Andy D
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Andy D

Indianapolis, Indiana, United States

Indianapolis, Indiana, United States
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"A little ditty about my “magical” interview with Andy D"

In many ways I felt that my interview with Andy D, a rapper based out of the Midwest, was going to be an interesting one. From reading claims on the Internet about Andy D being a “hurricane of sex, sweat, and day-glo”-Rudy Kizer, Hit The Decks Radio. I knew I would be in for one heck of an interview. Andy D is truly an experience from his mix of sci-fi and the 80s, what is not to love?

From the beginning of his music career as Andy D where he describes himself as “only having four songs” and the potential of vomiting on stage, Andy D now tours with his wife Victoria and their IPod bringing a wave of 80s,scifi,neon, blood, sweat, and good dirty fun. From their bright and extremely 80s appearance to their infectious wit and refreshing humor Andy D is pretty much who I and many other 80s loving Sci-Fi nerds wanted to be when they grew up,and when asking Andy D how he created his image he said precisely that! From combining his childhood dreams and 80s obsession mixed with some sick white boy dance moves and you have a magical musical journey. I really had a lot of fun interviewing this very unique band and am pleased to say that Andy D and Victoria have now created a new fan out of me. - Off The Avenue


"Andy D: Magic, Mystery and Pure Unadulterated Fun"

“Andy D What can be said? His music is explosive, provocative, even teetering on the edge of perversion.” - Bloomington Area Music


"First Friday Fun"

Andy D is back with another wild and lively album called Warcries. The album release party will be at Radio Radio starting at 10 pm with additional performance by Oreo Jones and DJ Action Jackson. A $10 cover includes a complimentary copy of the new album. I personally can’t wait to hear the new songs, including High-Energy Lover and Nite Music. - Indianapolis Star


"Andy D "Songs in the Key of Magic""

“Listeners who appreciate Andrew W.K.’s hedonistic spirit, Lady Gaga’s synth-pop game and Biz Markie’s cartoon approach to hip-hop may find Bloomington-based Andy D to be their next pop-culture obsession.“ - Indianapolis Star


"SXSW Overflow: Day Five"

“Songs In The Key Of Magic is like what Devo might’ve sounded like if they’d met the Beastie Boys back in the early ’80s and started partying and getting stoned together, then crafted a funky, dancey, utterly batshit insane album full of songs about magic, unicorns, wizards, vikings, and rainbows. Oh, and sex. Lots and lots and lots of sex. Squint a little, and Andy almost looks like an ever more sex-obsessed Har Mar Superstar, with the fact that I have no idea if either performer is serious adding to the resemblance. And I have to say, I never, ever thought I’d hear the words “I’m a warlock with your junk!” delivered without a hint of irony.” - Space City Rock


"We're Done with Kick Starter"

“I have funded more Kickstarters than I care to admit. Somewhere in the neighborhood of a dozen. The only ones I have not regretted were … Andy D’s forthcoming album, Warcries. (It is liquid sound insanity.)” - Gizmodo.com


"Indian Jewelry, Make a Rising, Jana Hunter, Andy D, Times New Viking, the Rebel"

As well all know, the best horror movies all involve a shed. Thursday afternoon's house party, actually shed party, combined all the elements of a great horror movie soundtrack. Houston/L.A. beat-killers Indian Jewelry cranked out a bass-heavy mixture of chopped vocals and dizzying effects that were like that dread-filled scene where you find the first dead body. Next, Philadelphia quintet Make a Rising ran through a fractured kaleidoscope of pop and experimental blips that ended with the singer walking around in an inflatable bag that filled the whole entrance to the shed. The terror of knowing you're trapped. Jana Hunter's own haunted melodies sent spines tingling, as the local performed with a full band, even breaking out the Casio-fueled closer from debut Blank Unstaring Heirs of Doom. The title alone should tell you what's about to happen. That's right, it's rapper Andy D, with songs about werewolves and female ejaculation. He's wearing a fanny pack and he's right behind you. Ohio quartet Times New Viking picked up next, reeling through an electro-tinged set of scuzzy, heart-racing rock. And then the Rebel, aka Ben Wallers of the Country Teasers, lured us back into the shed for one last breath. Wallers' deadpan, the electric organ, and the off-key guitar all made you forget about that meat hook about to slice your head in two. - The Austin Chronicle


