Close Calls with Brick Walls

Close Calls with Brick Walls
Studio album by
Andrew W.K.
ReleasedJuly 5, 2006
Recorded2005–2006
GenreHard rock
Length47:49
LabelUniversal
ProducerAndrew W.K.
Andrew W.K. chronology
The Wolf
(2003) 		Close Calls with Brick Walls
(2006) 		The Japan Covers
(2008)
US vinyl release
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Drowned in Sound8/10[1]
Entertainment WeeklyC−[2]
MusicOMH[3]
NME7/10[4]
The Observer[5]
Pitchfork6.8/10[6]
Stylus MagazineB+[7]
Uncut[8]

Close Calls with Brick Walls is the third studio album by American musician Andrew W.K. It was originally released through Universal Records in July 2006 in Japan with an exclusive bonus DVD and in Korea with four exclusive bonus tracks, before finally being released to the rest of the world on CD in 2010.

Production

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The album marked a major change in sound, abandoning the "wall of sound" heard on earlier albums for a more traditional rock sound, and with Andrew's vocals sung rather than screamed. Songs of more experimental nature were also featured on this album. The album received a wide array of reactions from fans and critics.

A video was released for "Not Going to Bed" in Japan upon the album's release, and an animated video for "I Want to See You Go Wild" was released in June 2010, to support the re-released 2-disc edition. A music video for "I'm a Vagabond" (from the Mother of Mankind rarities album) was also released.

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Due to legal disputes regarding the ownership of the name "Andrew W.K.", Close Calls with Brick Walls was initially only released in Japan and Korea. On August 18, 2007 it was given a limited release in America only on vinyl on Load Records with 5 exclusive bonus tracks, but only became widely available on CD to the rest of the world in March 2010, bundled with a second disc containing a collection of rare and unreleased songs entitled Mother of Mankind.

In September 2009, writing in the British newspaper, The Guardian, Andrew W.K. acknowledged legal disputes around his name: "At the end of 2004, an old friend of mine got in some business trouble and basically decided to take it out on me. To cut a long story short, this person is someone I worked very closely with and had a formal and family business relationship with. Due to various complaints this person had with me, they were able to turn my life and career upside down. I wasn't allowed to use my own name within certain areas of the US entertainment industry and we were in a debate about who owned the rights to my image, and who should get credit for 'inventing' it. This made my life complicated and intense for a few years, but I kept working and doing whatever I could to keep moving forward."[9]

Track listing

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Original release

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No.TitleLength
1."I Came for You"2:16
2."Close Calls with Bal Harbour"1:22
3."Not Going to Bed"2:57
4."You Will Remember Tonight"4:06
5."Pushing Drugs"2:41
6."Hand on the Place"3:20
7."One Brother"2:25
8."Las Vegas, Nevada"3:00
9."Dr. Dumont"1:06
10."I Want to See You Go Wild"3:00
11."When I'm High"3:16
12."Golden Eyed Dog"0:28
13."Into the Clear"1:33
14."Mark My Grace"3:11
15."Don't Call Me Andy"2:45
16."The Background"2:55
17."Slam John Against a Brick Wall"3:53
18."The Moving Room"3:37
Korean bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
19."Can You Dance with Me?"2:08
20."This Is My World"2:45
21."I Want Your Face"2:25
22."Let's Go on a Date"2:22
U.S. vinyl bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
19."Big Party"2:45
20."We're Not Gunna Get Old"4:50
21."Kicks and Bricks"2:58
22."I've Got Know Fear"3:26
23."We Will Boogie"3:14

2010 release

[edit]
Disc 1: Close Calls with Brick Walls
No.TitleLength
1."I Came for You"2:16
2."Close Calls with Bal Harbour"1:22
3."Not Going to Bed"2:57
4."You Will Remember Tonight"4:06
5."Pushing Drugs"2:41
6."Hand on the Place"3:20
7."One Brother"2:25
8."Las Vegas, Nevada"3:00
9."Dr. Dumont"1:06
10."I Want to See You Go Wild"3:00
11."When I'm High"3:16
12."Golden Eyed Dog"0:28
13."Into the Clear"1:33
14."Mark My Grace"3:11
15."Don't Call Me Andy"2:45
16."The Background"2:55
17."Slam John Against a Brick Wall"3:53
18."The Moving Room"3:37
Disc 2: Mother of Mankind (Rare & Unreleased 1999–2010)
No.TitleLength
1."We Party (You Shout)"2:40
2."High Five"3:31
3."Let's Go on a Date"2:19
4."We Got a Groove"5:13
5."Sarah Notto"2:06
6."I'm a Vagabond"2:42
7."I've Got Know Fear"3:26
8."Big Party"2:45
9."Who Knows?"2:22
10."Coming Bad"4:12
11."Can You Dance with Me?"2:08
12."Kicks and Bricks"2:58
13."A.W.K."5:44
14."I Will Find God"3:41
15."This Is My World"2:46
16."Young Lord"2:59
17."We're Not Gunna Get Old"4:50
18."Kill Yourself"3:16
19."I Want Your Face"2:25
20."Jewel Street Man"4:43
21."The Party God"2:14
22."Doing Andrew W.K." (iTunes bonus track)1:22

Notes

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Track origins:

  • Track 1: Premium Collection - The Very Best So Far (aka "Party (You Shout!)")
  • Tracks 3, 11, 15, 19: Close Calls with Brick Walls (Korean edition)
  • Track 4: Spit 7" with Riverboat Gamblers
  • Track 6: I'm a Vagabond 7" Single
  • Tracks 7, 8, 12, 17: Close Calls with Brick Walls (Vinyl edition) ("We're Not Gunna Get Old" is slightly edited, the version on the vinyl ended with a capella vocals which lasted for a few seconds more)
  • Track 9: background music from the film Who Knows? Live In Concert: 2000 - 2004
  • Track 13: new version of a track from Girls Own Juice EP
  • Track 18: new version of a track featured in a promotional release from Bulb Records, commonly referred to as the "We Want Fun" unreleased LP

All other tracks were brand new at the time of the original release.

Charts

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Chart (2006) Peak
position
Japan (Oricon)[10] 30

References

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  1. ^ Hanscomb, Rich (March 16, 2010). "Album Review: Andrew W.K. – Close Calls With Brick Walls/ Mother of Mankind". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on July 10, 2015. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  2. ^ Greenwald, Andy (March 17, 2010). "Close Calls with Brick Walls". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  3. ^ Soghomonian, Talia (March 22, 2010). "Andrew WK – Close Calls With Brick Walls / Mother Of Mankind". MusicOMH. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  4. ^ Gardner, Noel (March 19, 2010). "Album Review: Andrew WK – 'Close Calls With Brick Walls/Mother Of Mankind' (Steev Mike)". NME. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  5. ^ Campion, Chris (December 10, 2006). "Andrew WK, Close Calls With Brick Walls". The Observer. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  6. ^ Breihan, Tom (March 2, 2010). "Andrew W.K.: Close Calls With Brick Walls / Mother of Mankind". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  7. ^ Scott, Paul (February 20, 2007). "Andrew W.K. – Close Calls With Brick Walls – Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  8. ^ "Andrew W.K.: Close Calls with Brick Walls / Mother of Mankind". Uncut: 83. Virtuoso in its playing and epic in its ambition, this double LP mixes Meat Loaf-on-steroids numbers like 'I Wanna Take You on a Date' with odder moments like 'Pushing Drugs'...
  9. ^ W.K., Andrew (September 16, 2009). "Andrew WK: I am finally a free man". The Guardian. London. Retrieved September 16, 2009.
  10. ^ "アンドリューW.K." (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
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