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Hoosier band has audiences on their feet INDIANAPOLIS – Why? A simple question. Or not. So, why do Hoosiers have so much love for the band, The Why Store? Many will tell you, it's because they, "Let You In," as the title to one of their rock jams says - a jam that brings people to their feet as they gig around Indiana and beyond. The Why Store provides the kind of atmosphere at their shows where you can let your hair down, as the lyrics suggest. There’s an enviable connection The Why Store shares with their fans, a base whose ranks are growing, as listeners rediscover their unique funk or come across them for the first time. The Why often becomes a Wow. Dancing is also involved.

Joshua Heath ~ Daily News

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The lineup is headlined by The Why Store led by Chris Shaffer who has been well known on the Indiana music scene since joining the band in 1989 at Ball State University. “I always told myself that if I’m going to be blessed enough to play my music; if I can just play for one person and they’re out there listening then I’m going to win them over. I’m going to give them my all,” Shaffer said.

Drew Blair ~ INDIANAPOLIS (WISHTV)

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The Why Store

The Why Store is led by Chris Shaffer an intense, emotional songwriter with a repertoire of 150+ original songs. Add to that another 30 covers, and what you get on stage is a unique experience every night. He does not prepare a set list before his three-hour-long performances and instead draws randomly from his entire arsenal of songs. Chris has never played the same set of songs in the same order. He is very open to his audience and allows his live shows to be recorded and shared freely.

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The Why Store was formed in the late 1980s in Muncie, Indiana. Lead Singer Chris Shaffer, also a Ball State student, joined the band after a few months and they played a few gigs as Emerald City. That same year, the band switched to its present name, The Why Store, the name of a former Muncie haberdashery. 

In 1993, the band independently recorded Welcome to the Why Store. One year later the band recorded Inside the Why Store. Both albums were locally successful, and The Why Store began getting attention from record labels. In 1995, The Why Store signed to MCA’s subsidiary Way Cool Music for their first major-label effort, a self-titled LP, which was released in 1996.

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Their major label debut on MCA Records spawned several hits. The first single, “Lack Of Water”, was a #1 hit on Triple-A Radio for three straight weeks; the band performed “Surround Me” on Late Night with Conan O’ Brien and saw their video for “Father” receive rotation on MTV2 and VH1. The Why Store was a Top 20 album for 1996 and went on to sell 250,000 copies.

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Some of the artists the group shared the stage with include: John Mellencamp, The Clarks, Sonia Dada, The Tragically Hip, Widespread Panic, Eddie Money, Foreigner, Kansas, Train, Cowboy Mouth, Ziggy Marley & The Melody Makers, Violent Femmes, Vertical Horizon, Pat Travers, George Clinton, Cracker, Incubus, Hoobastank, Mickey Hart Band, Robert Bradley’s Blackwater Surprise, The Bodeans, Big Head Todd & The Monsters, Ben Harper, The Samples and Collective Soul.