"Blue States Lose"

You’ve had a long week, kids, and you’ve earned your Friday treat: It’s time for Blue States Lose, where we sort through the galleries of fucked-up hipsters at The Cobrasnake, Last Night’s Party, Misshapes and Ambrel so you don’t have to. Then we bring you our 10 favorites each Friday. After the jump, Joey Arak brings you the eye-bleeding magic.

So Misshapes moved to a bigger venue to host the likes of Jessica Alba and charge $10 per head. Strange, yes, but here’s the Last Night’s Party Blog Moment of the Week (from Dec. 14th) to keep our heads screwed on straight:

A nice Argentinian woman really loved the idea of LastNightsParty and remarked how she thought the idea was so new, and how they didn’t really have anything like that in her country. Spike and I were hungry so we reluctantly shared a double cheese burger meal while he complained about McDonalds always smelling like sweet urine.
Ah, that’s refreshing. Now, enough tomfoolery. On to the list.

1) Last Night’s Party. “Kill Whitie” photo #3509: There’s a valuable lesson to be learned here, children. He’s got some funny ideas, but when you throw them all together like that, it’s just too busy. Keep it simple, stupid. It’s the same with comedy. You can tell a joke about a retard, a cripple, a crack baby or an AIDS patient, but if you tell a joke about a retarded cripple crack baby with AIDS, it’s not funny, it’s just sad. The audience gets bummed out. At some point you gotta make the call between the sleeveless denim, the ironic moustache, the muffs and the novelty T-shirt. You can’t do them all at once, lest you come out looking like something the girl on the left pulled from her vagina after a particularly randy night out. - Gawker.com


"Slow/Dynamite + Andy D + Macaque"

By Nate Dorr

The Village Voice, who apparently have been reading my past odes to Bushwick’s Goodbye Blue Monday (or maybe, just maybe, are savvy to these things on their own), called the cozy yet dazzlingly-bric-a-brac-crowded space “The Best Place To See Great Up-and-coming Bands Before They Embrace Their Own Hype” in their best of 2007. While I’d endorse that definition up to the word “Bands”, I think Friday’s show stands in direct contradiction to the last bit: I have a suspicion that local Bushwick rapper Andy D had already embraced his own hype before he had songs. But more on him later.
First, for the uninitiated, GBM is officially some kind of coffee shop / bar / venue / perpetual swap meet / junk sculpture workshop and recommends itself by the following:
1. Bands every night, and never a cover.
2. Cheap drinks.
3. Fascinating books and records, antiques and esoterica spilling from every nook and even, yes, cranny.
4. Deep enough into Brooklyn (on the J line, even) to be inconvenient for those just seeking a context in which to look cool. Hence: a small, friendly crowd.
5. Those bands that play free shows every night of the week? Well curated, rarely boring, often great. With variety. You’d be unlikely to run across the next Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! there, but I’m not convinced I care about running across the next Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! regardless...
All of Andy D’s songs are awesome, and he will be the first to tell you. So awesome as to easily balance such vital issues facing the modern world as werewolves and female ejaculation. So awesome that the fanny pack hugging his hip — completing an ensemble of faux-rabbit-fur vest, bare chest, gold chains, and rat-tail — isn’t just for show: it contains his much-needed sweat band. So awesome that– okay, okay, I know you think you’ve seen this sort of overblown, swaggering rapper-self-parody before, but there’s no irony here, and the best evidence I can give you in Andy D’s favor is actual audience reaction: rather than just stand around uncomfortably while our protagonist waxed poetic about his (and God’s) love of drunk girls, Andy D was actually able to bring the party to the audience.
The usually sedate GBM crowds rose from their overstuffed easy chairs and were actually dancing; the beats, even spooling off an iPod, were surprisingly funky, and even the most satiric rhymes snappily horrifying/hilarious. Who can argue with fun? Certainly no one at Goodbye Blue Monday that night. It was the Weekend, and Andy D Rocked Our Show. (In fact, are “Andy D Rocked My Show” t-shirts too much to hope for? I hope not.)
permalink:
http://www.imposemagazine.com/mag/index.php/2008/01/22/slowdynamite-andy-d-macaque-goodbye-blue-monday-brooklyn-ny/ - Impose Magazine


