Sometymes Why is an American Folk Noir group, formed in 2005 by Kristin Andreassen, Aoife O'Donovan, and

Ruth Ungar Ruth Ungar Merenda was born February 19, 1976, in Mount Kisco, New York. She is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who plays fiddle, ukulele and guitar. She is the daughter of fiddler/composer Jay Ungar and singer Lyn Hardy and a gra ...

. Its members all live in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, though the band tours frequently, at festivals such as

Bonnaroo The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival is an American annual four-day music festival developed and founded by Superfly Presents and AC Entertainment. Since its first year in 2002, it has been held at what is now Great Stage Park on a farm in M ...

. The band has released two records. Their last CD, '' Your Heart is a Glorious Machine'', was released in 2009 on

Signature Sounds Signature Sounds Recordings is an independent record label specializing in Americana and modern folk music. Jim Olsen and Mark Thayer founded the label in 1995 to promote acoustic musicians who were playing in Northampton, Massachusetts. Signat ...

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

called their sound a "heady blend of Americana, old-timey/alternative country and alternative folk."

History

2005: Founding and debut

Contemporary/ neo-traditional folk noir trio Sometymes Why was formed in 2005 by O’Donovan, Kristin Andreassen and

. They came together from other bands, including Uncle Earl the Jolly Bankers (Andreassen),

Crooked Still Crooked Still is an American band consisting of vocalist Aoife O'Donovan, banjo player Gregory Liszt, bassist Corey DiMario, cellist Tristan Clarridge and fiddler Brittany Haas. They are known for their high energy, technical skill, unusual in ...

, the Wild Band of Snee, the Wayfaring Strangers (O’Donovan),

The Mammals The Mammals are a contemporary folk rock band based in the Hudson Valley area of New York, in the United States. The band tours internationally and consists of founding members and principal songwriters Mike Merenda (guitar, banjo) and Ruth U ...

and Jay Ungar & Molly Mason’s Family Band (Merenda). Sometymes Why released their debut CD in 2005 titled ''Sometimes Why''.

called their sound a "heady blend of Americana, old-timey/alternative country and alternative folk."

2009: ''Your Heart is a Glorious Machine''

Sometymes Why's last CD, ''Your Heart is a Glorious Machine'', was released in March 2009 on

and was produced by

José Ayerve José Ayerve (born April 28, 1974) is a recording artist/singer and songwriter and the front man for northeast-based indie rock groups Spouse and Nuclear Waste Management Club. He has released a number of singles and albums on vinyl and CD and i ...

gave ''Your Heart Is a Glorious Machine'' 3.5/5 stars and a positive review, praising the diverse combinations of genres. Wrote '' No Depression'' about the release, the songwriting was "whimsical and honest," while their musicianship was of the "highest quality. Their voices, separately and together, are extraordinary, and lovely." Among various gigs in support of the album, Sometymes Why opened two tours for the Brooklyn

progressive bluegrass Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music that developed in the 1940s in the Appalachian region of the United States. The genre derives its name from the band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Like mainstream country music, it lar ...

group

Punch Brothers Punch Brothers is an American band consisting of Chris Thile (mandolin), Gabe Witcher (fiddle/violin), Noam Pikelny (banjo), Chris Eldridge (guitar), and Paul Kowert (bass). Their style has been described as "bluegrass instrumentation and spon ...

2010-14: Recent projects

Since touring in support of their sophomore album in 2009, the members have pursued their individual solo careers while also periodically touring as Sometymes Why. Since moving to New York in 2009 Andreassen continues to be active with both Uncle Earl and Sometymes Why, as well as with other local groups as a guest artist. As of June 2014 Andreassen was touring with O'Donovan, with both singers performing material from their respective solo albums.

Members

;Current as of 2014 * Kristin Andreassen (2005-2014) - vocals,

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica in ...

glockenspiel The glockenspiel ( or , : bells and : set) or bells is a percussion instrument consisting of pitched aluminum or steel bars arranged in a keyboard layout. This makes the glockenspiel a type of metallophone, similar to the vibraphone. The ...

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called " zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, thou ...

* Aoife O'Donovan (2005-2014) - vocals,

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a musica ...

, baritone ukulele,

Wurlitzer The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...

, soprano ukulele,

(2005-2014) - vocals, fiddle, soprano ukulele,

, baritone ukulele,

;Producers *

Discography

References

External links

SometymesWhy.com
{{Authority control American folk musical groups