August 11, 2017
After being named one of The New York Times’ “12 Notable Acts” at the 2017 South by Southwest Music Festival, GoGo Penguin have announced a long-awaited North American tour for this Fall. The UK trio—drummer Rob Turner, double bassist Nick Blacka and pianist Chris Illingworth—kicks off their tour September 6 at the Boulder Theater in Boulder, CO, and makes stops along the West Coast, Midwest, and East Coast before concluding with two NYC shows in Brooklyn (Littlefield, Sept. 29) and Manhattan (le poisson rouge, Sept. 30). See a full list of dates below or visit gogopenguin.co.uk/#live.
GoGo Penguin’s trademark mash-up of minimalist piano themes, deeply propulsive bass lines and electronica-inspired drums first started turning heads with their 2014 album v2.0 which was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize. The band released their acclaimed Blue Note debut Man Made Object in 2016, following it with the 4-song EP Live at Abbey Road. The band is currently working on their next full-length album to be released in 2018.
GOGO PENGUIN – 2017 NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES:
Sept. 6 – Boulder Theater – Boulder, CO
Sept. 8 – Dave Dunnet Community Theatre – Victoria, BC
Sept. 9 – Frankie’s Jazz – Vancouver, BC
Sept. 10 – Frankie’s Jazz – Vancouver, BC
Sept. 12 – The Triple Door – Seattle, WA
Sept. 13 – Star Theater – Portland, OR
Sept. 15 – Monterey Jazz Festival – Monterey, CA
Sept. 16 – Teragram Ballroom – Los Angeles, CA
Sept. 17 – MIM Music Theater – Phoenix, AZ
Sept. 20 – SFJAZZ – San Francisco, CA
Sept. 21 – SFJAZZ – San Francisco, CA
Sept. 22 – Pygmalion 2017 – Champaign, IL
Sept. 23 – Lincoln Hall – Chicago, IL
Sept. 24 – Dakota Jazz Club – Minneapolis, MN
Sept. 27 – The Red Room @ Cafe 939 – Boston, MA
Sept. 28 – The Hamilton – Washington DC
Sept. 29 – Littlefield – Brooklyn, NY
Sept. 30 – (le) poisson rouge – New York, NY
Check out what the critics have said about GoGo Penguin:
“With the lineup of a standard piano-bass-drums jazz trio, GoGo Penguin made a different kind of music: repetitive and accretive like dance music, richly chorded over ostinatos, reveling in permutations. As much as it improvised atop its structures, the group burrowed into them, building tension and momentum from within, turning them into meditations or shaping them into galvanizing crescendos that crested in a standing ovation.”—The New York Times
“an energized sound… the band’s new album takes hold right away and sustains an upbeat groove… It’s a piano-driven blend with all the traditional aspects you’d expect from the genre while still scanning as something refreshingly vibrant and contemporary.”—Pitchfork
“…a construction of jazz, classical, electronica, and trip-hop building blocks, it flows together naturally. Their playing centers around delicate piano, which weaves in and out of a tumultuous maelstrom of intense drumming, and a fury that seems to push the limits of what a double bass can achieve…. There’s an almost dangerous kinetic energy to Man Made Object, explaining the ‘go go!’ cry in the group’s name.”—SPIN
“To ask whether GoGo Penguin plays jazz misses the point of the sense of adventure in contemporary popular music… They are experimentalists in pursuit of superior improvisational music. The groove matters most… the trio knows what it’s doing and does it exceptionally well.”—Wall Street Journal
“Jazz, techno, hip-hop and dubstep are glimpsed here, but for all the looping motifs and dance floor vibes, this is the work of three sure-footed improvisers with deep jazz roots“—The Guardian
After turning heads with their superlative Mercury Prize nominated v2.0 in 2013, they’ve signed to Blue Note and deliver a potent debut for the legendary jazz label that juxtaposes pastoral lyricism with urban angst”—MOJO
