Music From The Penguin Cafe

I'm convinced the guy who made this list is fucking with us

DNF. That was ruff

Enjoyable but not my vibe

What even is this? I've never heard of it. It is essentially orchestral prog rock that is primarily instrumental. It was OK, but much of it failed to leave a lasting impression on me. I have no idea what it's doing on the list. I zoned out of the Zopf suite after the first two tracks of it, and didn't come back in until the end of the album. What about this is essential?

OMG AMAZING

What did I just listen too? That was quite an eclectic offering. Some pleasant, some freaking weird, some irritating. Wildly different from what I would normally listen to. Is this just avante garde music? Experimental? So how to rate this? I’ll say that I’m glad it was on the list. Otherwise I absolutely never would’ve experienced it. And it was an experience. Now am I ever going to listen to it again? Highly unlikely. But was it bad? Was it good? Probably neither.

This was weird in a good way. Chartered flight was an absolute delight - I felt like I was in ocarina of time but with more pizzicato. 3.5 stars but rounding up due to the cover art.

What the actual.

Not bad, but would it kill them to add a melody on top? It would make it less monotonous.

I think the Pop label on thos album is misleading. It was weird (in a good way of course) and experimental sometimes kinda mad and scary sounding. Beautiful intrumental album made exactly for my evening knitting sessions.

weird but fun

This is such an odd entry on this list, but I'm not mad at it at all. This is heavily experimental and avant-garde, yet is so pleasing to hear. I walked into this album completely blind and enjoyed it immensely. It can feel repetitive at times, but never enough to be detrimental to my enjoyment. There is a major tone shift when "In A Sydney Motel" starts; it was not an unwelcome change, and somehow just seems to work. I'd have to say "Giles Farnaby's Dream" is my favorite track, a whimsical riff on baroque sound leading into music that makes me think of old-timey Victorian beach scenes. This will definitely be an album I go back to again, and may even add to my vinyl collection. Still don't understand what rubric this list has for Penguin Cafe Orchestra to appear on it though.

I enjoyed it as an interesting experiment, but very sceptical that it was particularly influential. And while it's interesting it's not stunning. Hard to rate but those facts give me confidence in doing it from a 5

Well, this was unexpected! The first song sounds like it's out of "Bridgerton", where the characters in the 1700s dance to orchestral versions of pop songs. The album doesn't stick to that style, though, as there are more straight-up classical-sounding songs, some 70s folk, some Mike Oldfield beep-beep-boop-ing, and a couple of tracks with lyrics (my least favorites). Most of it was pretty pleasant to listen to.

(light 7/10) Quite intriguing, some really neat stuff in this. Definitely a grower.

Simple yet effective

I have a soft spot.

Well this is something very different, isn't it? I recently lampooned an album for being somewhat akin to what I called "lofi with a budget and chart placements" and I was very harsh to that album for that crime. This takes that modem of sound and shows that it can be good. This album feels like it would be always applicable; there isn't a situation where it can't go on. It's so experimental and isolated. I certainly can't think of another album quite like it. That makes it quite hard to review, other than saying that I enjoyed it and thought it is objectively good. Relaxing, enigmatic, and deeply talented. The Sound Of Someone You Love is a particularly good track. I'd be happy to revisit this one again in the future.

Easy to listen to

Got stronger as it went, like it gained self confidence along the way.

#294 Heard Before? Yes, indeed. Notes: - simple, unadorned production works perfectly. - the album is both highbrow and lowbrow, sophisticated and simple, repetitive and varied, challenging and easy listening. the listener can really care, but they don't have to. - i could go into detail about the composition and orchestration here, but i would rather just listen a second time today. Verdict: Somebody had to blandify Moondog. I don't mind at all! Listen Again? I'll come back to it eventually.

I LOVED this. Very Wes Anderson coded, perfect contemplative walking music. So many different instruments too!!

I'm a big fan of this type of music, it leans on really impressive, serious classical and jazz music skills but applies them in these totally atypical ways. I love to be able to listen to a song or an album multiple times and each time hear something new, which these guys definitely deliver. While Music From the Penguin Cafe stands out as a really unique first album release, I feel like it's not the best sample of their music. I do appreciate the experimental style it leans into but their self titled second album I think delivers on a lot more of what this album teases at.

Avant-garde and experimental and bordering on ambient at times. I think I'd like to visit this Penguin Cafe.

Ok in small doses. Irritating in larger ones. Eno was given far too much freedom in the 70s.

