I Get Wet

I Get Wet was recorded while Andrew W.K. was living in New York City. The album was recorded with many layers of overdubbing, in order to make the album "sound as party as we could make it sound," and for the "sound of the songs to be like one instrument" instead of a collection of individual musicians. In July 2001, W.K. and Jimmy Coup traveled to Minneapolis, Minnesota to record with John Fields at SubJersey Studio. In August, the three traveled to Sherman Oaks, California to mix the record with Mike Shipley at Record One.

One inspiration for the album was Andrew W.K.'s enjoyment of intense, major-key music, something he attributed to his musical childhood experiences with the piano.

Another inspiration for I Get Wet was the charity single "We Are the World" by USA for Africa. Andrew W.K. was impressed with how all the artists on the song were singing all at once, something he described as a "powerful sound, like an orchestra." In turn, Andrew W.K. wanted to create music that sounded like that.{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/interviews/8905-andrew-wk/ |title=Interviews: Andrew W.K. |work=Pitchfork |date=September 5, 2012 |access-date=September 5, 2012 |last=Cohen |first=Ian}}

I Get Wet is known for its cover art shot by art photographer Roe Ethridge: a photo of a wet-haired Andrew W.K. with a large stream of blood running from his nose, down his chin and onto his throat. This cover art caused a controversy, as it was seen to represent cocaine abuse and violence.{{cite news |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090820213124/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/blame-it-on-the-piano-lessons-659432.html |archive-date=August 20, 2009 |title=Blame it on the piano lessons |date=February 3, 2002 |work=The Independent |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/blame-it-on-the-piano-lessons-659432.html |access-date=August 28, 2014}} To achieve the effect, W.K. initially said that he struck himself in the face with a piece of a cinder block during the photo shoot but later explained that it did not lead to enough blood flow. Consequently, he supplemented his own blood with some of an animal which he got from a butcher's shop.{{cite journal |last=Worley |first=Gail |url=http://www.ink19.com/issues/march2002/interviews/andrewWK.html |title=Andrew W.K |journal=Ink 19 |access-date=November 2, 2012 |archive-date=March 21, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130321142357/http://www.ink19.com/issues/march2002/interviews/andrewWK.html |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysQssewTeT8 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/ysQssewTeT8 |archive-date=December 21, 2021 |url-status=live|title=Andrew W.K. - Wikipedia: Fact or Fiction?|access-date=December 14, 2020|via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}

The album went to #1 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart. The songs "Party Hard" and "She Is Beautiful" were released as singles. The opening track, "It's Time to Party", was featured in an advertisement for Hotwire.com, a Coors spot and an Expedia ad. "Fun Night" can be heard in the 2003 film Old School. The track, "Don't Stop Living in the Red" was featured in an ad for Target. "I Love NYC" is frequently played at New York Rangers games. "Ready to Die" is used in the Hitman game series, as well as the trailer for the game Rage 2.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hardcoregamer.com/2018/05/13/get-ready-to-die-in-leaked-rage-2-advertisement/299106/|title=Get Ready to Die in Leaked Rage 2 Advertisement|last=Steve|first=Hannley|date=May 13, 2018|website=Hardcore Gamer|language=en-US|access-date=June 17, 2018}}

On August 28, 2012, a deluxe reissue of I Get Wet was released. The reissue contained previously unheard recordings, demos, live tracks, and alternate mixes. A limited number of autographed deluxe editions contained a lock of Andrew's hair, a piece of his white jeans, or an autographed plane ticket from his 2012 world tour.{{cite web |url=http://andrewwk.com/news/order-i-get-wet-cd-and-vinyl |title=Order I Get Wet CD & Vinyl |publisher=AndrewWK.com |access-date=September 6, 2012}}

