To put it lightly, the end of 2001 was a morose time in American history. While the nation was reeling from the deadliest terrorist attack in history, the entertainment industry consoled in the best way it could with a succession of tribute performances and Britney Spears’ regrettably timed reclamation of the pop charts with “I’m a Slave 4 U” (remember that VMA performance?). Rock was splintering into new directions with “The” bands (THE Strokes, THE Vines, etc. etc.) elbowing their way to the forefront alongside rap rock mainstays like Limp Bizkit, Incubus, Staind and the like. Then, something peculiar happened.
It’s hard to remember which came first; seeing the iconic, nose-bleed album cover of I Get Wet or hearing the monstrous single “Party Hard,” but the reaction was similar — who the fuck is this guy?
It was Andrew W.K. throwing a wrench into everything my generation thought a pop song could be. It was brutal, but strangely uplifting; dirty, yet sonically engineered to massive precision, comical, but grounded by the one principle that guides any great rock record — fuck tradition, this is our party now.
Phillip Crandall, an acclaimed music writer and Inverness native, has revisited the release of W.K.’s breakout album in his latest paperback on I Get Wet, part of the books-about-albums series 33 1/3. This insightful look into the album features interviews with some of WK’s closest friends and family, as well as vehement endorsement from the party prince himself.
“I read the book once. And for several reasons I’ve never read it again or even opened it again,” said Andrew WK in a conversation with Interview. “It was an extremely intense experience — very, very emotional in ways I didn’t expect at all.”
Andrew W.K. and Phillip Crandall will stop by the State Theatre in St. Petersburg next Thurs., Jan. 29. WK will naturally perform (along with Wolf Face!) while Crandall will be hawking and signing copies of his book. Tickets to the show are $25.75 at Daddy Kool.
Buy Andrew W.K.’s I Get Wet (33 1/3) on Amazon and support a fellow Floridian. It’s only $11.75! That’s less than a (decent) pizza. Only seven, wait, now six copies left! GO GO GOOOOO!