"Album review: Andy D, "Choose Your Perversion""

Although Choose Your Perversion is a couple of years old, it's new to Indiana audiences – the album's creator, Andy D, is a recent emigré to Bloomington from New York City.

The first thing you notice at an Andy D gig is his outlandish appearance: moustache, tramlines and flowing rat tail; fingerless leather gloves, fannypack and an unbuttoned denim vest framing a rotund figure.

His album, like his image, borrows from the '80s. The music resembles synth-based new wave, while his delivery is at times reminiscent of the Beastie Boys circa License to Ill.

The songs on Choose Your Perversion tend to be lewd, often surrealistic, tales of Andy D's game. “Magic Lady” addresses the phenomenon of female ejaculation, while Party Werewolf recounts a midnight liaison with a female lycanthrope.

“Just Push Play” diverges from the album's omnipresent sexuality, instead decrying the fickle nature of the music industry and the hype surrounding “it” bands. The ballad, “Blow You Away,” is a standout, revealing Andy D to be as capable a singer as he is a rapper. Nonetheless, the song's sentimentality sounds dissonant sandwiched tracks about date rape and a “party werewolf.”

The album has its flaws: Production on certain tracks lack polish, and it fails to capture the energy of Andy D's live show.

[in print and online @ http://www.nuvo.net/music/article/album-review-andy-d-choose-your-perversion] - Nuvo


"Local celebrity: Andy D."

Claim to fame: Bloomington-based rocker/rapper. Kitted out in denim cutoffs, a denim vest and fanny pack, with a long flowing rattail, Andy D. is hard to miss. But it’s not just the clothes that distinguish him from the crowd. It’s also his clever lyrics and laid over fun beats. He’s electroclash meets the Electric Six. With songs like “God Loves Drunk Chicks,” “Party Werewolf,” and “2 Inches from Crazytown,” Andy D’s music is a signal that the party has begun.

In 35 words or fewer, I want the world to know: I’m going to count this out on my hand, hang on. ...That life isn’t a zero-sum game and being awesome is not dependent upon someone else being less awesome. We can all be awesome.

What’s your day job? I work on campus at IU at an academic journal called “Animal Behavior.” I do membership management and membership liaison, along with proofreading.

We heard you’re a linguist — what’s your background? I studied anthropology. I did a thesis on linguistic anthropology. I have another degree in religious studies.

Where did you grow up? Greenwood. I went to Greenwood High School. I moved to New York, and I just moved back to Indiana a year ago.

When did you start performing as Andy D.? The first song I wrote as Andy D. with this style of music, it’s called “Rockslow.” I wrote that in very late 2003-04. I end most shows with it. I didn’t start doing this until 2005 — that’s when I had my first show in New York, and I wrote the album in 2005-06. The album (“Choose Your Perversion”) came out in spring of ’07. I’m working on the second one right now.

How did you come up with your look? It sort of came together. I said, “I think I’m going to try growing a mustache.” I did and I stuck with it — and I put mascara in it to thicken it up. I called it “stachscara.” And then I had kind of long hair. One of my friends was like, “I’m going to give you a rattail.” And I said, “Yes you are.”

How do you describe your sound? I call it party music. I rap, but I’m not hip-hop. I have a song about Vikings that I call prog-hop. Mythical themes and hip-hop. If all else fails, I’ll call my music pop. I’m just trying to play to my influences.

What song do you sing along to when no one else is around? “Crush on You” by The Jets, because I love that song.

