Man, it seems like just yesterday that a rock newcomer by the name of Andrew W.K. was poised to dominate the world with his debut magnum rock opus I Get Wet, which was chock-full of bombastic rock anthems that recalled such bands as Queen, Judas Priest, and Nirvana, among others.
Industry heavyweights and rock critics alike seemed so certain that Andrew would soon be the biggest act in the world that it almost felt like a foregone conclusion and that all the rest of us could do was obligingly go along with the pack. Of course, not everybody was quite so willing to go along with the supposed tastemakers. Pitchfork founder Ryan Schreiber, for example, wasted no time in taking the album to task in his review.
Alright, this is bullshit. I've had it. Is this what we've been reduced to? Michigan metalheads copping ESPN Jock Jams, capitalizing on the shameful worst of the 1980s and bellowing incessantly about the wondrous virtues of the all-nighter? Rock critics who dissed this entire genre in its heyday now glorifying its second coming as somehow superior? If this is what the future of music has in store for us, why no apocalypse on New Year's Eve '99? Doesn't God care? Shit, maybe Y2K really was Armageddon, launching us headfirst into a great black xFC-metal abyss, and maybe Andrew W.K. is just the first of four pending horsemen.
Surprisingly (or not, depending on whether you agreed with Schreiber's review), the album stalled at #84 on the US Album charts and Andrew slowly receded from the limelight after the lackluster chart performance of his second album, The Wolf.
While we were quite vocal in disagreeing with those who thought Andrew W.K. would soon be a platinum success, we were also quite fond of Andrew's penchant for bombast and felt that he at least deserved the cult success that he had attained. After all, the guy is hilariously over-the-top and seems to be sincere in all that he does, so what's not to like about that?
So it's with a certain glee that we look forward to Andrew's return to the Metro stage on March 25 to celebrate the 10-year-anniversary of the release of I Get Wet.
By the way, tickets for this show go on sale THIS SATURDAY and are available online HERE.