Amy Mahon
Having been a young starry-eyed fan of Mr. W.K. since his premiere album, I Get Wet, I along with a slew of supporters wondered where the young party monster had stumbled off to after his credible success in the rock industry.
After two decades of honing the party-craft and a hilariously told “Cafe-Wha?” storytelling on Comedy Central’s This is Not Happening, it only took 20 years for the party God to ascend from the depths of Heaven. On September 10th he delivered-his newest orchestrated masterpiece (and I say this with all accolades-the man played EVERY instrument!) God is Partying personifies the true theatrical soul Wilkes-Krier just is.
The introductory song Everybody Sins is a head-banger wrapped in and around Dio energy seamlessly, whilst it’s follow up song Babalon almost seems to pay homage to Dream Theatre between the symphonies and impeccable vocals.
The Third track, No One Has To Know, (“Far beyond all your fears/ Where a ladder appears/ Up the rungs it would climb / Leaving you far behind”) gives off Erasure’s “Always” vibes to the ninth degree. Out of all the reviews I’ve managed to scour through on this album, many have forgotten to take notice of his inspirational, melded recognition of older legends in the industrial and rock genre.
Left to his own creative genius and experimenting with his own vocal chords, Stay True To Your Heart stands out above the rest as a war-cry to the party mentality; a positive note embedded in a darker, more eloquent musical piece. Moving through heavier songs such as Remember your Oath and My Tower, we hit a melancholic and trivial turn, possibly projecting his previous struggles throughout 2019-2020.
It all leads into a power ballad of I Made It, a deliberate expression of the outpour and dedication W.K threw into this album overall. A triumphant run down the hill after hitting the hump, if you will.
“A voice and vision/ A man on a mission/Oh, made it/ Yeah, I made it/The song I’m playing/Is my way of praying” seems rather self-explanatory considering his recent circumstances.
W.K. ends the album on a more modern note with, Not Anymore, a roll-credits, standing applause kind of bop that makes you realize the amount of creative innovation and careful execution that went into creating the auditory performance fit for the stage. Curtains close, the play is over.
At first glance, God is Partying may seem like a respite of all of the trials and tribulations Mr. Wilkes-Krier has endured before completion (especially if you combine it with his…peculiar music videos.) Personally, it fulfills a sense of found self through symphonies and electric guitar coupled with a deep, learned and earned appreciation for the genre of rock. Andrew W.K’s innumerable talents and wild sound that threw us all for a loop 20 years ago still stands true-
He truly is the God of Partying.
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