After the first track, I didn’t expect there to be any vocals, but track 3 upended that thought. “The Sound Of Someone You Love Who’s Going Away And It Doesn’t Matter” feels like the crown jewel of the record and worth coming back to when you have an extra 12 minutes. Overall, it’s a strange record that goes pretty much every direction possible and, I’m sure, loses most of the popular audience in the process. Certainly one I’ll need to sit with again.

What a wonderfully strange album this was. This is the kind of finds I was hoping for with this list. It is pretty artsy and all over the place, but still music. Maybe a little ambient at times, but then after your attention slacks it pulls you back with an almost medieval jaunty tune for instance. I don't think I've heard anything like this before. Although I do appreciate it and the bold choices it makes, I find it hard to give it anything higher than an 8. I am not putting this shit on outside any other context than: "I want to hear the strange penguin album again". 8/10

I will probably have to listen to this again when I am more awake and have the time. It is a nice mostly instrumental album. Clearly with great musicians. The minimal music works great for the overall atmosphere.

Incredible album! Such a contemporary mix of classical music! Such a tranquil album and felt at peace from top to bottom. Perfect.

I have no idea what to think of this album. The music is boring, well it is as music by a cafe orchestra playing in the background of a cafe. The goal of the music is to create a background sound which does not disturb, ie it should not be interesting. And in that way the album fulfills its goal. But is that the goal of this list? An album which should only be played as background music?

That dude ain’t a penguin, c’mon. So much fun, really fun

Im convinced sometimes people just make music to be obtuse.

It was fun to listen to but don’t think I would listen again

Very interesting album and very weird but in a good way that's the best I can describe it haha

Odd and interesting.

What a goofy little album cover. Some of it was nice (but basic) instrumental music, some of it was very experimental (zopf). Overall, ok. 3*, the average of the nice tracks and the too-experimental-for-me tracks.

it's alright

I loved this so much, I had never heard of the penguin Cafe and I really enjoyed hearing the variety of influences and had a great time poking around to see what soundtracks they had been included in on and realized that I had heard their music. I just hadn't known it was them.

How can this go from jaunty children’s jig to serial killers murder theme in seconds but also like someone’s dialling a phone number again and again. I did not enjoy

Sometimes sounds a bit too close to theme music for some long forgotten children’s tv art show, but there’s real beauty here, throughout, but especially among the more ambient stretches.

Not sure why this is tagged "Art Rock" and not "Experimental", since it's clearly veering into avant-garde territory. Some bits and parts are reminiscent of The Residents, albeit far more polished and less unhinged. The chords sound a bit like Steve Reich or Philip Glass, without the dazzling complexity. I'm a sucker for this kind of weirdness, so of course I enjoyed it - especially the strangest pieces, like "Pigtail". However, it's still not deconstructed enough in my opinion, shying away from going fully experimental. Also a bit too minimalistic, and not in a good way. There's an almost folksy vibe at times that sounds like a 90s soundtrack and makes them lose points in my book. Overall, I did have a reasonably good time with this album, but I doubt I'll come back to it. It's got a nice eerie atmosphere, but it lacks depth and purpose, and there's far better experimental music out there. Anyway, at least it's not an umpteenth country or pop-rock album. 5/10

Eno producing, 15 guys involved to come up with something this minimalist, and an eclecticism that’s pretty hard to digest… basically everything to make this project look suspicious to me. Even after reading about the creator’s weird fever dream after eating some dodgy fish in France, apparently the inspiration behind the whole thing, I still can’t really get into it. I honestly have no strong opinion, except that I remain genuinely amazed that stuff like this actually got made and released. 2 stars, but there’s a small, very small, part of me that wants to give this album another chance someday. Maybe.

This could easily top the list of 1001 ways to end your life.

Unusual, but in a good way.

The 1970s were pretty weird. It's hard to imagine anything like this getting made today. Still, I liked it - there was some very lovely, almost cutesy stuff, albeit mixed with some more atonal, experimental sounds. A nice diversion of the kind this list has thrown up from time to time.

One of the more unique listening experiences I've had doing this project. I don't think I've ever heard anything like that.

I think the album art perfectly captures the sound of this group. Weird, but I kinda dig it? It’s like the right amount of weird where it grabs your attention and then has very peaceful, beautiful sections throughout. I really liked this album. I listened to the Penguin Cafe after (not to be confused with Penguin cafe orchestra. What’s the difference? I have no idea) but I might have found my new obsession.

