GoGo Penguin releases remix album

A GoGo Penguin remix album feels like a natural progression, but in this group’s true spirit, it never sounds like a predictable move. Since their emergence a decade ago, the Manchester-based trio (pianist Chris Illingworth, drummer Rob Turner and bassist Nick Blacka) have been internationally hailed as electrifying live performers, innovative soundtrack composers, and as a collective who channel electronic and club culture atmospheres as much as minimalist influences or jazz legacy.

GGP/ RMX is a concept that the group have fostered for years; it comes to brilliant fruition as a vividly reimagination of their fifth album, and self-defining masterwork, GoGo Penguin. Each track from the album is reimagined as well as a mesmerising new version of the previously rare gem Petit_a (which was initially a Japan-only release before it emerged on GGP’s digital EP Live From Studio 2). The group have personally enlisted an array of the world’s sharpest artist-producers and remixers, and conceived this work at Blue Note Lab, extending the 21st-century legacy of the legendary jazz label.

This is an album that extends the scope of GGP’s celebrated catalogue, which includes their Mercury Prize-nominated v2.0 (2014), Man Made Object (2016), A Humdrum Star (2018), 2019 EP Ocean In A Drop (Music For Film), and 2020’s inspirational GoGo Penguin. GGP/RMX pays testimony to the transformative art of the remix; it also reflects GGP’s original musicianship and global scope, as well as firm bonds of friendship and respect, and glorious faith in creative adventures. The new visions on RMX feel intuitive, even symbiotic.

US producer Machinedrum reconstructs the instrumental elements of Atomised into a lithe, irrepressible body music banger, which forms the first single release from GGP/RMX. French producer Rone creates a beautifully reflective new version of F Maj Pixie, before the same track is embraced and distinctly reshaped by Brit electronic/bassist maverick Squarepusher (with whose live band Shobaleader One GGP have shared festival stages), merging acoustic and tech elements to thrilling effect.

Excitingly expansive new takes also come from contemporary Brit talents Nathan Fake (on Open), James Holden (whose majestic remix of Totem has a cinematic quality), and Clark (lending a brooding, edgy energy to Petit_a). The febrile creative force of GGP’s native Manchester also remains in full effect, through mixes from original club pioneer Graham Massey (808 State) on the deliciously exhilarating Signal In The Noise, and new generation talent Shunya, who lends elegant enigmatic moods on To The Nth.

Tokyo music hero Cornelius opens the collection with his joyously invigorating take on Kora, and he pays homage to GGP’s Manchester heritage as well as his own rapport with the British city (which bore a formative influence on his own early Shibuya-kei work). Also from Japan, the innovative musician and sound designer Yosi Horikawa (acclaimed for his experimental field recordings as well as his electronic productions) presents a richly evocative mix of Embers. Finally, wide-screen minimalists Portico Quartet create an insistently evocative end-note with their poignant reconstruction of Don’t Go.

GGP/RMX repeatedly propels us towards the dancefloor, but it never just ends there; the music pulses and flows, transporting us into brand new realms.

GGP RMX TRACKLISTING QUOTES

Kora Cornelius Remix

Chris Illingworth: “Cornelius’s mix is a great way to start the record, it’s both intelligent and beautiful. The way he’s sliced up and repositioned the piano melodies and combined them with synth lines makes it familiar but also gives it a new and individual character that sets up the remix album perfectly.”

Cornelius: ‘’I felt the band's Manchester bloodline. I wanted to preserve their performance as much as possible, because GoGo Penguin is a hypnotic live band.”

Atomised Machinedrum Remix

Nick Blacka: “We’ve been longtime admirers of Machinedrum’s work, so we’re super happy to have him onboard to remix Atomised. When we wrote this track, the original concept was to emulate a synthesizer arpeggiator on the piano, so there’s a sense of the track going full circle with some of those ideas being reapplied back to the synthesizer to create an energetic reworking of the track.”

