Tag Archives: WTF

Andrew WK Is A Real Person.

Ok, so are you scratching your head? I was too when I first saw this.

Apparently people out there, very bored people I would imagine, came up with the idea that Andrew WK is involved in a brainwashing scheme of sorts. Basically some people out there find it hard to believe that someone can make it big with passion alone. These people have come to the conclusion that Andrew WK is part of a conspiracy or a victim of a huge spider’s web of corporate entertainment plots.

So wait, Andrew WK is a super spy?  Now I got myself all confused.

Maybe it would be best to have Andrew WK himself talk about what nonsense is going on.  The following came direct from his website:

Since 2001, I have been accused of being part of a conspiracy in which I knowingly entered into a contract with creative directors called Steev Mike, who proceeded to invent a new identity for me to perform under. I’m here to say this is simply not true and a gross exaggeration of easily explainable and common-place music industry practices. Of course I work with people who choose not to include their whole names or real names in the credits, or who aren’t on stage with me during my shows – but taking advice and guidance from other people doesn’t mean I’m a victim of mind-control. That’s like science fiction! Andrew W.K. is about partying and doing what you want! We want fun, and that really is what I am about.

These lies have unfortunately been with me since my career started – critics were saying I had to be a fake puppet for the record industry because I appeared over night. These simple untrue allegations have grown over the years to the point now where I have to defend myself. I have done many interviews and talks where I have explained the nature of how I got into music, and I admitted that I did work with people. But people have still taken what I said and tried to call me a liar and a fake. What alarms me most about these accusations is that they remind me of witch trials: The kind of people who accuse me of being a talking head for some secret conspiracy to corrupt people’s morals are the same people who claim MTV and Cartoon Network are owned by secret rulers of the world out to poison kid’s brains, or that pop stars like Beyonce or Lady Gaga are part of some occult society, or that companies like McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, or Hollywood are secretly promoting hidden plans. Or that the President of the USA is just a figure head and reading a script given to him by a secret world power. Come on!

We’re working in a business where there are different ends and different means. No one controlled Frank Sinatra or told him how to sing. No secret group of managers has been telling someone like Jay-Z what to do or how to look. And no one tells me what to do, except me and the people who believe in me. I am a real person who thinks for himself and am not the victim of anyone or group of people trying to influence my career or life. I take responsibility for everything in my life, including who I work for and what happens to me because of it. Just because a person has mentors or advisers doesn’t mean they don’t have their own brain and soul. And just because I work with other people who advise me doesn’t mean that I am a puppet for an evil cult or a have some sort of master plan. I make party music – plain and simple. In fact, it is me who is the innocent victim of a conspiracy of critics and haters who don’t believe in the power of music and pure true fun. It is us artists who are the victims. It’s crazy that still today, brand new artists like Lady Gaga have already been dealing with the same sort of paranoid allegations that I’ve has been dealing with since 2001. It just doesn’t stop! We are not puppets, we are human beings.

Musicians are not acting, we are real people. We are not part of a conspiracy! It’s really intense when people are telling you who you are, so I’m going to tell them who THEY are! On behalf of all musicians, the entertainment industry, and everyone else who’s ever been falsely accused, YOU ARE NOT HURTING US AND YOU ARE NOT STOPPING THIS. The party will continue! We will endure! It has become too common for musical artists and performers to be labeled as part of some global scam to control the world, or that we’re puppets for a larger agenda designed to hurt people. That’s why I’m speaking out and loudly declaring: I am not evil and neither are any of my other fellow members of showbusiness. We are here to bring fun and light into the world, not doubt and darkness. I have been accused of having people design my image, tell me what to say in interviews, design my clothes, the way I look and talk, and of course my music. It’s true I do work with people, but not to accomplish anything bad, just the basics that any person does in this business and with this opportunity to live out my dreams.

I have always admitted that I worked with people and I have confessed that time and time again, even if the critics twisted what I said. I did this hoping it would quiet people up and put an end to all the speculation and exaggeration. I was never an actor and the partnerships I made with friends, family, and the companies I’ve worked with have all been to promote entertainment, excitement, and fun – to give people something fun to focus on and to occupy our thoughts, instead of a bunch of fear or negativity.

I will always keep my focus where it matters most:

1) On being grateful for the incredible people who believe in the feeling I work to create

2) And on that magical feeling itself: BEING ALIVE!

Long live music and long live life. PARTY HARD!”

– Andrew W.K.

With all these questions and allegations going on Andrew WK has decided to set the record straight and hold a town hall meeting style conference at the Santos Party House in Manhattan, NY where he will answer all questions shot at him in regards to his career.

Is this a publicity stunt?  That remains to be seen but I can tell you that Andrew WK is an artist and not a puppet as some of these bored folk out there think.  For that I put this blog in “The Dumb” category.

