By 2024, Norwegian prog rockers White Willow have been in the midst of a reissues marketing campaign that may see their again catalogue remastered and reissued. On the midway level, mainman Jacob Holm-Lupo advised the story of the band’s evolution…
Within the early 90s, progressive rock was starting to sprout a couple of inexperienced shoots of restoration. Sustained by its personal international group of die-hard followers and musicians, it was firmly off the mainstream radar, and plenty of of those that efficiently contributed to its rebirth have been working alone, unknowingly anticipating the arrival of the web to make every thing rather a lot simpler. In Norway, which already had a wealthy custom of prog bands, a really younger Jacob Holm-Lupo was starting to discover his personal love of adventurous rock music. Now often known as the person behind White Willow and a number of different notable tasks, he began his life as a prog musician with no expectations by any means.
“We weren’t conscious of any sort of international prog scene in any respect, really,” he says with a smile over video-call. “I acquired into this music once I was 12 years previous, and I used to be given a tape of Duke by Genesis for my birthday. From then I used to be completely hooked. In my late teenagers I began enjoying with some mates. It was the keyboard participant from White Willow, Jan Rahman, and myself, and we recorded a few demos in my front room. That will need to have been in ’91 or ’92, then we put a band along with like-minded mates who additionally preferred progressive rock, and we recorded some extra demos. However we didn’t assume something extra would occur.”
He could have been blissfully unaware of prog’s rising momentum, however Holm-Lupo’s imaginative and prescient was solely in tune with what was happening elsewhere on the earth. White Willow emerged blinking into the sunshine with their 1995 debut album, Ignis Fatuus, which was launched by means of US prog imprint The Laser’s Edge, who have been among the many recipients of these early demos. Almost 30 years later, the Norwegians’ contribution to trendy prog is past dispute, however the re-releasing of their catalogue of fascinating, fervently progressive albums is lengthy overdue. Fortunately, these good individuals at Karisma Information have begun an in depth reissue marketing campaign, which incorporates six of White Willow’s seven albums, some showing on vinyl for the primary time, and all remastered by Holm-Lupo himself. The primary three albums – Ignis Fatuus, Ex Tenebris (1998) and Sacrament (2000) – are already out, with the remaining to observe within the close to future.
In some ways, Ignis Fatuus is probably the most intriguing of all White Willow albums, primarily as a result of it’s the one document made by the band’s first (and solely) full line-up. Closely influenced by psychedelic folks however rooted in old-school prog concepts, it captured the joy of the younger Norwegians’ first wholehearted try to show musical desires into actuality.
“I believe, particularly on the primary album, it was a results of all of us having some issues in frequent,” says Holm-Lupo. “All of us preferred English progressive rock and Italian progressive rock, but in addition some individuals have been involved in folks music, some have been into classical music, and for myself, I used to be into rock. So all these issues got here collectively on that album. Since then it’s been a continuing means of attempting to meld all these influences into one coherent sound. However I’m nonetheless combating it, as a result of I’m fully omnivorous on the subject of music, so it’s arduous to commit to at least one fashion.”
One factor that White Willow have been resolutely dedicated to is the
use of plaintive feminine vocals. Whereas prog rock was (and nonetheless is, to some extent) a sausage-fest, Holm-Lupo took a unique method from the beginning, with singer Sara Trondal enjoying a central position all through Ignis Fatuus, and significantly on dewy-eyed folks mirages equivalent to Snowfall and Now In These Fairy Lands. Feminine vocalists have continued to play a serious half in White Willow’s music ever since, regardless that Holm-Lupo insists that there was no grand masterplan.
“To be sincere, it was virtually by probability,” he says with a shrug. “We have been somewhat gang of individuals, and those that loved what we have been doing and had an curiosity in it, and who might additionally sing, occurred to be ladies. That was mainly it. It wasn’t a aware resolution. When the primary album got here out lots of people in contrast us to Renaissance, however we hadn’t even heard of them! However I believe, when it comes to band chemistry, it’s good to have ladies as a result of it helps communication somewhat bit. Guys can get very aggressive and macho! However having ladies current has made us all relax somewhat bit and pay attention to one another, so it’s been simpler.”
One thing vital occurred when White Willow recorded Ignis Fatuus: Jacob-Holm Lupo felt very a lot at dwelling. Lately, he makes a residing from recording, mixing and mastering different artists’ work: the fruits of a love affair with the studio that started practically three many years in the past.
“It was our first time within the studio and it was enjoyable!” he smiles. “It was
a basement studio in Oslo. It was fairly primitive, only a 16-track analogue recording. Due to all of the overdubs it was fairly advanced. Within the mixdown, each member of the band needed to sit with their palms on faders. These have been the times! [Laughs] So it was our first expertise, and for me, very fascinating. I realised as soon as I used to be in that studio that I really loved being within the studio greater than I loved being onstage, in order that’s what I’ve achieved since then.”
