Andrew W.K.

Andrew W.K.: The WolfThe Wolf (2003)
Island Records

Reviewer Rating: 3.5

User Rating:

Contributed by: maverickScott
(others by this writer | submit your own)
Published on September 16th 2003If you follow this website at all, you know I love Andrew WK more than I love my own mother. I take pride in knowing that I was the first person to call him the "audio messiah," a term that is now sweeping the internet [at least in my mind]. But please don't let my rabid enthusiasm of this man swa.

If you follow this website at all, you know I love Andrew WK more than I love my own mother. I take pride in knowing that I was the first person to call him the "audio messiah," a term that is now sweeping the internet [at least in my mind]. But please don't let my rabid enthusiasm of this man sway you from trusting my opinion on this CD, as I am trying to judge it as objectively as possible.

That being said, this album fucking rocks.

No, it's not as good as I Get Wet. Yes, many of the songs are long, with half of the album's tracks clocking in at over 4 minutes, which is about a minute or so too long for any good AWK song. Yes, a good majority of the album is slow, or at least slower than many of us expected. Does any of that hurt this album's score? Yes, slightly.

There are still some really killer tracks on here. "Long Live The Party" makes me want to run around my room in circles until I pass out. "Tear It Up" makes me want to do just that. "Never Let Down" sounds like the ending of an 80's teen movie where the geeky guy hits the winning free throw, or the unsociable girl is the prom queen. A high five or kiss on the lips ensues, the screen freezes, and the credits start rolling with this as the background music. It's such an incredibly positive track that you can't help but be motivated by it.

The album isn't without it's pockmarks, though. "Free Jumps" is forgettable, as is "The Song." "Make Sex" goes from being a complete throwaway track to being the best song I've ever heard with every other listen - this one song alone is making me bipolar, I swear.

Andrew's lyrics are as positive and sincere as ever, with "Really In Love" showcasing the man's knack for balladry and album closer "I Love Music" giving him four minutes of soul-emptying honesty for the public's consumption. And the best thing about all the songs is, as usual, you're able to sing along before the track is even over.

Oh yeah, once again Andrew plays every instrument on the album. The guy is one talented audio messiah.

The album has a much bigger, 80's feel to it, making it a rather sharp contrast to I Get Wet. No, seriously, you could listen to both albums and definitely tell a difference in sound and style. Andrew seems to be trying new things ever so slightly, and I for one can't wait to hear what he will come up with next. The album's not perfect, but it's fun, and in a time where no one seems to really be making fun, honest music anymore, Andrew WK once again is a breath of fresh air.

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Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not respon sible for them in any way. Seriously.

pasha (October 24, 2005)

good cd,but I Get Wet was better...

MaxTheGreat11 (May 16, 2005)

even better than i get wet. one of the best releases of the year. buy this album.

Anonymous (November 25, 2003)

Besides being possibly the most sincere person I've ever met, his music makes me feel alive. Keep it up!

Anonymous (October 3, 2003)

Nice follow up-cd, mister doesn't own a washing machine and did a shitty job at a follow up cd!

Take That, Mister I-have-2-surnames-so-I-just-shortened-them-to-2-letters-and-didn' t-come-to-canada-on-the-warped-tour!

Anonymous (September 21, 2003)

You people take your music too damn seriously. AWK is fucking sick. He is the man in jeans. Yes, Johnny Cash is a legend and I love him.....but at least AWK didnt write dozens of songs about God (not to mention at least 2 books...)!

Anonymous (September 21, 2003)

AWK this fool makes Kid Rock look like he has class!

I just bought the neww Cd used for 50 cents!

I'm using it as a coaster at the moment.

Anonymous (September 19, 2003)

somebody is planning on killing themselves at a Hell On Earth show soon. might be what you are thinking of.

Anonymous (September 19, 2003)

Is it true that someone tried to kill themselves on stage at the AWK show in Tampa?

Anonymous (September 19, 2003)

I meant AWK down there.

-Justin

Anonymous (September 19, 2003)

AWF is the FUCKING man!

-Justin

Anonymous (September 18, 2003)

" "Long Live The Party" makes me want to run around my room in circles until I pass out."