Still though I wonder about this actual “Night Of Questions” seeing on how 02/23/2010 is the release date for Andrew WK’s lost third album Close Calls With Brick Walls as well as the rare and unreleased collection titled Mother Of Mankind.

This is hilarious…

BrokeNCYDE – I’m Not A Fan…But The Kids Like It! – CD Review

This was the review I was never supposed to do, a release by a band that really is a slap to the face to all musicians out there by a group of four who do not look like they take themselves too seriously.  The album title alone of BrokeNCYDE’s debut release pretty much could sum up reviews of many; I’m Not A Fan…But The Kids Like It! All I can say about this band is that they are indeed the bastard cousins of NSYNC, the ones your parents warned you to stay away from.

It was tough for me even to put this album in the CD player after I took a look at the front cover.  Four tattooed “bros” decked out in fur lined coats all holding alcoholic beverages sitting in the back of an SUV just does not do anything for me.  Add some hair styles that would get the boys in Fall Out Boy jealous and you can just count me out.  I like hip hop, crunk, screamo, and punk but I did not think I would when it was all combined together.  Still there was some curiosity to the CD so I finally grabbed it, threw it in, and as much as I hate to admit, actually liked some of it.

What is it about BrokeNCYDE’s beyond opened minded crunk mixed with punk and screamo that is even slightly likable to me?  I honestly have no idea but some of the songs just get stuck in my head.  Perhaps I like it because I have never heard quit a mix up before.  Apparently I am not the only one that likes it either.  The CD debuted #87 on the Billboard #200 and has had almost 40 million plays on their MySpace page.

Imagine musical styles of Hawthorne Heights, Enter Shakari, 3OH!3, and Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz layered with pro-buzz claims and booty favoring ideals and that should pretty much sum up what the band has to offer.  As annoying as it can rub off I actually found myself getting a kick out of some of the songs but mostly for novelty reasons.

“Skeet Skeet” is a mess of a song with screamo cries and crunk-like jams making for a song that will get all the crunk rock worshipers out there moving.  “Booty Call” featuring E-40 will easily be a dance floor anthem for all the clubs across the world.  The song is has the ability to sneak its way into all the hip hop lover’s ears with undergarment dropping success.

“Yellow Bus” on the other hand was the worst song I have ever heard in my life.  For some reason the boys in BrokeNCYDE call their manhood a yellow bus (maybe you should get that looked at fellas).  I feel sorry for the poor bastard that had to listen to this song over and over while it was being mastered while those terrible cheap quick lyrics barely spoken over decent beats.  “Get Up” was not much better although it did feature Daddy X of the Kottonmouth Kings.

“40oz.” is another deranged club song that easily will keep the dance floor moving.  Tristan Krause, the man behind the beats on this track really has a good thing going for him.  It’s a complete variety of different hip hop beats and electronica blended just right.

The lyrics of “Sex Toys” cracked me up and by no means are for listeners 17 and younger.  Think Eminem clever lyrics meets Tommy Lee‘s craving on an outrageous demeaning quest that is just not necessary by any standards.  Once “Rockstar” came on and I heard the chorus I admitted I had enough and turned the album off.  “Getting retarded” and “drinking Bacardi” is fine but when they started talking about their mating preferences being smooth on top (you know there) I had enough.

Even though the album seems to give a nod to Lil John a lot I feel that I have heard some of the beats before.  The lyrics were clearly attention getting as that is pretty much all that BrokeNCYDE has going for them.  Maybe if they toned down the partying and sexual innuendo lyrics and just sung about something with meaning they would be tolerable to more folk out there.  Luckily I like all types of music so I was able to find some good in this CD, just not a lot.

Having already seen crunk and punk mashed before by bands like 3OH!3 this band takes it to a new level.  I never once thought it would be possible to hear a mess like this, but they do it so well. I can guarantee most of you will hate this band for all they are worth.  Musically declined, they have found their niche in entertainment but with a unique flair.  Currently making a full tour appearance on the Van’s Warped Tour I have this feeling this will not be the last time we hear from these tattooed crunk loving mongrels.  I just hope next time they can do it a little differently, possibly with meaning.

Here is a video from one of the songs I liked from the album. I know it sucks, but to me it sucks in a good way…
brokeNCYDE – Booty Call Feat. E-40

This one…not so good. Looks like some douchbaggery at it’s finest:
brokeNCYDE – 40oz

Jumping Around Cleveland On A Tuesday & Thursday

On Tuesday I ventured the hip streets of Waterloo before checking out Those Darlins at the Beachland Tavern.  Any time I ever see a show at the Beachland I make sure I stop at two of my favorite shops in Cleveland.  Both shops are independently owned music stores by awesome folk.

First up is Blue Arrow Records.

