GoGo Penguin‘s Man Made Object – released on the exalted Blue Note in 2016 – showed merely a peek towards the progressive direction of the trio. The band’s new album, A Humdrum Star serves as a hat tip towards Carl Sagan’s TV series Cosmos, highlighting a phrase which demonstrates just how vast our universe is, and, by extension, how insignificant our daily trials and tribulations seem to be. The quote reads: “We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people”. The trance-like state that GoGo Penguin induce with their fast-paced rhythms, syncopated piano lines and cosmic atmosphere guides the listener into a music-led journey through a deeper perspective on life.

The atmosphere at the Roundhouse was anything but humdrum as GoGo Penguin’s instruments lay waiting on the stage. The audience were positioned as if in an amphitheatre; reflecting the almost unbearable excitement of hearing the first tones reverberate around the building. They began with the singles ‘Raven‘ and ‘Bardo‘ from A Humdrum Star, and it was Chris Illingworth‘s piano that first shone through, setting the scene for the evening. The heads of the crowd began to groove in unison as the highly energetic rhythm section of Rob Turner (on drums) and Nick Blacka (double bass) fused together beautifully.

It’s not often that a band is able to present a sound that is so unique, straddled somewhere between jazz and classical music but with clear influences from the ruleless parameters of electronica. The evening carried on as a showcase for GoGo Penguin’s genre-crossing skill set as they managed to create a perfect setting for each theme explored in the album. Tracks like ‘Smarra‘ from Man Made Object pulsed through the backsides of the audience, making it impossible to keep still as Blacka’s double bass took the rhythmic lead.

Towards the end, the band were met with a standing ovation for the live running of A Humdrum Star, showing that GoGo Penguin is now gaining even quicker momentum towards becoming one of the most exciting jazz trios of the decade.

Photo ©: John Williams

Daily Discovery: GoGo Penguin – Kora (Cornelius Remix – Official Video) ft. Cornelius

Mancunian ambient-jazz trio GoGo Penguin recently collaborated with Japanese experimental musician and producer Cornelius to release a new version of their single ‘Kora’.   The track, which is part of the band’s new LP GGP/RMX (Blue Note Records), is one of the 11 remixes reimagining their 2020’s album GoGo Penguin.  …

Artists: Cornelius , Gogo Penguin

Event Review: Love Supreme Jazz Festival @ Glynde Place (Glynde, Sussex; Friday 5th to Sunday 7th July 2019)

The glorious Love Supreme returned to the prime Sussex pastures of Glynde for its seventh year, and what a return it was. With such a startling array of talent on offer, it was a mighty challenge to stay in one spot for too long for fear of missing out elsewhere….

Artists: Alicia Olatuja , Allysha Joy , Chip Wickham , Dj Khalab , Ezra Collective , Gladys Knight , Gogo Penguin , Jimmy Cliff , Joe Armon-Jones , Lauryn Hill , Mahalia , Nubya Garcia , Sampa The Great , Snarky Puppy , Tank And The Bangas , Tenesha The Wordsmith , The Teskey Brothers , Theon Cross , Yakul

Album Review: GoGo Penguin – A Humdrum Star [Blue Note Records; February 2018]

GoGo Penguin is one of those bands that are impossible to define within a genre or a scene. Yet, since their debut in the UK scene with their first album Fanfares, they have come out with their very own signature sound: hearts rooted in jazz and classical training exploring the…

Artists: Gogo Penguin

Review: Jazz Re:Found (Turin, Italy – 7th to 11h December 2016)

Today, black music is warmth, experimentation, crossbreeding, avant-garde, tradition, and rhythm. Turin’s Jazz Re:Found festival explores these definitions, with a curious and forward thinking vision on music, honouring great names of the past while looking at the most current scenes with a sharp eye and sensitive ear. Spread across seven…

Artists: Dj Khalab , Gilles Peterson , Gogo Penguin , Grandmaster Flash , Tony Allen , Underground Resistance , Yussef Kamaal