Strange album. Covert art suggests this could've been some kind of mid 2000s indie rock or folk album. As for the music itself, it was an interesting ride with different types of... not sure what to call it. Low tempo orchestral/ambient pieces? Felt quite experimental, and early. Real avant-garde type of music to me. I am unsure whether I enjoyed it or not. I often got the feeling that the instruments were out of tune, at least the horns and trumpets and such. And many times it felt a bit dissonant. But at the same time, it was mostly calming and soothing. Like something you could've played at a smaller café. Again, I don't know what to think of this. Interesting find for sure! Think it will have to land in the middle somewhere.

Only knew these guys from “Perpetuum Mobile” (shout out to Smala Sussie), and I thought this band was way more modern than the ’70s. Although, as it turns out, “Perpetuum Mobile” is actually from the ’80s. Anyway, I thought this album had its highs and lows. I liked the strings and the more classical instrumental elements. The best song was “The Sound of Someone You Love…..”, which had a nice, melancholic riff. The things I didn’t like were the more experimental electronic sounds. I don’t like blips and blops in my string ensemble. Don’t think I’ll come back to this, but it was still a nice, chill listen. 3 stars.

I like this quirky album, especially the opening string part which is lifted directly from Crimson’s Larks Tongue in Aspic. It’s a fun listen. A 4.

What would you call this? Folk-Electronicaca? A most bizarre mix and not entirely without its charms but not one I can realistically see myself revisiting.

Nice soothing music. Surprised it's not a Windham Hill album.

Great sound but also excuse me WTF?

Actually worthy of a listen. Really chilled and a little bit different

Very bizarre but I'm here for it

Very experimental for sure. Top bops: The sound of someone you love who’s going away and it doesn’t matter

Você se sentirá bem se imaginar que está em uma cafeteria bem charmosa e encantadora sendo servido por literais pinguins. É uma imagem agradável e whimsical. Olhando o título e a capa, eu já imaginei um poço infinito de charme e carisma. Com a produção de Eno, nada podia dar errado. Sendo um disco produzido por Brian Eno, eu já estava esperando um certo grau de experimentação eletrônica. O interessante é que as faixas iniciais do álbum são bem tradicionais, mas conforme o disco vai progredindo, os dotes sinfônicos vão se expandindo e explorando caminhos diferentes, tudo com um certo minimalismo bem satisfatório. Álbum reconfortante. 4/5

Interesting assortment of emotions and thought provoking ideas.

Ambient and relaxing

what an exciting trip!

Innovative music. I do wish there were more vocals. 3.5/5

It does not sound like music that penguins would listen to, but it sounds like something they would play. Please take that in the best way possible.

you have to be in the mood for this not-necessarily accessible album. but when you are, it's really nice.

lounge Jazz?

Day996 - that one penguin with the screeching instrument kinda ruins it for all the other penguins

I can do without the tracks with vocals. But much of the rest of it is absolutely lovely.

Pretty neat album here. Cover is so weird and interesting that it caught my attention and I had no idea what to expect , but this was suprisingly really chill. Felt very relaxed and enjoyed what I was hearing a lot.

The real question is why is there a penguin in a tropical mountainous region? I enjoyed listening to this album. It was chill and mellow and was exactly what I needed today. Favorite song was The Sound Of Someone You Love Who's Going Away And It Doesn't Matter.

At first it seemed like there wasn't going to be much to chew on, but it develops in a nice way. I'd put it in a picture frame and hang it on the wall.

the list really brought this out of left field and i loved it

Apple Music has this listed as “rock”. It was easy instrumental. It was ok, but nothing I felt I needed to listen to

Pleasant enough but not my favourite PCO album

This wasn't as good as the other penguin cafe album but it was still pretty fun. I can't quite go to four with it....kinda want to though.

I didn't hate this, but too experimental for my taste. I can appreciate the musicianship though. 3/5

I didn't hate this, but never want to listen to it again.

I had never heard of this band, nevermind this album. It was so strange that I really liked it. Some of the tracks are such beautiful melodies and then others sound so jarring with the minor keys and weird sounds and random lyrics. “In a Sydney Hotel” messed with my head because the lyrics and sounds were so disturbing. “The Sound of Someone You Love Who’s Going Away and It Doesn’t Matter” made me laugh with how accurately the music delivers the message of the title. It makes sense to me that the founding band member came up with the concept for the band and their music after hallucinating from food poisoning!

7.2/10. A peaceful album that didn't have much going on, but its simplicity added to its charm. The composer changed vibes between and during songs with his use of major and minor keys, and it always meshed well with what came before and after it. I enjoyed it, it was great for a rainy Sunday morning.

