Mammoth Penguins are a British three-piece

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

band based in

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...

, England. The band formed in 2013 and currently comprises members Emma Kupa, Mark Boxall and Tom Barden.

History

Emma Kupa's previous band

Standard Fare A standard fare is a higher than normal fare issued to passengers caught without a ticket. The system is used by public transport in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Standard Fares are not the same as Penalty Fares which are used on certain Nati ...

broke up in 2013 following an eight-year run, and Kupa soon moved from

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

to Cambridgeshire. Switching from bass (which she played in Standard Fare) to guitar and vocals, Kupa teamed up with bassist Mark Boxall and drummer Tom Barden to form the combo Mammoth Penguins. The new group's debut single, "When I Was Your Age", was released in June 2015, and their album, ''Hide and Seek'', arrived a month later on the

Fortuna Pop! Fortuna POP! was an English independent music, independent record label based in London, started in 1995 by Sean Price. It specialised in indie pop music. Fortuna POP! previously promoted gigs under the banner of The Beat Hotel and then Basement ...

label. The band returned in 2017 with the "A Simple Misunderstanding" single for Kingfisher Bluez; they went on to make a record that expanded from their earlier punk-pop sound. Under the name Mammoth Penguins & Friends, they recorded a concept album about a man who faked his own death, then returned ten years later. Titled ''John Doe'', it featured contributions from

Haiku Salut Haiku Salut are an instrumental trio from the Derbyshire Dales in England. Their music fuses elements of neoclassical, post rock, folk and electronica. The trio consists of multi-instrumentalists Gemma Barkerwood, Sophie Barkerwood and Louis ...

's Sophie Barkerwood (programming/samples), as well as Russell Lomas (violin), and Joe Bear (samples/synths). The record was released in late 2017 on Where It's At Is Where You Are (often shortened to WIAWIYA). They released their third album, ''There's No Fight We Can't Both Win'', in 2019 on

Fika Recordings Fika Recordings is an English independent record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that ow ...

. It again featured contributions from Joe Bear, as well as additional guitar by Faith Taylor. Veteran critic

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...

regarded it as "the keeper" in Kupa's discography for how, "commonsensically and prosaically but also fervently and you bet tunefully, she's trying her best and getting better at" relationships, as reflected in the music's narratives.

Discography

Albums

*''Hide and Seek'' -

, LP, CD, MP3 (2015) *''John Doe'' - WIAWIYA, LP, CD, MP3 (2017) *''There's No Fight We Can't Both Win'' -

, LP, CD, MP3 (2019) *''Here'' -

, LP, CD, MP3 (2024)

Singles

*"When I Was Your Age" -

, 7", MP3 (2015) *"Propped Up" -

, 7", MP3 (2015) *"A Simple Misunderstanding" - Kingfisher Bluez, 7", MP3 (2015)

References

English indie pop groups Musical groups from Cambridge Musical groups established in 2013 English musical trios 2013 establishments in England {{UK-band-stub