Andrew WK Hoax?

[crumbum]

Sorry if this has already been posted; the story broke a while ago and I haven't been on the board in a week:

http://community.livejournal.com/ohnotheydidnt/42452885.html

http://www.rockfeedback.com/tv/direct/channels/297400/726569/

Much of the information available is incomplete speculation, but the basic story is true then it appears AWK is a character who has been played by two separate people over the years, and who was created by a third party in concert with a record company or something.

I should say that I feel a little weird calling this a hoax since 1) he's a friend of the show and 2) it doesn't appear any of it was conceived in a mean-spirited way. It certainly doesn't change the fact that the guys who have played AWK have been pretty impressive musicians and performers. Since I'm not familiar with much of the work beyond the first album and a few articles here and there (and the recent BSOWFMU interview of course), I find this more fascinating than disappointing.

[yesno]

He is sort of addressing this on Twitter.  I don't think it's much more than Andrew Wilkes-Krier deliberately adopting and living a calculated stage persona.  Which lots of performers do.

I don't care if the music was made by a computer program. I Get Wet is a great album.

He's a weird dude.

[fletcher munson]

Yeah, I get the stage persona thing, but is this two separate guys?  I have to say, the AWK I saw in the GQ ad someone posted earlier did not look like the AWK I saw from across a room back in the early 00's

[yesno]

I've seen a couple of "There's more than one Andrew WK" images, but they all look like the same guy to me.  Same eyebrows, same nose. 

That said, I really really hope it turns out there was an actor or something.  I want things to be really weird and complicated, and maybe a little evil.  I just don't think they are.

[erechoveraker]

I always thought he just lost like a ton of weight/muscle mass or something, those side-by-side pics add to the intrigue, but the early videos still look like the same guy he always was to me. 

First mystery of 2010!

[Christina]

Yeah, I get the stage persona thing, but is this two separate guys?  I have to say, the AWK I saw in the GQ ad someone posted earlier did not look like the AWK I saw from across a room back in the early 00's

OMG Fletch - your new avatar ... I LOVE IT.

[fletcher munson]

Shit, it's subltle, but if it's true, why not get a younger guy to do photos and be a cuter poster boy version of yourself, I think it's hilarious.    

Thanks, Auntie, it's my stage persona, happy new year!

[buffcoat]

Peter Crisscoula went into a permanent drug-addled state in 1977.  If you look at posters from after that, you'll note that Gene always added a microscopic "e" after Peter - so that the posters always said:

Gene Simmons - Paul Stanley - Ace Frehley - Petere Criss



By the time he got to Ace Frehleye, Gene realized that no one gave a shit who was wearing the makeup, and whether they were wearing a mesh girdle.

[Christina]

Thanks, Auntie, it's my stage persona, happy new year!

First show I ever saw was Adam Ant, back in '82 or '83. He wasn't with the Ants anymore, but he still had the two drummers and the leather pants and the military jackets.

[cutout]

Pretty sure he was speaking metaphorically.

[NJL]

Why didn't they come out with this sooner, my interest in Andrew WK and his music has just expanded 10 fold after hearing this.

[harris]

I thinks it's safe to say he shaved, cleaned up, cut bangs and has taken his music in a different direction. Will Oldham, who has collaborated with him has nothing but nice things to say about the guy.

[Lothar_Brightblade]

Pretty sure he was speaking metaphorically.

Agreed, the interview and the stage show or whatever he was doing seems to point in that direction. I'm not sure if any of what he is saying is literal, as the idea seems to be in the AWK spirit. Though, I'm by no means an authority.

[Steeley Chris]

Shit's heavy, man.
So is there like a AWK Corps (not unlike the Green Lantern Corps)?
His positivity is overwhelmingly endearing, who ever he is.

[Lothar_Brightblade]

Shit's heavy, man.
So is there like a AWK Corps (not unlike the Green Lantern Corps)?

If there are 2 performers, I guess there may be a dead body involved. I hadn't thought of that.