you might want while ripping down some clean corduroy. Buckingham Green has that epic feel you need to amp yourself up for a huge air or some other dumb stunt, while Cold Blows the Wind has that slow groove that feels oh-so-perfect on an east coast top-to-bottom cruiser. With My Own Bare Hands, Fat Lenny, and Sketches of Winkle give you the energy required to keep your legs pumping as you power through an endless mogul field (bonus points if it’s underneath a lift). If you just like skiing to country, for some reason, they’ve got you covered with 12 Golden Country Greats.
Look, Ween is undoubtably a tough band to get into. Their sound is described as brown, a sound that’s totally their own, and most of their lyrics are incredibly goofy. If you don’t listen to Ween and you want to give it a shot, start off with a good listen of The Mollusk. It’s an incredibly and very beginner friendly album. If you do find yourself enjoying the tunes, add some to your ski playlist, and go see them live the next time they swing through your town. Soon enough, you’ll be paintin’ the slopes brown, just like the rest of us skiing weeners.
Featured Image Credit: Ween via Facebook