The floors of this store are amazing.  Yes, those are record sleeves.
The floors of this store are amazing. Yes, those are all record covers.

Every time I go in this store I page through the bins of vinyl hoping to score something good to take home and throw a needle on.  I have found some great finds there including some old Rollins Band records as well as a Propellerheads vinyl.  I love the randomness that I can find there and the constant music playing on the speakers is enjoyable as well.

Focusing on mostly rock the store offers all sorts of genres of wax.  Store owner Pete Gulyas not only knows his stuff but loves to share it with others.  The guy also has one hell of a personal Clash collection on display at his store right now.

Blue Arrow Records is one of those stores for any seasoned music fan as well as novice collector to go crazy about.  Recently Pete told me that he is going to be the east side distributor of Derek Hess prints.  The store got even cooler once he told me that.

About a block down the street is the other shop I always make sure I stop in at when in the area.  The store is Music Saves and recently the store celebrated their 5 year Store-A-Versary.  More on that in a bit.

The coolest Dunny sits on the Music Saves counter.
The coolest Dunny sits on the Music Saves counter.

Music Saves is the other mecca of a music store on Waterloo I try and frequent a lot.  The store is full of new and used vinyl as well as carries CDs most of which are indie bands but there is also punk, hip hop, and rock too.  If you can’t find what you are looking for, the good folk at Music Saves will even attempt to special order you something.  The owners are pretty damn cool too and so is their black cat appropriately named Vinyl Kitty.

While visiting on Tuesday I was informed that Music Saves was celebrating their 5 year Store-A-Versary on Thursday at the Grog Shop featuring some great music and guaranteed good times.  I was invited to stop by and hang out so I made plans to do so.  Sadly I knew Vinyl Kitty was not going to be there but I still planned on attending.

On Thursday before I headed to Coventry I made a stop with my friend to stop at the St. Greg’s carnival in S. Euclid as a handful of old friends were hanging out there and grabbing a bite to eat.  There is a memory from my past that always comes to mind when someone says St. Greg’s carnival.

Story time…  (Mom you might not want to read this, haha)

I met this group of friends while taking classes at Tri-C.  There were five of us yet we called ourselves “The Four Horsemen”.  These were the guys I bowled with and partied with while in my early twenties.  I even got a place with one of them for a year but that is another story in itself.  “The Four Horsemen” slowly drifted apart mainly because I moved to Akron and a couple of them started families but we made a pact to start hanging out a little more frequently.

Anyways I am sure you are wondering about this St. Greg story.

These friends of mine all grew up in S. Euclid, all went to school together, and have all been friends since childhood.  They took me in and treated me like I was one of their childhood friends and before long they were taking me to a summer ritual of theirs, the St. Greg carnival.

The church ran carnival featured some of the best Italian food as well as legal church gambling, games, and of course beer.  One particular year we attended I was broke and joked with my friends as we walked past the fishbowl game that if they won a fish I would eat it but they would have to buy me a beer.

I did not think they were going to do it to be honest, but they did and the guys started pulling out $20’s and bought endless amounts of ping pong balls to try and throw in the fish tanks to win a fish prize.  Shaking my head as they keep trying to win the fish I asked myself what the hell I got myself into.  After five minutes of throwing ping pong balls there were seven goldfish in bags being held by my friends with huge grins on their faces.

Not being one to ever back down I took the first goldfish, popped it in my mouth and had a nice little sushi snack.

People started gathering around me as I downed the second and third fish.  The carnie behind the fishbowl game booth was cheering me on as were most of the crowd.  There were of course a few people yelling at me for doing such a terrible think but they did not understand I was getting beers out of it.  My friends of course were going nuts.

Seven fish later we were off to the beer stand for my reward.  Was it worth it?  Yes.

Oh memories.

So it was to be expected when I saw my friends at St. Greg’s this year they offered to win more of fish.  Instead I was treated to some fired dough, ciabatta bread, and other delicious Italian foods.  We sat around for a few and chatted but just before 9pm I had to get going so I could make the show.

While driving down to Coventry I decided to make a couple of shortcuts so that I could just get to the parking deck without driving down Coventry and boy am I glad I did.  As soon as I got in the area I noticed that there was an abundance of cars parked on the streets and soon started seeing streets closed off.  I managed to get my car to the parking deck and snagged a great spot.  When I went to put some quarters in the meter I saw this:

Honestly I had never seen anything like it before.  The entire strip of Coventry was closed from Euclid Hts. to Mayfield road.  It was crowded as hell too…

Slowly making way to the courtyard in front of the Grog Shop my concert going pal and I made it before the show started.  My friend Ryan who is the drummer for Upsparing Sea spotted me and we chatted for a bit before they took stage.  I’ll be honest with you all and confess that even though Ryan is a pretty good friend of mine, I had no idea what his band sounded like.  So when he and his three other band mates took the stage I was just as curious as the rest were to hear them.

