Man Made Object (Blue Note)
GoGo Penguin
Released February 2016
The Guardian 10 Best Jazz Albums of 2016
AllMusic Favorite Jazz Albums 2016
YouTube:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_keVYFI1YDtsYbBgbeY-txAi38lCtZD4vU
Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/album/10GN4IZi63LJ3CWbrG8f5e?si=tl1YDtoWSwe-UIjTu8pF9Q
About:
Man Made Object is the exciting new release from GoGo Penguin, a follow up to their previous album, v2.0, which saw itself on the Mercury shortlist. Although they’re an acoustic band, GoGo Penguin’s music draws from many areas of contemporary electronic music, one where you can hear arcade game bleeps, glitchy breakbeats, hypnotic Aphex-style melodies, grinding basslines and a rumbling low-end. It has been described as “acoustic electronica”, which perfectly sums up the writing process.
Track Listing:
1. All Res (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 05:15
2. Unspeakable World (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 04:43
3. Branches Break (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 04:22
4. Weird Cat (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 05:39
5. Quiet Mind (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 04:23
6. Smarra (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 06:31
7. Initiate (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 04:47
8. Gbfisysih (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 03:21
9. Surrender to Mountain (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 03:58
10. Protest (Nick Blacka / Chris Illingworth / Rob Turner) 04:44
Personnel:
Chris Illingworth: piano
Nick Blacka: bass
Rob Turner: drums
Recorded May – June 2015, at Giant Wafer residential studios in Mid-Wales
Engineering, Mixing and Production by Joe Reiser and Brendan Williams
Mastering: Mandy Parnell
Design: Paul Middlewick
Executive Producer: Kerstan Mackness
Review:
Coming off their sophomore effort, 2014’s Barclaycard Mercury Prize-shortlisted V2.0, GoGo Penguin return with their equally ambitious 2016 follow-up, Man Made Object. A jazz trio at their core, Britain’s GoGo Penguin have garnered well-earned plaudits for their distinctive, genre-bending sound that combines elements of forward-thinking post-bop with stylistic elements borrowed from indie rock and electronic dance music — all without the aid of any actual electronic instrumentation. Showcased in GoGo Penguin are the talents of pianist Chris Illingworth, bassist Nick Blacka, and drummer Rob Turner. Together on Man Made Object, they perform wholly original compositions that straddle the line between group improvisations and well-constructed thematic compositions. Cuts like “All Res,” “Branches Break,” and the driving, punky “Smarra,” all have the signifiers of jazz (sophisticated harmonies, kinetic rhythms, and an introverted, exploratory energy), but play out more like an adventurous Radiohead track, or the soundtrack music to a ’70s heist film. The results bring to mind the work of similarly inclined artists like pianist Brad Mehldau and groups like the Bad Plus and Medeski, Martin & Wood. There’s also a ruminative, impressionistic vibe running through much of the material on Man Made Object that positions GoGo Penguin at the vanguard of the new British jazz movement alongside the likes of trumpeter Matthew Halsall and bassist Jasper Hoiby’s trio Phronesis. Comparisons aside, what sets GoGo Penguin apart from their contemporaries is their inventive group interplay and knack for dramatic arranging. Often, Illingworth will set up a pattern on piano, like the spritely, dancing intro to “Unspeakable Word,” and Blacka and Turner will join in, answering his pattern with their own contrapuntal footwork. Just as you think the trio are going to lock up legs and topple over, they fall into a gorgeous minor-key stride and dissipate into a sweepingly ominous mid-song bass solo. Ultimately, it’s these moments of dazzling group dynamics that help make Man Made Object a jazz-infused work of art on GoGo Penguin’s own terms.
Matt Collar (AllMusic)
