Andrew W.K. Brings Party To Revolution Amityville, NY 12-12-15

If one was to sum up Andrew W.K. in just one word, it would be a stretch to have that word be anything but “Party.” He is so strongly associated with the word that the two seem to be completely inseparable. Beginning his career at a young age, as he grew he began building a fanbase along the East Coast, centralizing his shows in the New York City area. After years of hard work, Andrew W.K. released his first major studio album, I Get Wet, in November of 2001 to major success, despite controversy revolving around its iconic image of Andrew W.K. sporting a nose bleed. Continuing to build his career, he followed up with 2003’s The Wolf, and in contrast to I Get Wet, the album allowed him to show his musical prowess as he personally recorded for every instrument heard on the album. Having not released a studio record since 2009’s Gundam Rock, Andrew WK remains extremely busy as a producer, owner of Santo’s Party House in NYC, and performing live any chance he can.

With all this in mind, it has become a bit of a tradition over the last few years, Andrew W.K. makes regular visits to Long Island, New York right around the holiday season. In fact, the holiday love affair made a visit to the area for the eighth straight year when he came to Amityville’s Revolution Bar & Music Hall on Saturday, December 12th. Fans quickly snatched up the tickets for the chance to see Andrew W.K. in what was dubbed as a solo performance, allowing the crowd to get up-close and personal with the musician they adored. Brought to concert goers by 94.3 The Shark, the event was the second stop of the radio station’s Ho Ho Ho Fest. This station promotion began on the 9th as Third Eye Blind on December 9th at Huntington’s Paramount before continuing with Andrew W.K.’s show and returning the very next night to The Paramount for a acoustic performance of Brent Smith and Zack Myers of Shinedown.

As stated, while the night was considered a solo performance, Andrew W.K. was far from alone as he brought along seven different opening acts to share the stage with him. Each act brought their own brand of talents with them. With most of the opening acts calling Long Island home, the area’s own Amboy ignited the stage with their energetic performance. On to Carthage brought the Metal, giving fans something to mosh to with the lead singer even jumping off the stage to join. Save it For Later got the crowd dancing with its Classic Rock charm, humoring the crowd with a late-performance roster switch. London Eyes took the trip from Connecticut to get the crowd jumping with a powerful set. Space Camp Dropout had fans moving with their Rock anthems. As the night progressed, the crowd became more and more energized, singing, dancing, and moving to the music. Fresh Squeezed Lemonade continued the festivities with an Alternative Rock sound that had fans talking. Persona would take the honors of closing out the huge roster of opening acts, proving worthy of the spot.

With seven acts down and the crowd still going, the curtain closed once more as the crew set up for Andrew W.K.’s arrival. Even waiting for the closer, the crowd never ceased to party as a dance-off formed on the floor while the MC played a variety of Hip Hop songs.  Before Andrew W.K. could grace the stage, anticipation grew, and the lights finally dimmed as an announcer’s voice took over the music hall to pump up the crowd in Andrew W.K.’s arrival. As the curtain prepared to drop, the crowd roared, eager to see the star.

As the curtain fell to the floor, it did not take long into the opening “It’s Time To Party” for the crowd to leave the floor and join Andrew WK right onto Revolution’s stage.  Also, he was not exactly solo as his bassist, Gregg Roberts, joined him on stage, playing the role of Vocalist for the night. Without a full band, there was plenty of room on stage as fans continued to hop up to party closer with Andrew W.K. The celebration continued with”Take It Off” as fans came up close, taking selfies with the musician as others stood back further back dancing around while Andrew W.K. frenetically played his keyboard. As the song came to a conclusion, the crowd left the stage, but the fun did not stop there.

Gracious for the enthusiasm of the audience, Andrew W.K. thanked them for coming tonight and gave everyone a bit of back history of the growing tradition that found him playing his eighth annual holiday show on Long Island. Thereafter, hands reached high as Roberts energetically played to their energy, preparing to throw free t-shirts into the air. With the stage more free, Andrew W.K. used the opportunity to let loose as the two continued with “Long Live the Party.” His sole cover of the night, one of Aleister X’s “Bangers & Beans,” had Amityville singing along with the chorus while watching in awe as the track allowed him to showcase his keyboard skills while the crowd watched from the floor.

It was not long into “Ready to Die” that the crowd collectively chose to rejoin Andrew W.K. on stage, and as the stage flooded with crazed fans, the performance did not miss a beat going into “We Want Fun.” Truer words were never spoken than Andrew W.K.’s praise, stating that the night was a “Team effort” as everyone worked together with him to create an atmosphere that was truly unique, fun, and unforgettable. It was with statement that the next song, “You Will Remember Tonight,” came on perfectly timed. Long Island’s neighboring NYC was immortalized as Andrew W.K. introduced “I Love NYC”, an ode to his current place of residence, and to the fans. As the adrenaline began to overflow, everyone lost control once fan-favorite “Party Hard” began, as they sang along in full force to the party anthem. Taking one last chance to thank everyone, Andrew W.K. begged them to leave nothing behind as he blasted off into “I Get Wet.” Subsequently, the crowd went wild as shirts flew in the air, phones extended to record, and jubilant dancing and singing broke out in the final minutes of the night.

Andrew W.K. now sets his eyes on New Year’s Eve with a full band show in Boston, Massachusetts. There is no doubt they will surely have the Boston crowd ready to party as the ball drops to ring in 2016. Now everyone must stay tuned to find out what Andrew W.K. has in store for the new year, knowing him, it is bound to be fun.

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