(note: quotes from same sources are
from
different reviews and events)
Scott Wicken (a Canadian institution as far as I'm concerned)...The Record
Wicken is a full-contact spoken word artist with a poetic license to kill....Edmonton Sun
Wicken got a rousing response...(his) gripping words were rewarded with enthusiastic applause...Edmonton Sun
Acoustic guitarist Scott Wicken ... put on a really good show. Each song told a story, whether about a divorce of parents after 30 years of marriage or spending time in the wilds of Canada. The music was highly listenable because it wasn't run-of-the-mill, garden variety boy-meets-girl stuff. He deserves a good future in the business...The Record
...mesmerizing...(Wicken) has quickly established himself as an original among the area's performers...id Magazine
Wicken is one of the finest prosemen to emerge from the local poetry scene...Culture Focus
Not just some introverted goof speaking in tongues...He's a strong orator...Gateway
He presents his poetry in a way that I never thought was possible...Slur Magazine
Singlehandedly blew away the mainstage throng...Slur Magazine
Scott Wicken was in fine form that evening as a buck-skinned bard of the singer-songwriter-poet set. Unfortunately his sweet singing had everyone so entranced that when Resin (now Blanky) plugged in and turned up everyone got confused and bolted...Slur Magazine
Witty, true to life works...Slur Magazine
Here is a true street artist in the fashion of luminaries Charles Bukowski, Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg...Nothing human is alien to Wicken, and his stream of consciousness rapping is a natural ball....Culture Shock
Wicken packs enough lean, natural charisma to stop a traffic light. His conversations are an illumination of modern parable and uncommon observations that neutralize the passive darkness of Generation X...SEE Magazine
...amazingly original and darkly-humoured...SEE Magazine
Live poetry usually bores me to tears, but my heart sped up with every word. Wow. This cat knows how to build tension; not only that, but he leaves it hanging in the air...good stuff...SEE Magazine
This week's column isn't so much about music; that is, if your definition isn't as broad as Webster's "vocal, instrumental, or mechanical sounds having rhythm, melody or harmony." Scott Wicken's poetry, even when not accompanied by his guitar playing, easily meets this criteria, and it is what has made him a truly special figure in the local scene for many years.... The Record
Wicken's caustic and often comedic word offerings on the urban everyday trivialities like ordering french fries in a restaurant, or a hairdresser-cum-vampyre, or the sheer rites of shameless puberty leave an edgy, lasting impression on the brain... Echo Magazine
PHOTO BY SHELLEY YOUNG