If you were mayor of this city, what one thing would you change? Do mayors have the power to give people universal health care? Because that would be awesome.

Who is YOUR favorite local celebrity? Grey Granite — I really like what he’s doing. He’s pretty solid on the hip-hop circuit in Indy.

Indianapolis: Love it or leave it? Love it. Things are getting better here. There’s more people coming together and making stuff happen.

Meet Andy D.

He’ll be performing during the Broad Ripple Music Festival Oct 17 at the Casba, 6319 Guilford Ave. Info: www.broadripplemusicfest.com.

[In print and online @ http://indianapolis.metromix.com/events/article/local-celebrity-andy-d/1536054/content] - Indianapolis Star Metromix


"ORANJE PREVIEW : An MOKB Interview with Andy D"

We like to laugh with Andy D, and it might sound like a joke below, but Andy D has literally erupted all over the Indianapolis music scene this Summer, and become a fast MOKB favorite in the process. His live show has proven to be one of the most entertaining and fun musical events I've seen in this town in a long time. Dancing, screaming, and most of all sweating, are all staples during an Andy D set.

"The D" is a Brooklyn transplant now based in Bloomington, Indiana for the time being. He will headline the My Old Kentucky Blog stage at this Saturday's ORANJE, one of Indiana's premiere art and music expositions.

MOKB's stage also features what are sure to be amazing performances from Wye Oak, Heavy Hometown, Lucky Pineapple, Skittz/Ace One/DJ Helicon and Jascha!

ORANJE happens this Saturday (9/19) at 2323 North Illinois Street from 8pm to 2am! Visit the website to see all the acts that will be performing, along with all the talented artists that will be on display!

MOKB : Andy D...you have exploded onto the Indianapolis/Bloomington music scene...what else would you like to explode on?

Andy D : On all your faces! no really, that was a leading question. Right now I'm trying to play as many shows as possible in as many places as possible. I want to tour. I'm so stoked that Indy has embraced what I'm doing - I grew up here and the scene has gotten so much more vibrant and varied since I was playing in a metal band in high school. I just played in Chicago for the first time and it was awesome. I also have a couple music videos in the pipeline. I watched the VMA's last night and was rather underwhelmed. I miss music videos, I think they are an amazing synchretism of audio and visuals and I would like to bring that to my repertoire and have those kind of explosions on the internet. Exploding on Laundromatinee mite also be awesome... ahem.

MOKB : You give your albums away for free at most shows. You know money doesn't grow on trees right?!

Andy D : This is true! But also people can't fall in love with something they never hear. My thinking is this: I'd rather have someone hear me than not. CDs don't cost a whole to make, and the demand for them is really down with digital distribution, the recession, and the resurgence in vinyl popularity, but they remain a great portable medium for music. So my hope is that if I can get the word out there with these CDs - and I instruct everyone I give a CD to to trip it and give it to their friends as well - then I can get more new people to come to shows and tell their friends and have more of an impact. If enough people know about me and liek what I do then I feel I will recoup all I've lost in giving away CDs. I still sell T-shirts! And I do sell CDs when I'm on tour, you know, for gas money.

MOKB : Who is your favorite viking?

Andy D : I don't really love any specific viking, but I love their mythology and their fatalism. I'm really attracted to their gods because their gods were just as weird and petty as the Greek gods but they were also mortal - they had to eat these special apples to stay alive, and they were all little kids when they were in Valhalla. Not only were they gonna die but they knew exactly how they were each gonna die because Odin their king gave his rite eye for such knowledge. He also hanged himself on a tree for nine days just to learn to write! What little kid in kindergarten would do that shit? That's a dedication to education - that's the real No Child Left behind! I mean the real vikings were complete assholes just killing and stealing, but they also were living in a really crappy marginal land on the frozen edges of civilization. Now look at their descendants - they are incredible! They have universal health care, pot is legal, and I've never heard a musician from Scandinavia I didn't like - The Knife, The Sounds, ABBA, Ace of Base, The Hives, Bjork. When was the last time Norway invaded someone? I have no idea. They came a long way from being hairy jerk pirates.

