Search - Andrew W.K. :: Close Calls With Brick Walls/Mother of Mankind

After three years of loyal patience, Andrew W.K. fans can finally experience the lost third album from the established party rocker. Previously released in Japan and Korea in 2006, Close Calls With Brick Walls will officially become available on March 23rd, 2010, being released by Steev Mike, as a special two album package (the original Close Calls With Brick Walls on one disc, and an additional CD called Mother Of Mankind, containing rare and unreleased material). After the recent release of 55 Cadillac - a compilation of improvised solo piano compositions - Close Calls With Brick Walls / Mother Of Mankind deliver the slamming, inspirational music for which Andrew W.K. is loved, coupled with new sounds and feelings rarely associated with his traditional work.

Close Calls With Brick Walls was recorded in multiple sessions throughout 2004 and 2005, using the full Andrew W.K. touring band for the first time. With a full instrumental band, the new album includes exciting new performances, styles, and rhythms. The lyrics are more complex although still very playful, and Andrew s voice has grown into something much more distinct and expressive.

The roots of the album and the changes it signals lie in the story behind the unorthodox path Andrew took to fame and, specifically, the dramatic contrast between his early years as part of a free-spirited music scene in his hometown of Ann Arbor, Michigan and the transformation in attitude and image and personality that came about after he had assumed the role of Andrew W.K. The trademark white t-shirt and jeans he wore in public was also adopted in order to help create an easily-identifiable image. And it worked. Audiences embraced Andrew W.K. as the long-haired, straight-talking, everyman rock icon who oozed positivity and made his fans feel that not only was it OK to be different but that it was OK to be yourself and not feel embarrassed about being awkward or goofy.