White Willow have been virtually completely studio-based for not less than the final 20 years. Their final present was at Summer season’s Finish Competition when it was at Bilston in 2006, and Holm-Lupo has made completely no noises about wanting to present dwell efficiency one other go. Right this moment, he admits that declining to play dwell has had some damaging affect on his band’s fortunes, however that even with a reissue marketing campaign in full stream, he believes he has made the correct selection.
“It has been detrimental that we haven’t performed dwell now for a protracted, very long time. However personally, for me, it’s rather a lot higher as a result of I’ve time to give attention to songwriting, I’ve time to work in my studio and to truly make a residing. There’s by no means any residing to be constituted of enjoying live shows anyway. However
lots of people come to me and say, ‘Why don’t you play dwell? You’d be extra well-known and promote extra information!’ However that was by no means why I did this within the first place. I do that as a result of I really like doing it, and I really like sitting in my studio and fiddling round, ?”
Maybe the primary actual proof of Holm-Lupo’s studio obsession arrived with White Willow’s second album, 1998’s Ex Tenebris. A darker and stranger document than its predecessor, it was initially supposed to be a solo album, however label bosses have been keen for one more album underneath the band’s identify. Written and recorded within the aftermath of the primary White Willow line-up disintegrating, Ex Tenebris was a daring step into the unknown.
“After we’d performed at ProgFest in Los Angeles, which was late in 1995, the band broke up. We went by means of a couple of a line-up modifications, however in the long run it didn’t work. I used to be going to make a solo album of some extra gothic-sounding stuff, so I wrote songs and began recording, however then the label got here to me and mentioned, ‘Nobody is aware of who you might be, and we’re not going to have the ability to promote a document by Jacob Holm-Lupo, so are you able to please discover a approach to make this White Willow…’ And so I did. I discovered the spark once more and I discovered my love for the style once more.”
If the primary White Willow album had been intentionally backward-looking and in thrall to the late 60s and early 70s, the second was a lot much less simple to outline. At occasions primitive and minimal, songs like Leaving The Home Of Thanatos showcased the maturing of Holm-Lupo’s songwriting, whereas additionally leaving area for extra experimental variations on cherished prog themes.
“Ex Tenebris was form of the place I used to be looking for my footing when it comes to being a songwriter and a producer,” he explains. “It was about what White Willow was going to be going ahead. So it was an experiment. For me it was form of remedy, too. I really went into an actual despair after the primary document. The whole lot was so hopeful after we launched Ignis Fatuus and everyone liked it. We acquired lots of consideration, and I used to be like, ‘OK, that is it. I’m going to be a prog-rock star!’ [Laughs] Then the band simply imploded and I additionally didn’t know what to do with myself. Ex Tenebris is Latin for ‘out of darkness’, so this was my means out of darkness.”
If Ex Tenebris was a essential response to difficult occasions, White Willow’s third album was a assured leap into the long run. Launched on the daybreak of a brand new millennium, it retained a lot of the psychedelic lushness
and ingenious songwriting that had made Ignis Fatuus and Ex Tenebris so irresistible, but in addition embraced a broader array of inspirations, together with some unexpectedly up to date ones.
“Shortly after I made Ex Tenebris, I discovered the individuals that might be on Sacrament, these nice musicians that I actually get together with, and who shared my imaginative and prescient,” Holm-Lupo recollects. “Making the third album was a particularly constructive expertise. But it surely was at the moment that I began to essentially absorb what was happening round me. We have been all listening to the French band Air. OK Pc had, in fact, penetrated into our world. So there have been a couple of extra exterior influences, and extra of a sense that there have been issues in up to date rock that have been related to us.”
Regardless of waiving the correct to carry out their music dwell, White Willow have been a gentle presence in trendy prog. For the uninitiated, three extra albums can be re-released by Karisma in the end – Storm Season, Sign To Noise and Terminal Twilight – and Holm-Lupo has agency plans to begin work on his band’s first music since 2017’s Future Hopes. The studio dream lives on.
“I’m really engaged on the brand new album now,” he notes, wanting genuinely excited. “We haven’t solely landed on a line-up but, however it would actually be me and Lars Fredrik Frøislie from Wobbler, and Mattias [Olsson] from Änglagård… and we’ll simply need to see who the remaining can be! [Laughs] However we agreed that what we needed to do was have a look at what we’ve been proud of previously, and issues that actually labored for the band, and to give attention to these. So I believe it’ll be a really robust and constant album, and the fabric we’ve up to now is superb, so fingers crossed. My ambition is all the time to attempt to make the proper album. I haven’t but, however I’m nonetheless attempting!”