{{album ratings

| MC = 64/100

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1Score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/i-get-wet-mw0000219058 |title=I Get Wet – Andrew W.K. |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=September 4, 2020 |last=Phares |first=Heather}}

| rev2 = Alternative Press

| rev2Score = 8/10{{cite journal |title=Andrew W.K.: I Get Wet |journal=Alternative Press |issue=165 |date=April 2002 |page=65}}

| rev3 = Blender

| rev3Score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{cite journal |url=http://www.blender.com/reviews/review_822.html |title=Andrew W.K.: I Get Wet |journal=Blender |issue=6 |date=April–May 2002 |access-date=July 6, 2016 |last=Harris |first=John |author-link=John Harris (critic) |page=112 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040614103032/http://www.blender.com/reviews/review_822.html |archive-date=June 14, 2004 |url-status=dead}}

| rev4 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev4Score = B+{{cite magazine |url=https://www.ew.com/article/2002/03/18/i-get-wet |title=I Get Wet |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=March 18, 2002 |access-date=November 2, 2012 |last=Browne |first=David |author-link=David Browne (journalist) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150715200531/http://www.ew.com/article/2002/03/18/i-get-wet |archive-date=July 15, 2015 |url-status=dead}}

| rev5 = The Guardian

| rev5Score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2001/nov/02/shopping.artsfeatures3 |title=Party on, dudes |work=The Guardian |date=November 2, 2001 |access-date=February 13, 2016 |last=Sullivan |first=Caroline}}

| rev6 = NME

| rev6Score = 8/10{{cite journal |url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/andrew-wk/5779 |title=Andrew WK : I Get Wet |journal=NME |date=October 30, 2001 |access-date=November 2, 2012 |last=Oldham |first=Jason |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304004036/http://www.nme.com/reviews/andrew-wk/5779 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |url-status=dead}}

| rev7 = Pitchfork

| rev7Score = 0.6/10 {{small|(2002)}}
8.6/10 {{small|(2012)}}

| rev8 = Q

| rev8Score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite journal |title=Andrew W.K.: I Get Wet |journal=Q |issue=185 |date=December 2001 |page=128}}

| rev9 = Rolling Stone

| rev9Score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/119765/review/5945263/igetwet |title=I Get Wet: Andrew W.K. |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=April 11, 2002 |access-date=November 2, 2012 |last=Sheffield |first=Rob |author-link=Rob Sheffield |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080821031624/http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/119765/review/5945263/igetwet |archive-date=August 21, 2008 |url-status=dead}}

| rev10 = The Village Voice

| rev10Score= A−{{cite news |url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv203-03.php |title=Consumer Guide: The Prelude |work=The Village Voice |date=February 11, 2003 |access-date=November 2, 2012 |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau}}

}}

I Get Wet provoked very polarizing critical reaction when it was initially released, with Pitchfork{{'}}s Ian Cohen retrospectively writing that "critics of Andrew W.K. were often branded as the fun police and his fans considered fools or incurable ironists." On the review aggregate site Metacritic, the album holds a score of 64 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews".{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/i-get-wet/andrew-wk |title=Reviews for I Get Wet by Andrew W.K. |publisher=Metacritic |access-date=June 21, 2011}} Stephen Thompson of The A.V. Club described I Get Wet as "more fabulously entertaining the louder it's played" and added that "if it wipes out a generation of hard-rock crybabies along the way, fans will owe him a debt of gratitude that can never be repaid."{{cite web |url=https://www.avclub.com/andrew-w-k-i-get-wet-1798192896 |title=Andrew W.K.: I Get Wet |work=The A.V. Club |date=March 29, 2002 |access-date=November 2, 2012 |last=Thompson |first=Stephen}} Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone also gave the album a positive review, stating that "there's no denying the over-the-top whomp of his music, the loudest and funniest metal you've heard in ages." David Browne, writing in Entertainment Weekly, noted that W.K. "must know how ridiculous this all sounds, but he attacks the material with such fervor that you almost believe he means every word." AllMusic's Heather Phares noted that while the album "has a certain sameness due to the frenetic beat that drives nearly every track, it's the perfect complement to W.K.'s party-centric vision", praising it as "refreshingly simple and cleverly stupid."

