{"id":22632,"date":"2025-04-17T18:15:40","date_gmt":"2025-04-17T17:15:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/castthedice.org\/?p=22632"},"modified":"2025-05-09T13:13:47","modified_gmt":"2025-05-09T12:13:47","slug":"gogo-penguin-detail-seventh-album-necessary-fictions-and-share-lead-single-fallowfield-loops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/castthedice.org\/?p=22632","title":{"rendered":"GoGo Penguin detail seventh album, Necessary Fictions<\/em>, and share lead single ‘Fallowfield Loops’"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo: Mark Gregson<\/p><\/div>\n

GoGo Penguin<\/a> have just announced a brand new album and we couldn\u2019t be more excited. The trio of Chris Illingworth, Nick Blacka and Jon Scott will release Necessary Fictions<\/em> on June 20th through XXIM<\/a>\/Sony.\u00a0Marking their seventh long-player, the upcoming record feels like both a return to their essence and a leap into bold, uncharted sonic territory. Over the last decade, they\u2019ve consistently blurred the lines between jazz, classical and electronic music, and Necessary Fictions<\/em> continues in that spirit, but with new textures and bolder moves. As Blacka puts it, they were trying to get to \u201cour integral, authentic qualities at this moment in time.\u201d One of the major shifts is the embrace of modular synthesizers, not as novelty, but as an extension of their sound. \u201cThere had to be a reason,\u201d Illingworth explains. \u201cAnd for us that was knowing that in places we wanted the character of the music to shift.\u201d<\/p>\n

Much of the record was written and recorded in their Manchester studio, which they reshaped into a creative sanctuary, with artwork and photos pinned to the walls for inspiration. Illingworth and Blacka were there nearly every day for a year, with Scott, who lives in London, joining in when the rhythm sections were ready for his input. There\u2019s a real sense of joy in how they talk about the process – \u201cI was very aware of smiling a lot in the studio while we were making it,\u201d says Illingworth. \u201cAnd I\u2019m smiling now just thinking about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The title, Necessary Fictions<\/em>, comes from James Hollis\u2019 book The Middle Passage<\/em>, which explores ideas of the shadow self and the stories we tell ourselves to make sense of who we are. Blacka, who was reading the book, says it presents \u201cvery Jungian stuff about the shadow self, and hidden personae. You begin to think, \u2018Hang on, there\u2019s an authentic me, deep down in there somewhere!\u2019” He continues:<\/p>\n

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\u201cMusically, it\u2019s been the same journey, the same process of ditching some of the things we\u2019d got used to doing which were holding us back. We\u2019d be writing tracks in the past where we\u2019d be hesitant, like, \u2018But what are people going to think? Aren\u2019t we supposed to be this jazz trio who are not really jazz? Who play electronic-type music on acoustic instruments and it’s all very fast and frenetic?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Alongside the album announcement, GoGo Penguin shared the mesmerizing lead single ‘Fallowfield Loops’, an exhilarating first taste of what\u2019s to come, and we can\u2019t wait to hear the full album in June. Check out the video the accompanies the track below.<\/p>\n