Exclaim! praises: "Andrews, the ‘alternative Phil Spector’, and brainchild behind the much heralded group Failure, who arguably are the genesis of the chromatic processed guitar sound (currently perpetuated by former member Troy Van Leeuwen, who took it to A Perfect Circle and Queens of the Stone Age), and whom also earned accolades worldwide and gained great support by the likes of other left-field dark rockers such as Tool."
Since producing and mixing Fantastic Planet, a new career opened up for Ken, as bands and artists found themselves drawn to his aural sensibilities. Easily segueing into his second calling as a producer/mixer, Ken has worked for numerous acts—including Beck, Pete Yorn, Tenacious D, A Perfect Circle, Jimmy Eat World, Mae, and Blink-182.
In 2000, Ken continued as a recording artist with his first solo project, ON (Epic Records), and later with the band Year of the Rabbit (Elektra). “I enjoy making records. Whether I’m helping other artists enhance their vision as a producer or mixer, or writing and recording my own stuff as an artist; I find both worlds to benefit each other, as I invariably pick up skills and techniques from the artists I produce and vice versa. I find wearing both hats equally satisfying creatively.”
Now, Ken returns to the scene with his first solo release as Ken Andrews. “I’m very excited about this album [Secrets of the Lost Satellite]. I’ve had the opportunity to ask various people I’ve worked with over the years to come in and collaborate with me this time. I brought in two of my oldest musical cohorts, Justin Meldal-Johnsen (Beck, IMA Robot) and Jordon Zadorozny (Blinker the Star, Abbey) to co-produce the new album with me. Justin’s accomplished career as a top L.A. studio bassist (Tori Amos, Air, Garbage, The Mars Volta) and his experience as Beck’s live musical director and bassist has prepared him well for the tasks of producer. His main concept for this record, and the driving force as to why this album is decidedly different from my previous solo work, was to bring in a live band to overdub as a unit, on top of my fairly finished and detailed demos. The band consisted mostly of Beck’s current live group, whom I had met when I was hired by Beck to contribute to the Nacho Libre Soundtrack (Brian Lebarton, Matt Mahaffey, Matt Sherrod, and Justin Stanley). We all got together for a two-day recording session, which was one of the most exciting of my life. These guys are so tuned in to each other. Listening to them come up with ideas, and in some cases completely transforming my songs—was a huge rush for me. While the basic structures and all the vocals stayed the same, the songs became injected with a live, undulating quality, that enhanced the basic feel I was going for, but took it far beyond what I thought was possible.”
“The creative process has been very liberating and free flowing. I finally have taken the pressure off of myself, in terms of playing most of the instruments, and really used my skills as the songwriter and overall auteur of the album to my advantage,” he explains.
“Write Your Story”, a track Ken co-wrote with Jordon Zadorozny, strays from what is heard on past Failure, ON, and Rabbit releases. Somewhere in the musical vein of Air and The Doves, the dreamy undertones of the song echo alongside luxuriant vocals.
“Jordon and I have worked together a lot in the past, except with the underlying roles reversed (I was producing him in the past). We both, play, sing, engineer, and produce, so we tend to get into the nitty-gritty of things real quick. Jordon is one of the very few people I’m completely comfortable writing with for my own album. He and I share a writing sensibility that we don’t talk about, it just happens. Plus, he completely understands my musical history and what I was trying to achieve on this album. His role was primarily co-producer, but he played quite a few instruments on various songs, and he co-wrote probably my favorite song on the album, “Write Your Story.”
“Secret Things”, one of the album’s standout tracks, combines tripped-out strings with a synth-bass groove creating a demanding, viscerally appeal. Live instruments (drums, piano, and guitar) mingle with electronic elements. Strong, hooky vocals keep the song on course. “In Your Way”, another stylistically dynamic track pulls the listener into an eerie, enticing space/dream world.
