Heartcrushingly Beautiful: Favorite Albums 2023 – PART 1

GoGo Penguin has found a recipe by now (with the bonus that their sound is entirely their own, though), and it’s probably tonally/harmonically pleasing enough to work only as background music, BUT – all their records are growers, and if you listen attentively – that is, get beneath the splendid but polished production, the warm embrace of the harmonic progressions and really get to know the compositions – the intention becomes much sharper, all the layers seems to lock perfectly, the melodies most often suddenly couldn’t be any different (that’s the mark of a great melody!), you suddenly notice all the perfectly measured details in the composition and arrangements, and not at least, the actual intensity of the performances (a bit too much comp and soothing in the mix process, I’m afraid). Then there’s the genre crossovers which have characterized GoGo Penguin from the beginning, but which still stand just as strong, their mixture of ECM jazz with post-rock with techno/IDM influences. Many traditional jazz-heads doesn’t get this, calling Go Go Penguin sort of like a family friendly fusion-jazz group. That’s really a shame. There are also lots of positive things to say about the production here, such as the crunchy bite and deep warmth of the upright bass and the round midrange and sparkling clarity/air of the piano. Gorgeous beyond words. Of course, all of this stands for the strongest tracks, but unfortunately, there’s quite a bit of filler on “Everything is Going to be OK”. I too still dream of a GoGo Penguin that retains a bit more of the untamed live-feel, since it would make it a bit less “safe” and bring that extra 10 percent.