I know there are a lot of Wolf-bands out there but I decided that Wolff is my name and I'm keepin' it. I've been planning this project and making albums for a while but it has just now come to fruition as a complete entity unto itself. I previously played in some bands out of Austin, Texas where I used to live, one of which was called Drums and Tuba (The other goes way back and was called Hominy Bob) and for a while there we were playing well over two hundred shows a year. I've spent a significant chunk of time hiding in my apartment and working on being able to pull this solo act off live. The concept I'm working with is that all the sounds are generated by, with, and through the tuba itself with the help of numerous guitar pedals and other sundry looping devices. Singing is through the tuba. Percussion is banging on the tuba. I play the tuba and beat box through it as well. You get the picture. And by the way, there's no need to be afraid. It's not nearly as scary as it sounds.


AllMusic.com
http://blog.allmusic.com/2007/10/22/cmj-report-tuba-vs-pianos/
CMJ Report: Tuba Vs. Pianos
October 22nd, 2007 | 5:31 pm est | Jason Lymangrover
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With dementia setting in from sleep deprivation and many pairs of exhausted eardrums ringing on the heads of attendees, the fifth day of shows concluded with a mega-showcase at Pianos, where a dozen bands performed. What was expected to be a relatively mellow Saturday night (considering that there were no punk or metal groups performing) was especially loud, maybe one of the loudest shows of the fest. The PA was cranked and distorted, but this didn’t stop the crowd from filling up the space and jamming up the entrance for most of the night — with the exception of Ted Nesseth of the Heavenly States, whose unreasonable volume drove most people out in a scurry. Most performances were less memorable than the shining sets by Great Northern (an L.A. poppy-shoegazer boy/girl band with serious sex appeal), Nouveau Riche (a clash of R&B and indie rock, kind of like Teenage Fanclub backing up the Brand New Heavies and guest starring Jay-Z), and War on Drugs (an anti-folk hipster duo that brought to mind an acoustical set of Mercury Rev songs performed by Suicide). Those people with enough endurance to stick it out through the nine hours of music were rewarded with one of the strangest acts of the festival (and that’s saying a lot). Maybe it’s because the last show didn’t start until well after 2 a.m. that the crowd was only comprised of about ten people, but it’s more likely most people saw a guy playing the least sexy, least rock & roll instrument known to man and did a quick 180 back to the meat market of a club next door. Using no pre-recordings, Brian Wolff, otherwise known as the one-man band called Wolff, painted a colorful canvas of sounds through a beaten up, duct-taped tuba. With the assistance of guitar pedals — delay, distortion, bass-synth, envelope filters, phaser, whammy pedals -­ a simple full-bodied horn was digitally transformed into loops that mimicked the electro sounds of Björk’s Post, with airy Sigur Rós lulls creating a gentle, eerie ambience. A transducer mike in the mouthpiece picked the soft vocals of the former member of Austin’s Drums & Tuba, while an acoustic guitar pickup inside captured the high and low frequencies that he tapped on the rim and bell of the horn for percussion. After building off his newly developed beat, he blew a meaty bass line, clicked his pedal to capture it, and switched to a horn solo, disguised as a synthesizer. A lone breakdancer moved rigidly to the beats in the center of the floor, while a few onlookers leaning up against the wall scoffed appropriately at the weirdness of the scene. Those who understood the intricacy of the music at hand were certainly impressed, but most were just confused. The goofy pop-locker explained later that he had no idea what the tuba guy was doing and that the that he was just “caught up in the groove.” The few others who looked past the gimmick and picked up on the true genius of Wolff would go home late in the night, excited to tell their friends about the underdog of the fest and ready to have sweet dreams filled with the futuristic songs of a very eccentric artiste.

http://transeuropexpress.wordpress.com
Reviewed by Julian Wilson
Wolff/Addition by Subtraction
Just when you think that everything’s been done with electronic music comes Wolff with a radical yet, at least on Addition by Subtraction, completely successful idea. The gimmick, if you want to refer to it as such, is that most of the instruments are played through a tuba. What could’ve been a prog-rock disaster of epic proportions is a surprisingly accessible and actually well-crafted disc that sounds completely, breathtakingly original. Bravo! The title track and “What I See” are rooted in the raincoat post-punk of Joy Division; however, Wolff is feeding the cold, ominous textures and pulsating rhythms through a tuba, producing a big, eeriely claustrophobic sound. Add the distorted vocals to them, and you have Goth redefined for the 21st century.
Shockingly, Wolff is incredibly versatile, able to create varied styles with his super tuba powers. “It’s Okay to Be Happy” hops with playful electronica while “Broken Words” slams the scratchy beats of hip-hop with the chilly Euro dance of Kraftwerk. “Combustible” swirls with a jazz-like free flow while “Screaming Tuba” and “Haunted” bring on the industrial grind.

http://www.whisperinandhollerin.com/reviews/review.asp?id=5299
Our Rating: 9 out of 10 stars
Wolff is a visionary that would fit well on Mute Records. Like Aphex Twin and Moby, Wolff is venturing into sonic territory that electronic music, at least to my knowledge, has never crept into. In this case, using the tuba as the primary instrument for the industrial, avant-jazz, and progressive rock structures that he has built on "Addition by Subtraction." The title probably refers to Wolff's minimalistic approach on this record, letting his tuba create much of its futuristic noise, even using guitar pedals on them. If all this seems rather quaint or unlistenable, do not be afraid. This is not an experiment in chaos. Wolff actually has an ear for pop hooks; check out the driving beats of the title track and "Broken Words," for example. Now it may not be pop music in the commercial sense of the word, but Wolff's songs are about as cleverly hummable as Wire's. That's another act whose irreverent spirit was somehow able to manifest itself into toe-tapping, memorable compositions. And while "Screaming for Tuba" may sound like saws slicing through word, Wolff makes it work; as far as industrial music is concerned, "Screaming for Tuba" is edgy yet tuneful. In other words, this isn't an exercise in headaches like Throbbing Gristle at their most dissonant.
Author: Adam Harrington

http://postalternative.wordpress.com
Wolff could be rock’s first tuba hero
March 5, 2008
Derek’s New Music Bin
Artist: Wolff
Album: Addition by Subtraction
Rating: 9/10
Written by Derek Jensen
The day that the tuba becomes a primary instrument in rock & roll is when you know progress has finally been made, that the cutting edge has been sharpened once again. Wolff is seriously ahead of the pack. While industrialists like Nine Inch Nails don’t know where to go anymore, Wolff has clipped on guitar pedals to his tuba and is taking us to sonic terrain previously unheard, at least from my ears. The title cut is oppressive and claustrophobic, recalling Dessau and Ministry and other dark, machine-like European bands from the late ’80s to the early ’90s. However, those acts relied mainly on synthesizers and drum machines to pull off those cyborg effects, not a tuba. ”What I See” and “Screaming Tuba” will leave you similarly bruised.
Wolff never loses momentum or his sense of rhythm; Addition by Subtraction moves along fairly quickly and always keeping our interest. Not everything is grim, either. “Broken Words” is actually danceable. Too weird for you? Maybe, but perhaps not. I was actually surprised at how melodic this record turned out to be. It’s not too far off from the experimental sides of Depeche Mode and New Order.