Wig Wam
Wall Street

July 2012
Released: 2012, Frontiers Records
Rating: 3.0/5
Reviewer: Erich

The Eurovision darlings return with their 4th album in 2012’s WALL STREET and second on Frontiers Records. The band has slowly but steadily been moving towards a more mature, less cheesy and over the top sound. 2010’s NON STOP ROCK ‘N’ ROLL reigned in the glam/sleaze elements and WALL STREET almost completely erases them. What is left is essentially a melodic hard rock album, with some memorable choruses and well executed musicianship.



Truth be told, WALL STREET feels like an album the band never expected to make, almost sure that the ride and joke would be up after one or two albums. Yet the ride continued and left the band scrambling frantically for new ideas and sounds when the ink began to dry on the new contract and the obligation to continue to deliver records finally sunk in. There is no faulting the production though, with a big booming bass sound and crisp drumming. The guitars likewise are quite polished and balanced. The chief problem with this album though is that the songs, for the most part, are not as memorable as the debut or even the second album. The title track is decent and “OMG! (Wish I Had A Gun) has some heft and chunk that helps it stand out. Wig Wam though sounds like they are caught in a purgatory, treading the line between seriousness and parody and unable to make up their minds on music or image. This sort of transitional directionless has clearly affected the music, with no small dose of writer’s block creeping in.



Having said all that, WALL STREET is still an upbeat and enjoyable album. The power ballads are respectable and the instrumental “Things Money Can’t Buy” allows Teeny to show off his tasteful and expressive guitar skills. Despite some goofy choruses and laughable lyrics, the album manages to have enough good songs to overcome the less focused songs. Fans of the band know who they are and should find a good portion of WALL STREET enjoyable, with the understanding that this is probably Wig Wam’s weakest offering to date.