Another pleasant surprise, and, at times, sublime.

quaint! Better than i thought it'd be

I didn’t mind the first track…very Bridgerton. The rest was boring.

my shit

Eccentric brilliance that holds up well! Though well produced by Brian Eno, I had somehow never heard this album. So this one of the early influential chamber pop albums! Interesting... I convinced that Simon Jeffes recurring vision that inspired Penguin Cafe Orchestra's formation is complete bullshit. He clearly saw THX 1181 the previous year, and in his bad fish state recalled images from that film. Either way, I am glad it inspired to create the group and this album. Exactly the kind of thing I was hoping to find on this list. In my opinion, it seems clear to me that stuff like this inspired the avant garde music of Laurie Anderson and avant art band Yello, and I am here for it! Repurposing folk, baroque, and harpsichord arrangement ideas for guitar must have seemed like a crazy idea in the 70s. Favorites: "Penguin Cafe Single", "Zopf: In a Sydney Motel", "Zopf: Surface Tension", "Zopf: Giles Farnaby's Dream"

This was shit. Like two teenagers learning to play instruments. And not knowing when to stop

funky

Not really sure what to talk about here. When I opened the album and saw that Steve Reich and Phillip Glass were also recommended, I was excited to listen to this album. And maybe that primed me to think about this album in a way I wouldn't necessarily have thought. But, I ended up comparing this to Reich and Glass, and it unfortunately didn't hold up. This album kind of suffers from an identiy crisis for me. There are small segments that are really quite pleasant to listen to that allow you to space out. But those segments are too melodic and concordant to sit in the same worls as modern minimalist music. And then there are segments that are very painful to listen to. I think the artists here put a lot of effort into detuning instruments, finding weird sounds, etc., but that doesn't make it any more pleasant. I commend this album for being unique and for breaking out of the mold. But it missed the mark for me. 4/10.

Not bad, just kind of weird. I don’t see the point

Blind album and artist. I think I need to be tripping to thoroughly enjoy this but regardless was an interesting listen that a song or 2 may get stuck in my head.

My parents are pretty big fans of Penguin Cafe Orchestra so I grew up listening to them a lot. Hadn't heard some of this before and I really loved it.

As soon as I heard this album I knew I would love it! It’s great instrumental either for active listening or to have on in the background. Super quirky and cute; no particularly strong melodic lines outside The Sound Of Someone You Love Who’s Going Away And It Doesn’t Matter

Pretty nice, definitely wasn't in the mood, but I was still impressed by the melodies and harmonies. The arrangements are pretty good, but I did find it lacking in a bit of dynamism that would've given it a bit more potency. Also, really did not enjoy the Zopf sweet. Feels like most people's least favourite parts of a King Crimson album put together. I probably would appreciate the melancholy mood a lot more if I wasn't already in a pretty bad and sad mood when listening, but I didn't really have time.

Als der britische Komponist Simon Jeffes 1976 sein Debüt veröffentlichte, gab es die Band im eigentlichen Sinn noch gar nicht – eher zwei lose Besetzungen, das "Penguin Café Quartet" und das Ensemble "Zopf", irgendwo zwischen Kammermusik, Avantgarde und britischem Folk. Ein festes Studio lässt sich für die Aufnahmen zwischen 1974 und 1976 nicht nachweisen; im Booklet heißt es lediglich, man habe "on location" aufgenommen. Produziert haben Jeffes und Steve Nye, mit Brian Eno als Executive Producer – erschienen ist das Album auf dessen Label Obscure, jenem kurzlebigen Imprint, über das Eno Ende der Siebziger Musik abseits des Mainstreams unterbrachte. In "Penguin Cafe Single" oder "Giles Farnaby's Dream" höre ich eine Naivität, die nie ins Kindische kippt, sondern eher wie eine Weigerung wirkt, sich auf einen Stil festzulegen. Emily Youngs Gesang in "Coronation" hat etwas leicht Schräges, fast Nico-haftes. "Pigtail" dagegen wirkt mit seinem gezupften Rhythmus fast folkloristisch. Auf der zweiten Seite, etwa bei "The Sound Of Someone You Love Who's Going Away And It Doesn't Matter", schlägt die Platte einen kühleren Ton an – ein Bruch, der das Album auseinanderzieht, aber auch zeigt, wie wenig Jeffes an Werktreue im klassischen Sinn interessiert war. Mich packt an dieser Platte genau diese Unentschlossenheit zwischen Klamauk und Ernst. Es klingt, als hätte hier niemand ein Genre bedienen wollen, sondern einfach aufgenommen, was gerade greifbar war. Kammermusik, Folk oder etwas dazwischen – eine eindeutige Schublade findet sich bis heute nicht.

