GoGo Penguin: Necessary Fictions

What exactly is the entity known as GoGo Penguin? After several recordings developing a niche they call "acoustic electronica"—an amorphous recipe of rock-and techno-oriented hooks played on jazz instruments in real time—one might have thought we had the answer to that question with the eponymous GoGo Penguin (Blue Note, 2020). Like many self-titled albums, it made a clear statement of identity with a defining sound. Then again, it was soon followed by a companion remix album (Blue Note, 2021) of fully electronic reinventions, which showed that the other side of the coin felt just as much them, even amidst a whirlwind of sounds never found in nature.

So that was one answer to the question of GGP's identity, but then they only keep evolving. The band had found plenty of variety with sound-sculpting tricks, such as spreading rattly objects across the drums, or muting piano strings with duct tape. Still, the analogue-with-gimmicks framework was never a strict rule, and more changes kept coming—a new drummer, more judicious uses of synthesizer gear to shade the piano notes, Nick Blacka occasionally leaving his upright bass to pick up an electric. The musical pieces would follow wherever their muse went, whether it be composing around science themes or processing emotional difficulties, and they would continue to tinker with any tones that happened to feel right.

This time, the sound and dynamics reach a new scope. With Necessary Fictions, we are now hearing a band confident enough to break its own mold and not bother setting another. If it feels like Jon Scott's rhythmic snaps should blend with some tribal drumming or crackling distortion, great. If Chris Illingworth wants to offset his flying piano lines with light synth clouds or a heavy wall of buzz-drone noise, so be it. If they decide to enhance a couple of their swirling grooves with an eight-piece string ensemble, or invite a good friend to grace the band's first-ever vocal number with a fluffy cloud of harmonies, they do not hesitate to go for it—and to surprising and inspiring results.

If 2023's Everything is Going to Be OK (Sony/XXIM) was a warm ray of light after a low emotional time, Necessary Fictions is the sunny-day party that follows once everyone feels properly ready to celebrate. The band sounds exuberant when stomping the place down, or warmly comfortable spinning a pretty melody with charming simplicity. Their attitude is reassuring, the energy uplifting, and the happiness perfectly contagious.