Penya LP by Penya

Penya's self-titled, wild and untamed sophomore album reimagines the global music landscape.

A genre melting exploration of ancestral rhythms, “Penya” asks the question : 

How deep do our roots reach into the unseen places that keep us anchored to the real world? 

The answers revealed themselves through an intuitive creative process guided by feeling.  The word “Penya” arrived as a nod to the Spanish word “Peña” which describes a meeting place of celebration for musicians and artists.

Lead singer and multi instrumentalist Lilli Elina has had a life long love affair with Cuban music. Lilli’s lyrics resonate with spiritual messages, personal stories and snippets of her native Finnish language alongside Spanish and ancient Yoruba.

Percussionist Jim le Messurier  found his key to the mystery among Aña drummers in Cuba as an apprentice drumming to Afro-Cuban praise songs:

 “I felt like I was at the centre of things, in sync with a web of connections that went far beyond the music“ 

Jim is now a member of this fraternity, and messages of transmission and initiation made their way into “Baba Meyi” and “The Dazzling One” containing invocations in Yoruba (the poetic language used in the Cuban santería religion) and Guernsey-French patois, the language of his island upbringing. 

Inspired by 6 months living in Havana, producer Magnus P.I deepened his percussive knowledge via Morocco, Turkey, India and Tanzania through a desire to understand the human connections that exist between the regions.

Combined with Magnus’s journeying approach, Penya’s Cuban influences coalesce with bendir’s from Morocco, dhol drums and tablas from India, marimbas, vibraphones, and a myriad of found, sampled and electronic sounds from all corners.

Viva Msimang’s trombone sound adds significant weight and depth to the album’s sonics. Growing up in North London to a South African and Chilean family, Viva’s multicultural upbringing is evident in her
approach - equally at home as a vocalist, in the rave, or playing in salsa and timba bands, Viva pushes the
boundaries of her instrument, contributing urban bass lines, experimental horn motifs, ethereal melodies
and Nuyorican-inspired improvisations throughout the album.

“We are releasing our 2nd album independently via our label Liminal Recordings

The label will expand our ideas within the new global and electronic soundscape emerging at this moment in time. Our second album is a snap shot of this evolution”

“Penya” releases on 6th May 2021

Penya is an untamed, genre melting exploration of ancestral rhythms that reimagines the global music landscape.

penyaofficial.com