Just after we started the blog around two years ago I wrote an article about Penguin Cafe Orchestra and how Simon Jeffe's son Arthur had reformed the band and was touring.
Two years on, Penguin Cafe have released an album of new material A Matter Of Life... and are on tour again supported by Portico Quartet. We caught the second date of the tour at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester.
To be honest I wasn't sure what to expect, could a revival of the original tracks live up to the original orchestra? What would the new material be like? I have to say I was pleasantly surprised, the band are obviously a talented group of musicians and every track was delivered with excellent timing and the original material was performed not as slavish copies but with their own re-workings that still retained the beauty of the originals. The new material also showed promise, even if it was lacking a little in the type of standout tracks that can be found in the back catalogue. It's well worth catching one of the remaining dates on the tour though if you can.
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