GOGO PENGUIN Vinilo y CD

Review: Over a decade into their genre-skirting journey, Manchester's GoGo Penguin return with Necessary Fictions, a soft and progressive post-punk musing on an unsettling anthropological concept. While still grounded in the interplay of Chris Illingworth's piano, Nick Blacka's bass and Jon Scott's drums, the record now brings modular synths, string players from the Manchester Collective, and - for the first time ever - a voice: Daudi Matsiko, who appears on 'Forgive The Damages', offers a quietly disarming presence in a band known for its instrumentals. 'Fallowfield Loops' offers a familiar taste, meanwhile, of the band's inceptive grooves, while its music video visually centres on the uni-nostalgic Toast Rack building in the heart of Manchester's student quarter.

Review: Manchester's GoGo Penguin has released a high-quality string of albums on top labels like Gondwana Records, the legendary Blue Note and now also Sony. Here the major offers up a deluxe edition of their Everything Is Going to Be OK long player which showcases once again the group's emotive minimalism. It is music that as always is bursting with the hope of new beginnings and shows that their new drummer more than has the chops to keep pace. These bright, vibrant sounds are born from a time of turbulence and loss and are perfect for a lazy summer's day when you can luxuriate in the sounds and be grateful for what you have.

Review: Before landing a privileged spot on the legendary Blue Note label, Manchester's GoGo Penguin had released a string of LPs, through Gondwana Records, that have become notoriously difficult to find. Moreover, they are respected by the very best of the contemporary DJs, including Worldwide FM's ever-present Gilles Peterson. This deluxe edition of V2.0, the ensemble's second studio album, will provide you both with a decently-priced copy of the vinyl edition, along with plenty of added bonus takes and interludes that were missing from the original cut. Thanks to subtle waves of electronica and improvisation, GoGo Penguin are putting the "contemporary" into jazz and, along with that, providing us with an LP that is changing conceptions of the genre for younger audiences.