​Andrew W.K. Brings the Party to the Aquarium

I’ve tried hard to source it, but Google fails me. The first review I ever read of Andrew Wilkes-Krier’s massively successful debut album, "I Get Wet," went on and on about how brazenly and cleverly dumb it was. Many reviews did at the time. I can’t remember if this was before or after Pitchfork moaned “Alright, this is bullshit” and gave the album a 0.6 out of 10 (not everyone knew what to make of the guy, and probably still don’t).

At any rate, this forgotten review from some forgotten publication made a specific example of lyrics so ridiculous “they must have been found on a delinquent eighth-grader’s textbook” (to quote it roughly”. I think the following excerpt was offered up in support of that point:

Let's get a party going (let's get a party going).

Now it's time to party and we'll party hard.

Let's get a party going (let's get a party going).

When it's time to party we will always party hard.

Party hard, party hard, party hard, party hard party hard, party hard.

It was easy to be intrigued after reading a passage like that. The great thing was that the songs fully delivered on that clever/dumb paradigm. Every song was cranked up to 11. No crescendo. All fortissimo. It was a relentlessly catchy, one-dimensional beer bong of an album. A twice-distilled oak barrel of bombast. It was simple and stripped down, but different than what the Ramones taught us about being simple and stripped down. It had a top note of heavy metal and bottom notes of bubblegum pop and even a little classical (or at least a level of pomp and circumstance that appeared like a grubbier, sweatier version of Flash-Gordon-era Queen). You felt guilty for loving it so much. Was Andrew W.K. for real? Was he supposed to be funny? Nobody was 100% positive, but it was fun and you could pump your fist to it.

You may not be satisfied with the answers to your questions about Andrew W.K. In fact, I got stood up when trying to interview the guy. But Andrew W.K. is out there anyway. And people like him. And this Wednesday, he’ll be playing out at The Aquarium in a very special solo show.

A little research will show you that Andrew W.K. started the party with an early EP and 12” on Bulb Records, a respectable little noise rock label that has hosted Wolf Eyes, Quintron and others. His single vision was fully formed, with versions of songs that would later show up on I Get Wet. It seemed like he was silly fun--a goof on pop music, arena anthems and radio rock--until he showed up on television and in magazines, earnestly, thoughtfully and verbosely spreading his party philosophy. Partying is serious business to Andrew W.K. This single-minded philosophy has inspired six albums and numerous other releases. In 2003, The Wolf followed up I Get Wet, going for Baroque, with large, majestic riffs and ornate keyboards. On more recent material Andrew W.K. has dialed back the screaming a little, but his wall-of-party sound hasn’t softened at all. His fourth album, 55 Cadillac-- a solo piano album--is his most substantial departure from what fans know and love, but mostly he just rocks at 10,000 RPMs.

His role as an ambassador of partying seems a little unhinged on the surface, but it’s also positive and charming to anyone who gets a taste of it. He’s a big goofball, spreading joy and pursuing celebration of every possible kind, but it’s not about hedonism. It’s uplifting, open, empathetic, and it’s worth taking seriously.

Today Andrew W.K. is a bona fide media personality. He has his own advice column in Village Voice and a New York City nightclub. Many people know him as well for his TV appearances as they do his tunes (ask your kids if you have some). W.K. parlayed his party into two children’s television shows: Nickelodeon’s Destroy Build Destroy and Maker.tv’s Meet Me at The Reck.

What might frustrate people about Andrew W.K. is also what makes him so damn likeable. He is unafraid of chatting up talk show hosts, making cameos in Wrestling Video Games or being seen dishing out high fives to little kids. Goodwill is as much a part of the equation as good rock and roll. The guy makes no apologies for being commercial, but he’ll also release a vinyl edition on Load Records or cut a single with Nardwuar the Human Serviette. You won’t find any of the self-importance that dogs most rock stars. Even so, he offers articulate, inspiring and sometimes surprising wisdom to his fans, deftly handling subject matter as tricky as suicide and spirituality. Via his advice column, Andrew W.K. generated buzz by helping the “son of a right-wing asshole” better understand his father, and encouraging an Athiest to pray. In the spirit of finding common ground on which to party--even with those whom with you disagree--Andrew W.K. is doing a radio show on Glenn Beck’s TheBlaze.

W.K. has a pretty broad view of what a party is or can be. It doesn’t have to be drugs, sex and rock and roll (even though he doesn’t have a problem if it is to you.) If you just want a Charleston Chew and some Dungeons & Dragons, that’s a party too. One of his more memorable tweets was: “Being obsessed with professional wrestling counts as partying.”

The point is, partying to Andrew W.K. includes just about anything and anyone. It might be worth coming out on Wednesday just to see how inclusive it is.

IF YOU GO:

Andrew W.K.

Wed, Sept. 2, 9 p.m.

Aquarium, 226 Broadway, Fargo

ticketweb.com