Unsparing Sea put on a great show and I have to admit I really got a kick out of their style.  I loved the fact that they had a cellist and also an Ol’ DIrty Bastard poster hanging from the lead vocalist’s mic stand.  Their sound was more indie folk and they really sounded well.  I did feel bad for the band though as they had to pack their instruments into an already clogged stage thanks to the headliner but it did not seem to bother them at all.  Head over to their MySpace page to get a taste of some Unsparing Sea.  Who knows, you might like it just as I did!

Here’s a video of Unsparing Sea’s “Wolves At  Wedding”:

The second band, Baltimore’s Ponytail really confused me because I could not decide if I liked them or not.  Almost all of the crowed loved them but I myself could not grasp why.  I enjoyed the music tremendously but the lead girl with the mic making random yeps and cries was giving me a headache so bad that I opted to leave mid-set and head home.

I of course took a video to share with you all.  This was one of the tamer songs and the more and more I watch it, I think I like it…

Now on the other hand I am the one that Tweeted:

Ponytail on stage. This some weird indie sh@t…and I think I like it.

Moments later:

I lied. This sh@t is way too weird for me. Sounds like wild animals having sex on a piano.

Followed by:

Someone take the goddamn mic away from the little kid on stage. Oh wait, some people are actually clapping to this noise.

Finally:

All I can say about this band is WTF. Seriously I feel so lost. I am not cool enough to be here. I do not understand. Help.

I was not kidding when I said I left mid-way through Ponytail’s set.  I opted to miss out on Yeasayer and kind of regret it but at the same time I had a pretty busy day and just wanted to get home.  I got hell from Melanie from Music Saves when I said bye to her and I deserved it.

Walking down Coventry with my friend we opted to hit up Phoenix Coffee for a little pick me up.  It was a good ending to a busy day.  With the streets still crowded after midnight we walked back to the car and headed back.

Good times.  I needed them.

Drummer Warren Oakes Parts With Against Me!

Strange news in the punk rock music world as Against Me!recently announced they parted ways with their current drummer Warren Oakes.

This is the last thing I thought I would wake up to.  Perhaps it is good that the bearded always smiling drummer is doing his own thing, but I just don’t like how his band members announced the news.  Seemed a little harsh.

Tom Gabel had this to say early last month on his blog ifeelsicktomystomach:

May 1st – 4:13AM – Wilmington, NC […]  “We told Warren this afternoon that we are going to look for a new drummer. Andrew, James and I made the decision a couple days ago over lunch. I told them that I didn’t want to play music with Warren anymore. They both agreed that this was a necessary step, it’s been a long time coming. Warren’s heart hasn’t been in this for a while now.”

Sounds to me he was fired.  “We are looking for a new drummer” does not sound like anyone parted…

A second post not even 12 hours later adds a little more info:

May 1st – 2:42PM – Driving to Columbia, SC […] “After load in today Warren asked if he could talk with us all again. He said that after thinking about it over night he completely agreed that this was the best decision to make, that he realized his actions as of late have been, if not subconcious, indicitive of him not being fully invested. With his Mexican Restaurant opening soon, he seems ready to start a new chapter in his life. I wish him luck.”

The comments that follow this post are diehard fan comments with positive thoughts for Warren as well as outcries directed towards Tom Gabel for what happened.  There are truly mixed feelings with this and I wish I knew a little but more about why this had to be. 

Could Warren not take the major rockstar feel?  Did he in fact really want to focus on his own restaurant?  Were the other members of the band jealous of his charisma that lie behind his magnificent beard???

The official statement was released on the Against Me! MySpace blog:

“After coming to the conclusion that it was time to start a new chapter in his life, Warren Oakes has left Against Me!. While we don’t rule out the possibility of some day playing music together again, for now the four of us feel like this is the best decision to make. We’d like to wish Warren the best of luck with his new Mexican Restaurant, “Boca Fiesta”, which he just opened in Gainesville.”

Warren Oakes added to the blog stating:

“I’ve spent the past 8 years making beautiful music with my best friends and sharing it with amazing people all over the world. I’ve had the honor and privilege of traveling with the most dedicated road dogs on the planet and sharing the stage with the greatest bands. I have been embraced by so many with such graciousness and hospitality and love. Thank you so much to everyone who helped make the dream a reality, especially Tom, James and Andrew. I’ve had the time of my life, and I owe it all to you. 
-Warren Oakes”
The comments that follow the above statement by Warren are all heartfelt messages of luck and thanks.  He was one in a million and regardless if he was pushed out of the band or just was not into it anymore and did in fact want to be a burrito slinger he will always be remembered by me as that drummer who always had the biggest smile on his face when playing live shows.
Good luck Warren.

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