Andrew WK vs. Andrew WK

aka Misshapes vs. Rotture or NYC vs. PDX

Let's set the scene:
It's just before Easter 2002 in NYC. I'm standing in CBGBs waiting for Phantom Planet to take the stage and there are two girls standing behind me discussing how hot Andrew WK is. I turn around in a mild state of shock.
"You think he's hot!?!"
"Yes!"
"Why!?!"
My only previous exposure to him had been his grizzly bloody CD cover and from my Econ classmate Ben Starky.
She proceeded to list his many appeals and then we got talking on other topics from us both having been born in SF and about attending NYU.
Cue it up two months later and it's June 14th. I'm in line at the check-in counter at the Portland airport about to fly to Londontown for the first time.
Ahead of me I notice a familiar face.
Why it's only Andrew WK!
By this time I was fully enraptured with his music and had been bummed that I missed his concert the night prior due to last minute packing.
Oh my god- he was SO cool in person! Dressed in purple sweatpants he happily took a photo with me and then his roadies carried my luggage up to the counter and gave me stickers with his face on it. Waiting in the terminal, I instantly called Ben Starky to relay the news.
Andrew and I ended up on the same flight- his final destination Germany. He sat behind me and we waved to each other.

The next time I saw him was at Misshapes this past February 17th 2007. He played like a five song set:

The introduction:

Before the evening had been pretty demure, but when he took the stage the real crush began. I left that night with scuff marks all over my red shoes that I had only worn once prior and bruises all over my legs. I kept getting hurled on top of the speakers, so most of the time I was plugging my ears-it was already really really loud, but when my ear would literally be resting against the speaker. . .

(that is why I look SO cool covering my ears in my horribly oversized T-shirt featuring the logo of my dad's band The Frontline Rockers when he lived in NYC in the early 80's) (photo care of Misshapes)
He was full of ecstatic energy, singing along with the Misshapes photographer who was on stage with him and crowd surfing.

Toward the end Leigh and Jackson got in on the photo taking action-

He closed with the very appropriate 'I Love New York City'.

This time-in Portland at Rotture, it was a much much different set and much longer too - clocking in at a full hour.

Before he took the stage The Tube's DJ Linoleum played a set that was full of remixes and way house-y. When he came out at 1am, he started by just jamming on the keyboard for a good solid ten-13 minutes.

He sang along to his CD and after playing opener 'I Get Wet', started grabbing hands of audience members - boys and girls alike so that eventually we were almost all up on stage. I think he only sang tracks off his first album, at least to my recollection. It was SO fun! At first-when he was just at his keyboard, I wasn't really feeling it, but it was totally worth having to shell out for a cab ride home!

(He repeatedly rocked out through out the night clutching the mic at his waist-line.)

He dedicated a song to Amanda Luna who thank god requested 'She is Beautiful'-by far my favorite song by him! I remember back when Kelly Osbourne was still cool (yes she was at one time in my eyes during the 'Papa Don't Preach' era) and she did a duet with him to that song. I remember just eatting up the Rolling Stone coverage and being a tad bit jealous. So it was all a bit surreal to be holding onto his left side while he performed the track at Rotture and sharing the mic with him-me mostly in charge of screaming the choruses.
He threw out tons and tons of free shirts-three different styles-I got a tie-dye one and a white one which I lost somewhere later in the venue after his set.

'Party Hard' Andrew WK MP3

Earlier in the day he did a lecture at the Ace Hotel. Too bad I was at work, however Y.A.C.H.T. got a pic with him

Sachiko Arakawa was at Rotture- here is one of her pics

If you look hard, you can see me up front at Misshapes here und here

Oh- and here's a pic of Andrew rocking out in Saskatchewan. Love it.