Why don't you go do that?

Anonymous (September 18, 2003)

The comment below is the dumbest fucking ever said...Johnny Cash and this jackass shouldnt even be in the same sentence together

AWK sucks....his music is cheesy as hell, i dont see why everyone flips out about him...he sucks

Anonymous (September 18, 2003)

If Johnny Cash was the Man in Black, Andrew W.K. is the Man in Jeans. Think about that....

TheOneTrueBill (September 17, 2003)

Ha! nice touch.

Awhile ago a friend and I were listening to DRI and thought "this is exactly what guys like Bill & Ted are supposed to listen to"

Anonymous (September 17, 2003)

Is it just me, or would you concider AWK to be the real life 'Wild Stallons'. You know, from Bill and Ted's excellent adventure. He's going to save the Human race and turn this world into a utopia of everything that is good. I think He's the next Savior, a.k.a the next Jesus Christ.

Anonymous (September 17, 2003)

i'm not a big AWK fan and i only see andrew w.k. as a live act sensation. but i prefer "i get wet" over this.

Ramo

Anonymous (September 17, 2003)

dude its fucking AWK, the man, the myth, the fucking legend. he can do no wrong.

Anonymous (September 17, 2003)

I Get Wet was a classic cd.....this cd is good, I wish it was a little faster....you can tell they focused more on the songwriting aspect on this cd and less on the big party anthems.

RondoMondo (September 16, 2003)

"look at the cover, it's almost like he's just looking at you, disappointed you're even buying this shit."

That's comment of the day material. AWK is just a bunch of over-rated crap. People get mad because there's a Poison the Well review on the site, but when there's an AWK review, they shit their pants. And it's not because he's better than them, because we know this man sucks. Rehashing 80's metal isn't a lost art. And if it's lost, please don't find it.

zGRAVYzHAVOKz (September 16, 2003)

"live by his word and worship him? "we want fun and we want to get wasted!" go kill yourself"

It's not just the whole " we want fun and we want to get wasted!" thing, although there's nothing wrong with that. I'm talking about the idea of everybody, no matter what stupid clique you belong to, getting together and having a good time. There has become too many depressed bands out there, don't get me wrong I listen to that stuff a lot of the time, but how can you argue with the idea of fun?

Also, I thought it was pretty clear that my comment wasn't entirely serious, I dunno. I'm sorry that you can't agree with my views Mr. Anonymous, yet, I don't wish death upon you, I simply wish that one day, perhaps, you're heart will grow 3 sizes and you will stop being such a fucking grinch.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

hey, stop plugging MoS!

andrew wk is absolutely one of the most fun songwriters i have ever heard.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

if you want optimistic listen to mates of state!

im the newest convert to their sound! ITS GREAT!

FortyMinutesWest (September 16, 2003)

Andrew WK looks like my friend's fuck up of an uncle, I wonder if he ever got drunk and mysteriously ended up in New Jersey.

jwinter (September 16, 2003)

"Fake emotions and music to the brim"

I wouldn't call it fake, maybe a little shallow, but sometimes shallow can be fun. Deep stuff gets tiring sometimes.. thats when you throw on some AWK

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

funkisdead: thank you for finding my joke funny. you have made my day.

woohoo! 30th! my luck holds up!

Poisonthesink (September 16, 2003)

Do my eyes decieve me, no Thursday review? THAT surprises me very much.

Oh, no one NO ONE can bring the rock like AWK!

Nonsense (September 16, 2003)

I like AWK as much as the next person, but I can't believe you gave this album a higher score than you gave Small Brown Bike....

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

"God...every description of the new AWK album makes him sound like some posicore mosh band."

Hahahaha... And an MTV promoted specialized VJ would NEVER be that, right?

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

AWK sucks on all levels.

His music promotes unrealistic emotions, crappy cliches, and overall, nothing... He's a big ball of nothing who screams about nothing. A big pile of shit who can't make music, but because his live show is "fun", he's now the greatest ever living artist... Well, people who like music:

This guy sucks ass

For people who don't like real music and like Ax Rose and hair metal and thought the 80s rocked:

You'll love this guy. Fake emotions and music to the brim.