Adrien Begrand of PopMatters gave the album a mixed review, writing "At its best, WK’s music is a refreshing blast of skanky air on the current stale music scene, but at its worst, it’s disappointingly monotonous, unoriginal, and very, very dumb."{{cite web |url=https://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/andrewwk-igetwet/ |title=Andrew WK: I Get Wet |work=PopMatters |date=March 25, 2002 |access-date=November 2, 2012 |last=Begrand |first=Adrien}} Evan Chakroff of Stylus Magazine called it a "worthless piece of rock-product, 35 minutes of glossy, overproduced tripe", but concluded that "once these songs have pounded their way into your head, you can’t help but pay attention" and "if this is a joke, it's a brilliant one."{{cite web |url=http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/andrew-wk/i-get-wet.htm |title=Andrew W.K. – I Get Wet – Review |work=Stylus Magazine |date=September 1, 2003 |access-date=May 10, 2015 |last=Chakroff |first=Evan |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305014211/http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/andrew-wk/i-get-wet.htm |archive-date=March 5, 2016}} Ryan Schreiber of Pitchfork panned the album as being "about as empty as rock music gets, right down to the tinny, digitally processed tonebank noise that passes for 'guitars.'"{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/184-i-get-wet/ |title=Andrew W. K.: I Get Wet |work=Pitchfork |date=July 7, 2002 |access-date=June 21, 2011 |last=Schreiber |first=Ryan}}

Q listed I Get Wet as one of the best 50 albums of 2001.{{cite journal |title=The Best 50 Albums of 2001 |journal=Q |issue=185 |date=December 2001 |pages=60–65}} NME included I Get Wet in their retrospective list of the best albums of 2001.{{cite journal |url=https://www.nme.com/photos/a-decade-of-music-50-best-albums-of-2001/157503#42#lq8dY2HkkvUJgClc.99 |title=A Decade Of Music – 50 Best Albums Of 2001 |journal=NME |date=November 4, 2009 |access-date=April 29, 2015}} Rhapsody ranked the album at number two on its "Rock's Best Albums of the Decade" list.{{cite web |url=http://blog.rhapsody.com/2009/11/rockdecade.html |title=Rock's Best Albums of the Decade |publisher=Rhapsody |date=November 8, 2009 |access-date=January 12, 2010 |last=Farrar |first=Justin |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091108000844/http://blog.rhapsody.com/2009/11/rockdecade.html |archive-date=November 8, 2009}} Despite initially panning the album, Pitchfork placed I Get Wet at number 144 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s.{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7707-the-top-200-albums-of-the-2000s-150-101/ |title=The Top 200 Albums of the 2000s: 200-151 |work=Pitchfork |date=September 28, 2009 |access-date=October 1, 2009 |author=Pitchfork staff}} Ian Cohen of Pitchfork acknowledged his review of the album's 2012 reissue, which received a "Best New Reissue" designation, as the website's "biggest statistical mea culpa ever", writing that "whether you consider these songs to be brilliant, brilliantly dumb, or just dumb, I Get Wet is necessarily simple".{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16836-i-get-wet/ |title=Andrew W. K.: I Get Wet |work=Pitchfork |date=August 31, 2012 |access-date=August 31, 2012 |last=Cohen |first=Ian}}

Andrew W.K. reflected on the album's initial reaction in a 2012 interview, saying:

{{cquote|Everything is always going through changes in terms of attitudes or mood, but it does seem like partying is a more common theme in music and culture [now]; colorful attitudes and excitement and positivity are more embraced. I remember trying to make a band the first time around [..] people didn't like that there were keyboards in the music. They said it sounded too corporate. They also didn't like that it had this four-on-the-floor club beat. But it's interesting because now the club/dance beat is in lots and lots of songs. I was very happy with how things have come around.}}

All songs composed and written by Andrew W.K.

