Music / White Pepper

I love you, even if you don't...

White Pepper is the seventh studio album by American Alternative Rock band Ween, and it is the follow-up to their acclaimed album, The Mollusk. Continuing the Lighter and Softer direction that was hinted by The Mollusk, the album mainly takes inspiration from 60s and 70s pop and psychedelia, although it still contains the Genre Roulette and juvenile humor seen in their previous albums. It was also their last album released on Elektra Records.

Upon release, White Pepper received a tepid response from fans and critics, most of whom were concerned that Ween were slowly going mainstream and selling out. However, the album's reputation grew over time, and it is commonly viewed by fans and critics as one of their best albums.

Tracklist

1. "Exactly Where I'm At" (4:31)
2. "Flutes of Chi" (3:30)
3. "Even If You Don't" (3:25)
4. "Bananas and Blow" (3:34)
5. "Stroker Ace" (2:08)
6. "Ice Castles" (2:05)
7. "Back to Basom" (3:46)
8. "The Grobe" (3:32)
9. "Pandy Fackler" (3:57)
10. "Stay Forever" (3:32)
11. "Falling Out" (2:28)
12. "She's Your Baby" (3:00)

Let's begin with the tropes in front:

• Big Rock Ending: "The Grobe" ends with one, which culminates in the last note pitch shifted down to a stop.
• Break Up Song: "Falling Out"
• Genre Roulette: The album touches on pop rock ("Stay Forever", "Even If You Don't"), Psychedelic Rock ("Flutes of Chi", "Back to Basom") yacht rock ("Pandy Fackler)", Caribbean music ("Bananas and Blow"), and Heavy Metal ("The Grobe", "Stroker Ace").
• Groupie: The titular character in "Pandy Fackler" is a groupie that seduces Gene in the second verse.
• In the Style of:
  • "Pandy Fackler" is written in the style of early 70's Steely Dan.
  • "Even If You Don't" is written in the style of a mid 60's Beatles song, particularly bearing some stylistic similarities to "Penny Lane" and "All You Need is Love".
  • "Bananas and Blow" takes major cues from the oeuvre of Jimmy Buffett.
• Instrumental: "Ice Castles"
• Intentionally Awkward Title: "Pandy Fackler", "Bananas and Blow"
• Lighter and Softer: The album is seen as this in comparison to the already lighter and softer The Mollusk; it is considered by many fans to be their most mainstream-sounding album.
• Lyrical Dissonance: "Even If You Don't" is a bouncy pop tune about a person who is taking care of a recovering addict.
  • "Bananas and Blow" is a happy-sounding Caribbean-influenced tune about eating bananas and snorting cocaine.
• Minimalistic Cover Art: The album cover merely shows the outline of a white bell pepper against a white background, similar to its inspiration, ''Pepper No. 30'' by Edward Weston.
• Performance Video: The video for "Even If You Don't" (which was directed by Trey Parker and Matt Stone of South Park fame) features the band performing the song in a cabaret club in front of two women, who occasionally leave their seats and flirt with other men while they are away.
• Shout-Out: The album cover is similar in style to Pepper No. 30 by photographer Edward Weston, and the title is a nod to two of The Beatles' most famous albums, The White Album and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
• Textless Album Cover: The standard version is textless, though the album's title was printed on some promo releases. Additionally, some pressings contained hype stickers that featured the title.