Have you recently read Rolling Stone Magazine's top 100 albums of the decade and wondered where in the H! Andrew W.K.'s "I Get Wet" is on the list? Well that makes three of us (my five-year-old nephew Taj loves this album and has confided in me that I Get Wet is his new favorite album). Besides being one of the greatest album covers of the decade, it is also an album that more than deserves to be on the list of top 100 albums of the decade. I purchased this album in 2003 as part joke, part curiosity, and part guilty pleasure. At first glance it is easy to discriminate and dismiss this album as rubbish and a waste of time, but upon further listening, this album is a complete and utter anomaly, there is nothing else quite like it. Don't make the mistake of judging this album by its cover.
Much like Tom Waits, or Daniel Johnston, Andrew W.K. is either an idiot savant or just a plain idiot; it's near impossible to find a middle ground. With song titles such as "It's Time to Party", "Party Hard", "Party til You Puke", "Fun Night", and "We Want Fun",
it might as well have a bright orange sticker on the cover that says "best served with alchohol" or "buy me frat-boy". Though, look a little closer and you will find an album that's underlining theme is pure, unadulterated optimism. In fact, when he's not partying til he pukes he can be found spending his free time as a motivational speaker and self-help specialist. Andrew W.K. isn't Ernest Hemingway, Nelson Mandella, or Stephen Hawking, he is however "The Prince of Party", "The Chancellor of Fun", and the architect and founder of the music genre called Partycore. I mean who doesn't want an adrenaline filled album that features karate chopping drum fills, hamstring pulling guitar riffs, mindless lyrics, and the use of the word party 65 times, and the word fun 67 times, all while containing only one single curse word?
This album is perfect for working out/running, parties, mosh pits, smashing a table to pieces, or some late night non-drowsy driving. It's even the perfect cure for a bad day or background music to key your ex's car to. I Get Wet is just another example of the fertile Michigan music scene and an album that will quickly show up on your guilty pleasures list if it isn't already on there. It is a cult classic that Pitchfork and Rhapsody among others are now finally giving it the respect it deserves.
PLEASE MOVE ANY NEARBY FURNITURE BEFORE PRESSING PLAY!
Can you count how many times the word "fun" is used?
For the ladies and the more sensitive of men here is an Andrew W.K. cover song
agreed. this album is on my top ten. his performance on snl is legendary
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