Travis Stewart (Machinedrum): "One of my favorite things to do as a producer is to create a fusion between electronic sounds and live acoustic instruments. When Gogo Penguin reached out to me to remix Atomised, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to not only experiment with this favorite fusion of mine but also to be able to work with such incredibly talented musicians and a forward-thinking composition. I loved learning and recreating the piano arpeggios myself so I could play with the melody from the original and let it breathe through the synths in my studio.”

Embers Yosi Horikawa Remix

Rob Turner: “Yosi makes beautiful and emotive soundscapes and has one of the most unique production styles. He has incredible expression with depth and space combining real world sounds to make something totally unlike anyone else. He was the first person I thought of for a remix and he made something really special for us.”

F Maj Pixie Rone Remix

NB: “When you have two artists remix the same track, it’s really interesting to see how those artists approach the same material. We’re really happy that both Rone and Squarepusher’s versions of F Maj Pixie are both quite far apart in style but demonstrate their individuality. On this remix, Rone has created an emotive and highly-charged piece whilst still maintaining the integrity of the original.”

F Maj Pixie Squarepusher Remix

Nick Blacka: “Squarepusher is up there as one of our biggest musical influences and it’s both a pleasure and an honour to have him remix F Maj Pixie. When an artist remixes a track, you sort of have a sense of what you think they might do with it, but this builds in intensity throughout, from the sparse intro with bass improvisation, into the classic Squarepusher sound towards the end.”

Open Nathan Fake Remix

NB: “I’ve been into Nathan Fake since I first heard tracks such as The Sky Was Pink, and also his remix of the track Muppet by Grasscut. It’s been fascinating to see how each person has approached their individual remix on this record and it was interesting to see Nathan flip the track on its head, starting with the outro from the original as the foundation to build his track from.”

Signal In The Noise 808 State Remix

RT: “Graham Massey is a legendary figure in Manchester; he’s a friend of the band since the beginning. Along with his own work and with Bjork, he has his own way with jazz and combines this with electronics and synths in a really recognisable way.”

Totem James Holden Remix

NB: “James Holden creates a beautiful, reflective soundscape for this track. We love it when another artist takes your music and hears something in it and a way of interpreting it that you wouldn’t necessarily have heard yourself. Totem is a great example of this because it’s pretty far from the original track’s intensity but the spirit of the original remains intact.”

James Holden: "I loved the piano chords that make the core of this song and knew instantly that I wanted to try to make them into a giant monolith – austerely restating their circular melody while my synth dances around them."

To The Nth Shunya Remix

NB: “Manchester based Shunya has been a good friend of ours for a number of years. A talented multi-instrumentalist and producer, we’ve been into the music he’s been making for a long time. He supported us on our secret warm-up shows for A Humdrum Star at the Low Four studios in Manchester (where are also recorded the album) and we’re really happy to have him contribute a remix of To the Nth for this album.”

Petit A Clark Remix

RT: “Clark was a huge inspiration for us when we first set out, especially his drum sounds and programming. He is an incredibly expressive musician and genuine artist. We were all really excited to have a remix from him, and he brought a captivating reimagining of Petit A.”

Don’t Go Portico Quartet Remix

NB: “We thought Portico Quartet would be a perfect fit for this track. Having shared the bill with Portico a few times over the past few years, we were really impressed with their live show in Paris a few years back and it’s a pleasure to have them as part of this album. They’ve captured the emotional intent behind the original music but taken it perfectly into their own sound world.”

Portico Quartet: “It was a pleasure to remix Don’t Go. All the parts, apart from the kick drum and some of the cymbals, were taken from their original track. We made the synthesiser sounds by repeating tiny fragments of Chris's piano, the bass was sampled from Nick's bass and then we more or less crafted a new composition from it. So rather than a traditional remix, it’s more like a collaboration or a Portico Quartet track made from the sounds of GoGo Penguin.”