Secrets of the Lost Satellite is expected in stores on March 13, 2007 courtesy of Dinosaur Fight Records. “I think people are going to hear things that they are used to hearing from me on this album, but they are also going to hear things that I haven’t really done in the past,” explains Ken.
A three-week promotional headline tour is slated to coincide with the anticipated release. This tour will be Ken’s first return to the live scene since touring with Year of the Rabbit in 2003.
What Its Like
Ken Andrews Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Admit this wasn't the way
The way you looked for the faults
And when you found them all
You made them up again so good
Made them up again so good
This is the same thing again
I fill up with the lies
That you keep inside
One thing I know for sure, it's not me
Not me
Not me
Stop blaming every little thing you see
For all the pain that you're feeling when you cannot breathe
There is a lot more to it than you wanna believe
But if you don't ever face it you can never know what it's like
To be free
You know what you need to
You never look inside
Your head always spinning
There's never just two sides
The pain that your feeling
You can't ever know it
Your head always spinning
You never will know it
Only so you can be free
The song "What It's Like" by Ken Andrews is about the difficulty of taking responsibility for one's own problems and emotions. The lyrics are directed towards someone who constantly finds fault in others and uses their own lies to fill up the emptiness they feel inside. The singer is urging this person to stop blaming others for their pain and to look within themselves to find the root of their issues.
The first verse asks the listener what it would take for them to admit that their current approach isn't working. The listener is accused of searching for faults and when they find them, they use them to create new lies. The second verse describes how the listener feels empty inside and fills that emptiness with lies. The singer knows for sure that the listener's issues are not caused by them, but rather something deep inside the listener that needs to be addressed.
The chorus of the song continues this theme of taking responsibility for oneself. The listener is again urged to stop blaming everything they see for their pain and to face the real issues instead. The singer believes that there is a lot more to the listener's problems than they want to admit, but they will never know what it's like to be free if they don't face their problems.
The bridge of the song further emphasizes the theme of looking within oneself. The listener is told that they know what they need to do, but they never look inside themselves. They are always spinning in their own head and can never truly know the pain they are feeling. Only by taking responsibility for their own problems can they be free.
Overall, "What It's Like" is a poignant reminder of the importance of taking responsibility for one's own problems and emotions. It challenges the listener to look deep within themselves and confront whatever issues they may be facing.
Line by Line Meaning
What would it take you to say
What kind of catalyst would it take to make you admit:
Admit this wasn't the way
That this is not how things should be and something has gone wrong,
The way you looked for the faults
The manner in which you seek out imperfections,
And when you found them all
And when you have identified and fixed all the faults,
You made them up again so good
You made new faults, and you perfected them,
This is the same thing again
This is the same situation repeating itself,
Feeling empty again
Feeling alone, abandoned, and without purpose once again,
I fill up with the lies
I rely on delusions to pacify myself,
That you keep inside
The secrets and the things you don't share with anyone,
One thing I know for sure, it's not me
I am positive that I am not the source of the issues here,
Not me
Not me,
Stop blaming every little thing you see
End the habit of attributing blame without due consideration,
For all the pain that you're feeling when you cannot breathe
For the hurt and suffocation that you are experiencing,
There is a lot more to it than you wanna believe
There's a deeper and much larger issue than what you'd like to admit,
But if you don't ever face it you can never know what it's like
However, if you choose to not acknowledge it, you will never experience true freedom,
To be free
The sense of liberation,
You know what you need to
You possess the wisdom to know what the right steps are,
You never look inside
You are hesitant to introspect on your true emotions and motivations,
Your head always spinning
You are easily overwhelmed and incapable of focusing,
There's never just two sides
There's always more facets to the given situation than what is immediately apparent,
The pain that your feeling
The pain that you are experiencing,
You can't ever know it
You will never comprehend it if you don't confront it,
Your head always spinning
Your mind is always preoccupied and racing,
You never will know it
You will never come to terms with it,
Only so you can be free
Only by doing so will you be able to attain freedom.
Contributed by Grayson M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.