GoGo Penguin have already given us one album, Everything Is Going To Be OK (XXIM, 2023), following the departure of their original drummer Rob Turner and the arrival of Jon Scott. With its tendency to introspection, ‘Everything’ marked a successful new start for the trio of Scott, pianist Chris Illingworth and bassist Nick Blacka.
After touring the album worldwide, the three of them considered their musical direction anew. Illingworth and Blacka re-equipped their studio in Manchester and started jamming. Scott joined them after a few weeks and throughout 2024 the three took their time to work on new pieces. Necessary Fictions is the result, which sees them invent their version of GoGo Penguin.
The sound is recognisable, of course: strong piano lines, powerful bass and novel drum parts. However, their new album dives headfirst into adventure. Illingworth has been exploring synthesizers and uses them brilliantly, while Blacka and Scott are in top form.
From the opening track Umbra, it’s clear that the sheer joy of playing is renewed, and with that the emotion and all the fantastic builds and crescendos that make their tracks hard to resist. Fallowfield Loops follows on seamlessly. Vintage GoGo Penguin, rock solid.
Singer-songwriter Daudi Matsiko was the support act on their last tour, and the chemistry between them prompted a surprising collaboration. Forgive The Damages is the first sung track on a GGP album, and a highlight of the new record. A beautiful song, soulfully delivered, with a glowing atmosphere.
What We Are What We Are Meant To Be? features thick synth parts as a basis. The instrumental synth passage Background Hiss Reminds Me Of Rain surprises with beautiful melancholic sounds.
With The Turn Within, everything that has made this band so special comes together – A delightful inimitability in terms of structure and composition, beautiful in sound and atmosphere: a new GGP classic.
The alienating and dark Living Bricks In Dead Mortar, with Illingworth pressing the synths and Naga Ghost embellished with a hefty bass solo by Blacka, showcase new aspects of their music. It’s also wonderful how thickly they build up to a synth-driven ending.
The addition of the eight-piece string ensemble Manchester Collective in Luminous Giants is particularly striking. The rich string arrangement gives the track something extra special, and this is definitely GoGo Penguin as we’ve never heard them before.
After the short, Eastern-inspired Float, the wonderfully driving State of Flux, again with strings, blows you away completely. Blacka’s typically fat bass line, Scott’s dynamic drums, and Illingworth’s rich melody line are followed by the strings taking over in a fascinating way. Another new classic here.
All in all, a masterful record, that definitively takes the new trio to the highest heights.