MOKB : What inspires you?

Andy D : My Friends! People and their stories! Mythology is part of that - stories of magic and wonder - Ragnarock (Viking Lover) plays on that. Most of my songs have a story to them. Partywerewolf is fictitious obviously, but it's a what-if story - what if lycanthrope were an STD? Metaphors! Rockslow and Partynite are true stories that I experienced with my friends. Magic Lady and Dirty Boyfriend and some of my new songs are hypothetical stories. God Loves Drunk Chicks mite be the truest story I've ever told. That song is definitely my biggest hit, but there is some controversy in it - I've had to explain it many times - it's a satire, a harsh commentary on date rape culture which is too prevalent. It's a lament that in some respects the Victorian Era never ended; that women in our society are judged so harshly and on a double standard that I see such repression happen on the day to day so when ladies finally get a chance to let loo - My Old Kentucky Blog


"Andy D... the Interview"

Yo! It's "theVision" here. I recently caught an Andy D show when he played with our boy Grey at the Melody Inn. I was mesmerized. Not only was this Bloomington native extremely entertaining, fun and hilarious... but he actually had tight beats too! I couldn't believe it... the whole package. Very rare these days so... without further ado. I present the Andy D interview.

theVision: Who is Andy D?

Andy D: Andy D wants everyone to have a great time in this life and to realize how incredible and unique they are. He likes bright colors and catchy songs; therefore, he wears bright colors and makes catchy songs. Andy D likes a lot of different things and wants to share those with the world. Then there is also the booty shaking; he does metric tons of that.

tV: Your music is epic, nasty, dirty and moving... what is your process like? Do you make your own beats?

AD: I write my own beats, melody, rhythm—all of it. Catchiness is key. I'll get a melody stuck in my head. If the hook gets stuck in your head, then the words being sung to the melody will get stuck there too-- and sink in. Next comes the wordplay. I go for humor and clever zingers. If I can make people laugh, they are a step closer to dancing. And you can't dance without having a good time.

My biggest influences are late-80s/early-90s Freestyle (Debbie Deb, Taylor Dane, Shannon, Rockell), Old-School Hip-Hop, Disco, Electro-Pop and New Wave. I take my demo songs and ideas to my producer, Calvin Cardioid, who has one of the best ears and sensibilities for music in anyone I've ever met.

tV: Your lyrics include references to horror, fantasy, etc.—most notably the song you sing about vampires and werewolves fuckin'. Then there’s your "Auryn" tattoo! What are your influences and why?

AD: I spend a lot of time thinking about what I love…from all points in my life. The Neverending Story was my favorite movie growing up and it still is! The moment at the end when I realized the never-ending-ness of the story was in depth and not in time—it literally took my perspective to another dimension! That's why I got the Auryn tattoo. I have degrees in Anthropology and Religious Studies (basically in folklore and mythology), so that's why I love werewolves, magic, unicorns and arcane symbols.

I'm a nerd and I nerd out about a lot of things! The biggest thing is sexuality.

tV: You are a hustler at your shows—workin’ hard, sweatin', movin' and havin' fun. What's your motivation?

AD: I don't hustle in the usual urban way, but I AM working hard. So hard in fact that seven songs is about the maximum number I can do safely. By that 8th or 9th song I might pass out or vomit or die or something.

Andrew WK—this guy inspired me… to be awesomer than I previously was and to do the music I want to do. My MO is for everyone to realize that in this life they deserve to have what they want (as long as they aren't fucking with other people). Everyone is deserving of happiness, and I happen to think sex and werewolves and other awesome things are results of that. This is also why I say, "I love you," seven or eight times per show, because I really do love everyone who took the time to watch me freak out on stage.

tV: There is a serious visual element to your shows. Your wardrobe. Your look. Why? Is it as integral a part of your show as it seems? (More on this question... it's really good.)

AD: Yes it is very integral. The zeitgeist of this generation places a premium on self-awareness and coolness—literally, detachment. Some people think so much about what they are doing that it paralyzes them into NOT doing. Everything I stand for is going away from that.