Who knew penguins could play musical instruments and so well too! Not a dodgy note, string, pluck, tap or blow in sight. Absolutely perfect and after listening at least half a dozen times since it appeared on the list and I’ve not reviewed it in the hope I can mark it down and there’s nothing- I have even listened to it back to back again now whilst writing this and can find no fault! It is such a heartwarming album full of all the right amounts of love and joy. I could listen to this all day and not get enough of it! Best track- so difficult to pick but I was in from the moment the ‘penguin cafe single’ strings hit me! But then… ‘Giles Farnabys dream’ is sensational! However.. ‘The sound of someone you love’ has a section where I get goosebumps every time it feels so magical. So I suppose this one wins! Weakest track as no worst track- singing about the Queen is dead… so ‘coronation’ Big fat 10/10 💥

Penguin Cafe Orchestra - Music From.... There are much better PCO releases that this. Their self titled album and Broadcasting from Home both trump this easily. First half feels like proto-works. A series of demos to be worked upon, developed and polished - not released like this. Although Giles Farnabys Dream does hint at the brilliance of later PCO releases. Honestly can't work out if the electric piano works or not. It's acting as a kind of band leader, but sometimes it just dominates too much and over powers the strings. But much is redeemed with The Sound of Someone You Love Who Is Going Away. What a stunningly beautiful, melancholic piece. Sad but then not sad as the music grows with a realisation of opportunity and possibility. Like a butterfly emerging. Closer Chartered Flight hints at the inventive, hypnotic sound of future PCO. So much better was to come. Best Track - The Sound of... Worst Track Coronation 5/10 ok. Listened again. This time the tracks by the PCO precursor Zopf landed better. Surface Tension being the pick. So we will up to a 6/10

This is one of those records that rewards you at whatever level of attention you give it. Let it run in the background and it's beautiful, unobtrusive, oddly comforting. Sit with it and you start hearing how carefully built it is — repeating figures that shift under you, folk instruments and chamber strings arranged into something that belongs to no genre in particular. The long central piece could have been tedious and isn't. What keeps it from full marks for me is that a few stretches do drift by without leaving much behind. But the mood is unlike anything else I've heard on this list

I still can’t wrap my head around when this album came out. Like it just does NOT make sense to me that this album is from the SEVENTIES. This feels like a crazy indie jazz rock band from the early 2000s. They are wildly ahead of their time. Plus they seem like on the surface they have a great sense of humor. Just go look at some of their other album covers in addition to this one, they are all funny and silly penguin paintings! What’s not to love about that?! They were creating penguin memes 40 years before memes were a thing! A few no of the songs had a good sense of humor as well which always goes along way to winning me over. That being said outside of the songs I liked and saved most of the album was alittle too much for me conceptually. Like I couldn’t figure out if they were an orchestral jazz band or an indie jazz band or I don’t even know. This was a wildly enjoyable album to experience, I always want albums to be this level and bold and challenging and creative that it makes you question not just your own sanity but the sanity of those creating it. I wish I could lie and say this is a perfect 5/5 but it’s definitely not! But that’s what makes it so great in a way. It’s so unique and original that it’s going to put off most people, even people like me who really like most of the stuff, it’s just so weird and interesting! For example, I didn’t care for zopf: coronation, mainly because I found the angelic vocals to be alittl too much and I didn’t appreciate what that song was about or going for. But then the very next song is this like crazy intricate song with ukulele’s and this silly Victorian sounding piano (for lack of a better description) and that song just works for some reason, and then the next song is this like sad and somber synth version of a wind chime that slowly gets more and more demonic as it goes until it ends with the sound of rain and a tiny keyboard which was wild and I’d dint care for it. There’s just so much wild creativity on this album it’s overwhelming. My favorite tracks were penguin cafe single, zopf: from the colonies, zopf: milk (funniest song on the album LOVED it!!) and zopf: Giles farnaby’s dream. Im already adding this album to my want list and im pretty sure its just going to grow on me more and more over the years.

This kind of find is what makes this project worth doing. I would never have stumbled across this myself. Beautiful and sad at the same time, somehow.

Emotional. Good bit of ambient.

Eno's fingerprints all over this one!

Now here’s a band I’d forgotten existed! Pleasantly listenable throughout but not one I’m likely to revisit.