As we sit in a secluded room at Sony Music headquarters in London, our conversation largely consists of dissecting the positive aspects of partying, the human spirit, and a look back at how WK went from gumball machine salesman to the self-proclaimed 'role model for fun'.

From talks on Fox News, a weekly advice column in Vice Magazine and Village Voice, hosting his own nightclub, his own children’s TV show ‘Destroy Build Destroy’, to appearances at Oxford Union, he’s certainly not your typical music maverick.

‘You’re Not Alone’, due out next month, is his first studio album in nine years, following  ’55 Cadillac’ which was mostly instrumental. What has he been up to during that time? “To put it simply, insane amounts of partying. I just had no idea this amount of time had passed, none of this was intentional which maybe is good in a way? It seems to alleviate me from a lot of the blame or maybe it’s a lack of focus or a sign of irresponsibility. Either way, I’m just very thankful that there is this new album and I really, really hope it doesn’t take this many years for there to be another one.”

In his early life, WK took piano lessons and music came as naturally to him as riding a bike or learning to read. Making a career out of it however only seemed like an option once his plans of becoming a fashion designer ultimately fell apart.

“I couldn’t really explain it or even understand it myself but there was a strong vision that began to take shape and I responded to it. As far as the personality goes I’ve always been someone who’s been skewed towards the darker tones inside, but that’s also been what has drawn me to try and engage with efforts and activities that allow me to experience those positive emotions, which is there at the core of all this work.”

Between album releases, one of the most peculiar ventures in his discography was a square vinyl release of ‘I’m A Vagabond’ through Big Scary Monsters, based in Oxford. Founder Kevin Douch emailed WK’s management out of the blue rather than the other way around and whilst they’re a small label in comparison to the album releases on Island or Sony records, he was happy to take BSM under his wing.

“This is all part of a mindset that I still use to this day when I internalised what it means to be Andrew WK, especially at the beginning, to say yes to everything. Which is not an uncommon approach in decision making, it essentially eliminates that process of being unsure.”

From being accused of not being who he says he is in his early years, to getting booed off stage by Juggalos, to titles like ‘Party Messiah Tour’, WK’s career has seen some turbulence, but has ultimately stayed away from direct controversy.

“If you’re doing anything even if it’s on a small scale in the public arena, the odds are that someone will not like it, and someone might not like it to such a degree that they’re upset by it. One might be so upset that they may even be offended to the extent of a call out. But I’m not aware of that happening too often with me, but then again you can’t do things in the world and expect everyone to like it.”

When y0u’ve been around as long as WK has, it’s understandable that certain artists get sick to death of playing their early or breakthrough material over and over again. Thankfully this doesn’t seem to be the case when performing material from 2001’s ‘I Get Wet’.

“It’s always fun to play; it’s very simple in that regard. In fact, I’ve enjoyed playing it more the longer we’ve played it, much to my own surprise. I hadn’t thought about the possibility of growing tired of any of this. I suppose when you make art you make it with such intensity you diminish that possibility by trying to make it as good as you can. But even then if you’re playing a song hundreds of thousands of times, you would imagine that you might grow weary of it but that hasn’t happened yet.”

To many, partying is a very specific act or event that usually requires massive amounts of planning and energy to ensure that everyone has a great time. For WK, it’s a far more meaningful concept. “For me personally it’s always been quite consistent in that I wanted to use this framework which hopefully is very accessible of partying and revelry to create an entry point of feeling positive emotions, exploring all emotions in all facets of life. A party itself is built on an invitation to this event that’s supposed to be fun, and I suppose the most fun event of all is being alive and then using that as a kind of mindset and attitude.

Sure we might not have definite proof that ‘life is good’ or life is bad, or life is worth living, or life isn’t worth living, but maybe we can decide to accept that it is at least very intense, and to try and celebrate that intensity, with a kind of intentional, responsible embracing. In that, it won’t diminish the pain but put the pain into a context that makes it somehow more meaningful.”

WK is also a strong believer that you don’t need substances or conform to listening to certain types of music in order to party. His philosophy is meant to be inclusive and doesn’t put the same pressures he faced growing up, on anyone, especially his fan-base.

“As long as everyone is essentially agreeing on a type of good will, the antithesis is to be joyful, and even that can be put into question! You can be miserable and still be partying very hard and I’m a good example of that.”

‘You’re Not Alone’ will be available March 2 via Sony Music.  You can also catch him on tour at the following UK dates.

APRIL
13 CARDIFF Students Union
14 LONDON O2 Forum Kentish Town
15 BIRMINGHAM O2 Institute 2
18 NORWICH Waterfront
19 PORTSMOUTH Wedgewood Rooms
20 MANCHESTER O2 Ritz
21  GLASGOW Garage
22 GLASGOW Garage