Wigwam were always something of a "Beatles Effect" type of band, whose diverse membership would compose their music along different lines from each other. But that lack of cohesion also allowed for a blossoming of original ideas. When it worked, such as on Fairyport or Being, the results were divine. In other cases, Wigwam lacked flow and purpose. And they predictably devolved into a commercial rock band in the mid to late 70s.
So it comes as no surprise that when Wigwam had a chance to perform live on the radio in front of a studio audience (November 7, 1973 to be precise), that their set would be random and all over the place. According to the liner notes, John Lennon's 'Imagine' was actually a warmup song, and was not broadcast that evening. Apparently this was a staple of their live act. It's a straight cover song, so we'll consider it a mulligan. On the other hand, Pekka Pohjola's 'Nipistys', from his own debut album, is an instrumental tour de force and easily the highlight of the set. Jim Pembroke's 'Grass for Blades', shows off his singer songwriter skills, though there are plenty of extended instrumentals to capture the imagination. 'Fairyport' is an extended version of the familiar track, but once again quite scattered, with a mix of heavy progressive, blues, rock n roll, etc... Overall, a very fine performance, and a wonderful archival find (as is the whole series). But for me, it was a bit too diverse to be considered excellent.
Ownership: 2016 Svart (CD) with Taivaanvuohi. Booklet has historical liner notes.
7/31/16 (review)
A long time friend, musician, and album collector once told me that Wigwam's Being is his single favorite progressive rock album of all time. That took me aback, as the album didn't really even register with me much on first listen some 20+ years ago. But on subsequent careful listens, you can certainly understand ones passion for it. It is a highly stylized, complex, and dense work that requires an enormous amount of focus and attention. This same friend is also a co-leader of a contemporary progressive rock band, who have released a couple of albums that are much respected, and it's very clear to me that Being has been a huge influence on his songwriting. I won't mention who this band is. I'll let you all try to figure it out :-)
There's much debate among Wigwam fans on which is their finest hour. I tend to fall into the Fairyport camp, preferring the more loosely structured proto-progressive sound, but Being is certainly a close second.
Ownership: 1974 Love (LP). Single sleeve version with printed inner bag. Acquired in 2026.
First copy: 2010 Esoteric (CD). Booklet reprints all the original lyrics and liners, along with a short essay written by founding member Jim Pembroke. Acquired in 2012.
3/28/12 (review); 10/7/23; 6/11/26
Also own: Fairyport
Previously owned: Tombstone Valentine
3/28/12 (new entry)
Nice text thank You a lot, as You found out Wigwam definitely is one of the biggest pearls of Finnish Progressive Music. Not to forget the others, like Tasavallan Presidentti, Finnforest, Fantasia, Haikara etc.
ReplyDeleteThanks again and greetings from Helsinki
ps Wigwam's Nuclear Nightclub is my cup of Wigwam tea. ;-))