Dean Ween

Michael Melchiondo, Jr.
Dean Ween performing with Ween at Flames Central in Calgary, Alberta on November 16th, 2007.
Background information
Also known as	Dean Ween
Born	September 25, 1970(1970-09-25) New Hope, Pennsylvania United States
Genres	Alternative rock, experimental rock, neo-psychedelia, hard rock, lo-fi
Occupations	Musician
Instruments	Vocals, guitar
Associated acts	Ween, Moistboyz
Notable instruments
Fender Stratocaster[1]

"Deaner" can also refer to the development codename of Centrophenoxine.

Dean Ween (also Deaner, b. 25 September 1970) is the stage name of Michael "Mickey" Melchiondo, Jr., American guitarist and half of the alternative rock group Ween.

Biography

Growing up, Melchiondo listened to a variety of music from The Beatles to Parliament/Funkadelic, to Leonard Cohen to Prince, to The Ramones to Laurie Anderson. He has a very wide range of musical influences.

Dean later met Aaron Freeman (Gene Ween) in a junior high school typing class in their hometown of New Hope, Pennsylvania, and although the two did not get along at first, they soon found they were soul brothers and thus adopted the common surname. The Ween brothers were soon spending all of their time in Melchiondo's bedroom, Melchiondo banging out songs on guitars tuned to open chords and Freeman wailing out the "good word" of the Boognish (a demon god that first appeared outside of their classroom at school and offered them the scepters of wealth and power for their "services") into a cheap microphone. Within a few years, the two found themselves opening for the likes of underground favorites such as the Butthole Surfers and Henry Rollins.

In the wake of Ween's new success with Elektra Records after releasing the albums Pure Guava and Chocolate & Cheese, Melchiondo started up another band with his friend Guy Heller (who had a guest appearance on Pure Guava) called the Moistboyz. This was his introduction to Ipecac Recordings and also the source of his alternative title, "Mickey Moist" (Heller taking the name "Dickie Moist" in typical surname fashion). The Moistboyz' music was, for the most part, a clash of heavy metal and punk rock accompanied by lyrics focused on overtly offensive humor blended with a strange form of social commentary.

After having recorded 12 Golden Country Greats, an album of ten country tunes Ween had written over the years with the help of Charlie McCoy, Buddy Harman, Bobby Ogdin and many other legendary session players in Nashville, he married longtime girlfriend Ellen Schmit (whom he met when she pulled up in her pickup truck at his job pumping gas at a Mobil Station). The couple had a baby boy in December 2000. The family currently resides in New Jersey.

Dean made significant contributions to two projects by his friend Josh Homme: The Desert Sessions and Queens of the Stone Age. On the critically successful 2002 Queens of the Stone Age album Songs for the Deaf, Dean played guitar on "Mosquito Song", "Gonna Leave You", and "Six Shooter".

In 2009 Mickey Melchiondo received his captain's license and regularly leads fishing trips off the Jersey shore as Mickey's Guide Service.^[2][3][4]

Side projects and appearances

Year	Title	Label
1993	En Esch - Cheesy	TVT Records
1994	Moistboyz - Moistboyz I	Grand Royal
1994	Moistboyz - O.G. Simpson	X-Ploit Records
1995	Moistboyz - Second Hand Smoker	Arson Records
1995	Kostars - Klassics With a 'K'	Grand Royal
1996	Moistboyz - Moistboyz II	Grand Royal
1996	Yoko Ono - Rising Mixes	Capitol Records
1996	Ben Vaughn - Instrumental Stylings	Bar None Records
1997	Z-Rock - Hawaii	Nipp Guitar
1998	Hub - Hub	Slash Records
1999	Ben - Wool	Ben Chatrer
2001	Pigface - Preaching To The Perverted	Invisible Records
2002	Moistboyz - Moistboyz III	Ipecac Recordings
2002	Ben - I Am a Monster	Ben Chatrer
2002	Rollins Band - Rise Above: 24 Black Flag Songs to Benefit the West Memphis Three	Sanctuary Records
2002	Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf	Interscope Records
2003	Desert Sessions - Volumes 9 & 10	Ipecac Recordings/Rekords Rekords
2005	Moistboyz - Moistboyz IV	Sanctuary Records
2005	Moistboyz - Moistboyz IV	Sanctuary Records
2005	Chris Harford - Looking Out For Number 6	Chocodog Records
2011	Ben - Bath	Ben Chatrer

References

1. ^ Ween - Dean Ween Guitar Rig Gear and Equipment Uberproaudio.com Retrieved: 2009-05-16
2. ^ "CHOCOLATE AND CHEESE AND STRIPED BASS - Half of Ween Will Take You Fishing in New Jersey for $300 - Vice Magazine". Viceland.com. http://www.viceland.com/int/v17n1/htdocs/chocolate-and-cheese-and-striped-bass-296.php?page=1. Retrieved 2011-06-26. 
3. ^ "Mickey's Guide Service". Mickeysfishing.com. 2010-01-01. http://mickeysfishing.com/. Retrieved 2011-06-26. 
4. ^ Robert Sciarrino/The Star-Ledger (2011-06-14). "By night, he's a rock star - by day, he's a fisherman". NJ.com. http://www.nj.com/entertainment/music/index.ssf/2011/06/by_night_hes_a_rock_star_by_da.html. Retrieved 2011-06-26. 

External links

• Dean Ween at the Internet Movie Database

Persondata
Name	Ween, Dean
Alternative names	Michael Melchiondo, Jr.
Short description	American musician
Date of birth	September 25, 1970
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death