{{tracklist

| title1 = It's Time to Party

| length1 = 1:30

| title2 = Party Hard

| length2 = 3:04

| title3 = Girls Own Love

| length3 = 3:13

| title4 = Ready to Die

| length4 = 2:54

| title5 = Take It Off

| length5 = 3:10

| title6 = I Love NYC

| length6 = 3:11

| title7 = She Is Beautiful

| length7 = 3:33

| title8 = Party til You Puke

| length8 = 2:34

| title9 = Fun Night

| length9 = 3:23

| title10 = Got to Do It

| length10 = 3:55

| title11 = I Get Wet

| length11 = 3:23

| title12 = Don't Stop Living in the Red

| length12 = 1:42

}}

{{tracklist

| headline = Japanese edition bonus tracks

| title13 = We Want Fun

| length13 = 4:21

| title14 = Make Sex

| length14 = 0:46

}}

;10th anniversary edition bonus disc{{Cite web |title=I Get Wet 10th Anniversary Edition - back cover |url=https://i.discogs.com/PHY4uNxG_QMI8AjqkINLtxXkAygL_PkExshY-Y9au9c/rs:fit/g:sm/q:90/h:518/w:600/czM6Ly9kaXNjb2dz/LWRhdGFiYXNlLWlt/YWdlcy9SLTM4NDcx/ODItMTM5NjI4NjY4/Ni04OTgwLmpwZWc.jpeg |access-date=June 16, 2023 |website=Discogs}}

1. "It's Time to Party (Live)" 2:09
2. "It's Time to Party (1999 Version)" 1:24
3. "Party Hard (Live)" 4:33
4. "Party Hard (1999 Version)" 3:07
5. "Girls Own Love (Live)" 3:46
6. "Girls Own Love (1999 Version)" 3:35
7. "Ready to Die (Live)" 3:19
8. "Take It Off (Live)" 3:23
9. "I Love NYC (Live)" 3:51
10. "She Is Beautiful (Live)" 5:15
11. "She Is Beautiful (1999 Version)" 3:13
12. "Party til You Puke (Live)" 2:53
13. "It Just Got Hotter (Sundogs Version)" 3:26
14. "Got to Do It (Keyboards Version)" 4:12
15. "I Get Wet (Live)" 5:13
16. "Don't Stop Living in the Red (1999 Version)" 1:33

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.{{cite AV media notes|year=2001|title=I Get Wet|others=Andrew W.K.|publisher=Island Records|id=314-586-588-1|type=CD liner notes}}

Primary musicians

• Andrew W.K. – vocals, composition, synthesizer, bass guitar, production
• Jimmy Coup – guitar, vocals (sweet heat)
• Erik Payne – guitar
• Donald Tardy – drums
• Gregg Roberts – bass guitar
• Frank Werner – guitar

Additional personnel

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}

• Tony Allen – guitar, assistant engineering
• Dan Burns – assistant engineering
• Jeff Burns – engineering
• Chris Chaney – bass guitar
• Cory Churko – digital editing, programming
• Mike David – bass guitar
• Roe Ethridge – photography
• John Fields – production, engineering
• Tom Gordon – sound effects
• Frank Gryner – engineering
• Scott Humphrey – production
• Roger Lian – digital editing, programming
• Tony Miller – programming
• Gary Novak – additional drums
• Mike Shipley – mixing
• F.T. Thomas – guitar
• Robert C. Thompson – engineering
• Dave Collins – mastering
• TSD – production
• Frank Vierti – piano, keyboards, production
• Bobby Warner – engineering
• K. Williams – art direction
• Lloyd "Gitsy" Willis – sound effects
• Phil X – guitar

{{div col end}}

{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for I Get Wet}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=album|award=Silver|artist=Andrew Wk|title=I Get Wet|relyear=2001|certyear=2023|id=19101-6414-2|access-date=July 6, 2023}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true|noshipments=true}}

{{reflist|2}}

{{Andrew W.K.}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:2001 debut albums

Category:Island Records albums

Category:Andrew W.K. albums