Warpig

Canadian hard rock outfit Warpig never reached mainstream success while still active, yet the group later achieved a cult afterlife that placed them alongside Sir Lord Baltimore, Leaf Hound, and Captain Beyond in the collections of dedicated heavy-music enthusiasts. Rick Donmoyer handled vocals and guitar, Dana Snitch played keyboards and sang, Terry Brett held down the bass, and Terry Hook sat behind the drums; each musician had already logged extensive rehearsal time in earlier local groups such as the Kingbees, the Wot, and Mass Destruction before the four joined forces in 1968. Inspired by the recent, groundbreaking Cream and Jimi Hendrix Experience LPs that helped define the emerging hard-rock and heavy-metal styles, the musicians honed their approach from a Woodstock, Ontario base roughly an hour from Toronto. That same year also saw debut releases from Blue Cheer, Iron Butterfly, and fellow Canadians Steppenwolf, whose organ-driven approach shared noticeable traits with Warpig’s own sound. By 1969 the quartet had cultivated a loyal audience on the Ontario club circuit and inked a deal with the regional independent Fonthill Records; they finished tracking their self-titled debut album by the close of 1970 and soon shared stages with Mahogany Rush, Wishbone Ash, Manfred Mann, and Savoy Brown. Weak distribution and scant promotion from the small label kept the band virtually invisible beyond Canada, and momentum remained stalled until 1973, when London Records agreed to reissue the LP with fresh artwork and two freshly tracked songs produced by future Rush engineer Terry Brown. By then shifting tastes had rendered Warpig’s once-forward sound dated, yet the Deep Purple-styled single “Rock Star” still managed a modest Canadian chart entry and prompted London to green-light a follow-up album. The project collapsed after Terry Hook exited mid-session and Dana Snitch departed shortly afterward. Rick Donmoyer later joined Ash Mountain, while Warpig and its sole release slipped into obscurity until original pressings began commanding steep prices on the internet at the start of the new century. Those escalating values helped spark a reconciliation between Donmoyer and Snitch after three decades apart, prompting talk of a full reunion and the first-ever CD edition of the debut, issued by Relapse Records.