I have worked very hard to not care what other people think of me, and that has given me confidence. That is the opposite of coolness, detachment—those things are about keeping people at arms length and just fooling everyone with some bullshit posture.

I decided that I was going to do something powerful and maybe absurd, but I was going to do it sincerely. I do have a rattail and a moustache all the time because I genuinely like them—not to be funny. I like to mix hyper-masculine things with the t-shirts a little girl would wear, because I’m a person who truly doesn't give a shit what other people think.

tV: How would YOU describe your music?

AD: This is so tough. I try to skirt this issue. Lil' Wayne is playing the guitar now, Kanye West is doing Shoe-gazing electro-pop, and we all know about Nu-Metal... I would love this to be popular, so maybe it's all pop music!

tV: How has your reception been in the music community? Do you have anything fresh and new in the works that HeavyGunners should be aware of?

AD: The response has been really good. I was in a battle of the bands here in Bloomington this fall, and I got pretty far—to the semi-finals. It hurt to be eliminated, and I got depressed for a while. Then I rallied and wrote a bunch of awesome songs! I met a lot of bands in thi - Heavy Gun Blog


Discography

Still working on that hot first release.

Photos

Bio

Gizmodo: “I have funded more Kickstarters than I care to admit. Somewhere in the neighborhood of a dozen. The only ones I have not regretted were … Andy D’s forthcoming album, Warcries. (It is liquid sound insanity.)”

Andrew WK: "Oh I know Andy D... he parties VERY hard" - via Twitter

Space City Rock: “Songs In The Key Of Magic is like what Devo might’ve sounded like if they’d met the Beastie Boys back in the early ’80s and started partying and getting stoned together, then crafted a funky, dancey, utterly batshit insane album full of songs about magic, unicorns, wizards, vikings, and rainbows. Oh, and sex. Lots and lots and lots of sex. Squint a little, and Andy almost looks like an ever more sex-obsessed Har Mar Superstar, with the fact that I have no idea if either performer is serious adding to the resemblance. And I have to say, I never, ever thought I’d hear the words “I’m a warlock with your junk!” delivered without a hint of irony.”

Indianapolis Star : “Listeners who appreciate Andrew W.K.’s hedonistic spirit, Lady Gaga’s synth-pop game and Biz Markie’s cartoon approach to hip-hop may find Bloomington-based Andy D to be their next pop-culture obsession.“

Robert Cross, Sirius XMU : “Holy Shit! I don’t know what I was expecting him to look like but he surpassed my wildest expectations. Amazing. Thanks for the entertainment.”

Bloomington Area Music : “Andy D What can be said? His music is explosive, provocative, even teetering on the edge of perversion.”

Rudy Kizer, Hit The Decks Radio : “What the hell can you really say about Andy D that hasn’t been said before. Prince by way of Danny McBride, the electro cool of Fischerspooner mated to the idiot fun of early Beastie Boys, the bastard child of 80s excess and modern hipster cool. Except that doesn’t really capture a live Andy D set – quite possibly, words can’t do it justice. The irony would wear pretty thin if the stage show weren’t so damn entertaining. The lothario swagger and hyperkinetic energy coming from a less-than-svelt Andy is never self-conscious, and the commitment to the performance makes you give less-than-a-shit that he’s no supermodel. Whatever “it” is, Andy D has it by the bucket-full.”

Dick Valentine of Electric Six: " Now THAT'S a business model!"

If vikings time-traveled to the 80s, took semen samples from Grandmaster Flash, Beastie Boys, Michael Jackson, Prince and Poison, came back to the present, inseminated Peaches, and then brought her to the future to have the baby and have it raised by breakdancing robot wolves, you might end up with Andy D. Andy D is a hurricane of sex, sweat, and day-glo. He burst onto the Indianapolis scene a little more than a year ago, after moving down to Bloomington via Brooklyn. His live shows immediately became the stuff of legend. Combining rap, rock, and humor, Andy D is best experienced in flesh rather than talked about.