Manchester trio GoGo Penguin are tipped as the rising stars of the UK Jazz scene. Featuring pianist Chris Illingworth, bassist NickBlackaanddrummer
RobTurner, GoGo Penguin draw on a heady brew of influences from Aphex Twin to Shostakovich, Massive Attack toManchester’sgreyrain-streaked
urbanstreets.
Their debut album Fanfares (Gondwana Records) has won rave reviews from the Guardian to BBC Music and support from the likesofMikeChadwick
andGilles Peterson and was nominated for Best Jazz Album at the World Wide Awards. It is the band’s unique abilitytosynthesiseand develop each
ot ...read more
Manchester trio GoGo Penguin are tipped as the rising stars of the UK Jazz scene. Featuring pianist Chris Illingworth, bassist NickBlackaanddrummer
RobTurner, GoGo Penguin draw on a heady brew of influences from Aphex Twin to Shostakovich, Massive Attack toManchester’sgreyrain-streaked
urbanstreets.
Their debut album Fanfares (Gondwana Records) has won rave reviews from the Guardian to BBC Music and support from the likesofMikeChadwick
andGilles Peterson and was nominated for Best Jazz Album at the World Wide Awards. It is the band’s unique abilitytosynthesiseand develop each
othersmelodic and harmonic ideas while drawing on music from classical to electronica that makes GoGoPenguin’smusic soenthralling and their début
albumsuch a powerful opening salvo from a compelling new voice in UK music.
Their second album v2.0 “pushes the acoustic piano trio format further into the future” (Jazzwise Magazine) and in September 2014wasnamedas one
ofthe Barclaycard Mercury Prize Albums of the Year. When Nick Blacka joined the band in late 2012 he brought anewcohesiveness tothe band’s sound
andif their earlier breakthrough debut hit Fanfares offered a band prototype, then v2.0 is the wildlysuccessfulreboot.Brilliantly recorded by their long-
termsound engineer Joe Reiser and studio engineer Brendan Williams, the band have takenfulladvantage ofthe increased recording budget, the success
oftheir debut afforded, to record a statement of real intent. A gloriouslyvibranttechnicolor snap-shot of a band finding their own voice.
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