Interview: Andrew W.K. Is Gonna Party In St. Louis

That's right. Andrew W.K. is coming to town. Well, he's coming to my town. And probably your's too! But more importantly he's coming to mine. So I hit shot him an email and wouldn't you know? He agreed to do an interview with me. Looks like Mr. W.K. knows a bit about my city, and he's ready to share some insightful moments with my readers and I. Are you ready to party?

First question: We know who Andrew W.K. Is (at least we should!), so give me three adjectives that describe you.

Adjectives? Living.... Talking -- no wait that's not an adjective. Well I guess just Party, Party, and Party.

You are coming to St. Louis and I am completely excited.

It's actually one of my favorite cities we've ever been to, but I haven't been there in a long time. I certainly haven't played any of my special solo party shows there, so I'm really looking forward to being back.

When was the last time you were in St. Louis?

It's possible we went nearby in Warped Tour 2010. In terms of my own show, it's been probably since 2004. Way too long! This time while we are there there's a special museum I want to go to that people have told me about. You get to climb through a school bus that hangs over a rooftop.

Oh, you mean the City Museum?

Yeah. Is it amazing?

It's meant for children, but I don't think they'd keep Andrew W.K. from having fun.

I'll definitely check it out!

You surround yourself with such amazing musicians such as Cherie Lily and Aleister X. Why tour it alone?

I've toured with Cherie and Aleister X quite a lot. I've also got an incredible band that tours with me, but playing solo has a level of vulnerability for me. I feel very exposed. I can't rely on the power of my amazing band to carry me through. It pushes me to the heights of my abilities. Also when I started making music as Andrew W.K. about fourteen years ago, I did shows alone because I didn't have a band yet. I want to stay close to that feeling and pay respects to my beginnings. It's the kind of show I really, really enjoy. I like being in smaller venues where I can see and touch everybody. It's an important experience for me. It is a bit selfish, but that's ok. I have to stay energized by what I'm doing or I think, overall, people aren't going to be entertained by what I'm doing. Everyone in the room kind of becomes my band and performs with me. It's not a concert, it's a room full of people together to celebrate each other.

So it that what makes these solo shows so special?

It feels risky, a little humiliating -- but in a good way. It's humbling and keeps me close to the source of where all this energy emanates from. It's how this started and how it's going to continue.

We expect to hear your big name track "Party Hard", but what else can we look forward to on the Human Party Machine tour?

I'll do all kinds of songs. I'll change up my track "I Love New York". Maybe I'll make it "I Love Sweet St. Louis". I'll play an extended version of "Long Live The Party". All of them are going to be more electronic due to me being solo; much more drum machine and keyboard driven. "I Get Wet", "Ready To Die", "It's Time To Party", "Take It Off", and of course "Party Hard" like you mentioned. I also tend to make up songs as I go.

It's been a while since we've seen a new release from you. Will we get a preview of something that hasn't made it out yet?

There are moments of pure improvisations. When I'm by myself I can do pretty much anything I want on the spot. I have been working on new songs, and we sometimes put them on during live shows. I definitely think I'll have a few things nobody's ever heard before, that's for sure. Probably new things that I've never even heard before.

You have two tours going on at once, actually. The second tour is with Marky Ramone. How did you get involved with his Blitzkrieg Band?

It's this unbelievable occurrence. I'm blown away by it and extremely thankful that he's given me the chance to be his singer. We have a mutual friend named Steve Louis who is pretty big in the New York night life music scene. He's been around for as long as Marky has. Marky was asking Steve who could be his singer for his tour, and Steve suggested me. We met and had an audition, and we just clicked. We've been rehearsing for months and its going to be a world tour.

What was the Ramones song you most excited to perform?

There's so many. "I Don't Wanna Go Down To The Basement" is really exciting. I requested we add it to the set, and he was kind enough to oblige. There were many others, too. "Commando", "Pet Semetary", "Rockway Beach". There's not a single song that isn't my favorite one to sing. The set is actually 34 Ramones songs, but it goes by so fast and is so jam packed. It feels like one long hour and a half song long.

Let's move from punk to kids movies. How did you get your song on Pixar's new movie Monsters U?

Again, I'm really amazed that they wanted to use this song, and even more amazed that they put the words up on the screen. I was blown away. Every now and then we get asked if someone can use the song, and when that one came up, I was especially excited. You never know, though, because in the publishing world you never know if it will end up in the finished product until you actually see it. It's one of the high points of my whole career. The scenes they used it for really are what the spirit of the  song is about. I loved the first one, so I have high hopes that this one will be great.

I got a couple of fan questions for you, too.  Ashley Davies (@AshleyD9697) asking a simple yet important question: What is your definition of Party?

Doing what makes you feel good as a means of paying physical and emotional and spiritual and mental tribute to the things in life you're grateful for. For example: if  you are grateful that it's the weekend, you can party on Friday. If you are grateful that you are born, then you party on your birthday. If you are grateful that you are alive, you party every single day. It's about keeping yourself in touch with what you are thankful for, and celebrating it in whatever makes sense to you at that moment.

George (@gbthreezy) asks: Is it possible to party too hard?

No. Not that I'm aware of.

Because I "like" you on Facebook, I see your party tips. Can we have an Exclusive Taking Over The Universe party tip?

Just when we think we understand everything, we will eventually be brought back down to Earth, yet also elevated far beyond Earth into that place of not know and not fully understanding. Also you may realize that is the best state to be in at all, and to enjoy that confusion. Find peace with chaos and realize that what makes life worth living isn't knowing everything but experiencing as much as you can. Also party very, very hard and be as cheerful as possible.

Check out his official website for a complete list of both the Human Party Machine dates, as well as the Marky Ramone dates. Andrew W.K. will be performing solo at the Firebird in St. Louis on May 22, 2013. Also as an added bonus, check out the epic trailer for Monsters U from Disney and Pixar.