Listen: Old Dope, a new mixtape from Yoni Wolf of Why?

Veteran rapper, producer and songwriter Yoni Wolf is one of the mainstays of Oakland's celebrated Anticon label. His main project is Why?, the band he formed with his brother Josiah Wolf in 1998. In many ways, Why? bridge the gap between the first wave of Anticon artists – which saw the label focus on leftfield and experimental hip-hop from the original roster, featuring artists such as Odd Nosdam, doseone, Jel and cLOUDDEAD – and the modern Anticon era, which saw the label expanding its remit to feature the likes of alt.pop prodigies Baths and Son Lux; producers and songwriters like Bracken, and Josiah Wolf's solo work; and alt.rap artists from further afield, such as Edinburgh's Young Fathers.

Since their beginnings, Wolf's Why? have moved farther and farther away from a strictly beats-and-rhymes format towards more experimental, melodically-driven territory, releasing some classic albums along the way like Eskimo Snow (2009) and Mumps, Etc. (2012). Now, as Yoni Wolf prepares to go back on the road playing solo, he has made a return to the hip-hop beats and abstract rap lyrics with which he began his career – and he has released a mixtape to showcase the kind of tracks he'll be playing this spring, with some rarities, classics and a smattering of new tracks, including some early work with cLOUDDEAD, and a remix from Boards of Canada, amongst other treats. You can download the mixtape via Bandcamp, or stream below.

From the archive

INTERVIEWS
Why?'s Yoni Wolf in interview: "My most cherished memories aren’t really even about making good music but just that exploration of ideas..."
Why?'s Yoni Wolf on his favourite rhyming couplets: "If you please, I'd like to lick the icing off..."