-BSD

funkisdead (September 16, 2003)

shit
this score is for the guy below me.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

woohoo! 24th! i cant believe my luck!

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

live by his word and worship him? "we want fun and we want to get wasted!" go kill yourself

dignin (September 16, 2003)

I get a better "breath of fresh air" when Im in a horribly kept truck stop bathroom in the middle of Wyoming. This shit sucks.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

let me get this straight.... you didnt seem to think very of the new small brown bike but you love this party party drik drink! jock shit?

8dollarclarinetsolo (September 16, 2003)

my impression was that on this one the other band played instruments and he just did piano... because on the back cover i think it has their names and their instrument. my favorite things about this cd are 4 pictures big daddy(the roadie) on the first page standing next to a corvette for like no reason, and the lyrics to free jumps!! haha they are great! as well as make sex, duh.

zGRAVYzHAVOKz (September 16, 2003)

I cannot fucking wait to purchase this album. Andrew WK does not fuck around my friends. Fuck all of you non-beleivers, this man is a true visionary. We should all live by his word and worship him. Fuck Jesus, Andrew WK is the real messiah.

GregSka (September 16, 2003)

AWK kicks ass, there needs to be more musicians out there that are as positive as he is

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

Does AWK play all the instruments on I Get Wet? I thought he only sang and played keyboards. I heard some guy who used to be in Obituary played drums for AWK, or is that just when he plays live? If he does play everything himself, then that's awesome!

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

"look at the cover, it's almost like he's just looking at you, disappointed you're even buying this shit."

That made me laugh so hard!
the 10 is for this comment.

Joey (September 16, 2003)

Ok, listen to this record. Do you not hear how terrible it is? I Get Wet, although possibly the funniest album I'd heard in awhile at the time, was still much more 'rocking' than this Wolf bullshit. AWK can basically be classified as a joke band. Anyone that sees any merit or musicianship in the band needs to reevaluate it. A WWF wrestler, plinking away on a piano and growling how he wants to get wet is funny, but really nothing more. I agree you he actually 'expanded' his musical range on this album and tried out 'different' things. But those different things? They all suck. He should go back to being funny, and quit this ballad shit.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

lets be honest with ourselves...this sucks.

look at the cover, it's almost like he's just looking at you, disappointed you're even buying this shit.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

Wooo hooo! 16th!!!

funkisdead (September 16, 2003)

no sir, i don't like it

Pseudonova (September 16, 2003)

Sure wish I could spell craziest

Pseudonova (September 16, 2003)

I share your love for AWK. He puts on one of the caraziest shows. And although his music may seem simple and repetitive, it is pretty chocked full of talent. ITs like watching a really silly movie, you just have to suspend disbelief and have fun, which is what this music is all about. JUST HAVE A GOOD TIME.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

i hate this shit.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!I get wet!

KirbyPuckett (September 16, 2003)

I don't know if they're all filled up, but the first 1,000 people to register their copy over at awkworld.com recieve a phone call from the "audio messiah" himself.

I'm waiting on mine.

Good album by the way...

- Scott
http://www.local-felons.com/
(Woo woo!)

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

When did he go from greasy to pretty? This score is for that beautiful hair on the album cover and Andrew W.K.'s inevitable Pantene commercial.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

I was a little sad that there were really no balls-to-the-walls, rock out songs but, oh well its still awesome.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

Free Jumps is the best song on the record.

Yellowtrash (September 16, 2003)

God...every description of the new AWK album makes him sound like some posicore mosh band.

adam (September 16, 2003)

Scott made me an AWK convert! This album is incredibly fun.

-adam

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

It says he does in the booklet. Definitely a great album. I like it in some ways more than "I Get Wet" it's a little more fine tuned I think.

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

Third ! :P

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

i bought this and i get wet on friday. both are fucking awesome, the wolf being a little less awesome, but still awesome nonetheless. how are you sure that he plays all the instruments?

Anonymous (September 16, 2003)

i pretty much agree with the review. nice work. i love this album.