Andrew W.K., rock & roll’s reigning king of partying, has announced a tour celebrating his debut album’s 10th anniversary. When his I Get Wet album first exploded onto an unsuspecting public one decade ago, it quickly polarized audiences with an intense sound and even more intense front man. Ten years later, Andrew has decided to do put on a special show in honor of his origins. The band will perform every song from his groundbreaking release, in album order, every night of the tour, including appearances at the Austin, Texas, South By Southwest Festival in March. (Tour dates listed below).
Originally released in 2002 on Island/Universal, I Get Wet was W.K.’s urgent rally-cry to the world. It unleashed anthemic hits like, “Party Hard” and “She Is Beautiful” to an enthralled and sometimes enraged audience, helping secure the #1 spot on the Billboard“Heat Seekers” chart. W.K.’s sound as, Alternative Press proclaimed, “smashes up pop melodies, metal riffs and industrial beats with a hammer..”, and ten years later, it continues to bring pure party happiness to thousands worldwide.
At a time when culture was saturated with pessimism and shadows of negativity, nihilistic messages tended to rule the airwaves. Ten years ago, it was difficult to find any contemporary songs about partying, fun, or positivity. The major-key club-rock sound of I Get Wet, and the undeniably powerful vision of its creator, have both proven influential and ahead of their time. The album’s relentless four-on-the-floor “up with everything” dance rock was a blast of fresh air, and anticipated the shape pop music to come a decade ahead of schedule. As The Onion’s A.V.club noted, the album “rocks almost recklessly, but without the trappings that burden its peers: There’s no camp, no irony, and, most notably, no angst.” The result was a re-setting of the bar for rock music and performance, paving the way for more fun and positivity in culture.
Known as the new ambassador of visceral rock & roll pleasure, Andrew W.K. Andrew’s furious delivery, charismatic charm, and energized enthusiasm continue to this day. His almost singular ability to straddle both mainstream media and fringe culture has made him an instantly recognizable modern pop icon. Besides his own albums – which include a recent collection of improvised piano tracks (“55 Cadillac”), and a tribute album for the Japanimation franchise Gundam – Andrew’s recent accomplishments include hosting the successful Cartoon Network TV program, “Destroy Build Destroy” – with over 1.7 million viewers a week, the program quickly became the #1 show in its time slot for boys 6-11 on ALL of television, and it earned Andrew the “Best Host” award from KidScreen, (a youth TV industry publication). Andrew was invited to write and perform an official theme song to the 2012 World Snowboarding Championship in Oslo, Norway, and serve as the event’s musical diplomat. Andrew has also become a regular commentator on networks like VH1 and FOX.
The recent years have even seen Andrew turning his positive message into motivational lectures at such Ivy League universities asHarvard and Yale, and working with such artists as reggae and dub pioneer, Lee “Scratch” Perry (receiving a Grammy nomination in 2009 for producing Perry’s Repentance album), as well as artists such as Matt & Kim, Soulja Boy, Current 93, Good Charlotte, Steve Aoki, Rivers Cuomo and even The Simpsons animated series (Andrew W.K. performed the theme song for the legendary cartoon’s 20th anniversary episode).
Pre-sale tickets for the upcoming tour are available as of Friday, January 20th, 2012, at 10am ET only on www.AndrewWK.com.
Tickets go on sale to the general public on the morning of Friday, January 27th, 2012.
TOUR DATES
U.S. & Canada
Sat Mar 3 – Vancouver, BC – Venue
Sun Mar 4 – Seattle, WA – Showbox Market
Mon Mar 5 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
Tue Mar 6 – San Francisco, CA – The Regency Ballroom
Thu Mar 8 – Los Angeles, CA – Avalon
Fri Mar 9 – Las Vegas, NV – Body English @ Hard Rock
Sat Mar 10 – Pomona, CA – The Glass House
Sun Mar 11 – Tempe, AZ – The Marquee
Tue Mar 13 – San Antonio, TX – White Rabbit
Wed Mar 14 – Austin, TX – SXSW
Thu Mar 15 – Austin, TX – SXSW
Fri Mar 16 – Austin, TX – SXSW
Sat Mar 17 – Austin, TX – SXSW
Sun Mar 18 – Houston, TX – Fitzgeralds Upstairs
Tue Mar 20 – Denver, CO – Bluebird
Thu Mar 22 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
Fri Mar 23 – Milwaukee, WI – The Rave
Sat Mar 24 – Detroit, MI – St. Andrews Hall
Sun Mar 25 – Chicago, IL – Metro
Mon Mar 26 – Cleveland, OH – House Of Blues
Tue Mar 27 – Toronto,ON – Phoenix
Wed Mar 28 – Boston, MA – Paradise
Fri Mar 30 – Philadelphia, PA – TLA
Sat Mar 31 – Uncasville, CT – Mohegan Sun Wolf Den
Sun Apr 1 – Washington, DC – 930 Club
Mon Apr 2 – New York, NY – Webster Hall
Thu Apr 5 – Atlanta, GA – Masquerade
Fri Apr 6 – Orlando, FL – Beacham Theater
Sat Apr 7 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL – Revolution
UK
Thu Apr 12 – London, UK – Electric Ballroom
Fri Apr 13 – Manchester, UK – Club Academy
Sat Apr 14 – Glasgow, SCO – Garage
More info: www.AndrewWK.com
Jason Price founded the mighty Icon Vs. Icon more than a decade ago. Along the way, he’s assembled an amazing group of like-minded individuals to spread the word on some of the most unique people and projects on the pop culture landscape.
