The Spark (album)

This article is about the 2017 album by Enter Shikari. For other uses, see Spark (disambiguation).

"Supercharge (song)" redirects here. Not to be confused with Supercharger (song).

The Spark is the fifth studio album by English rock band Enter Shikari, released on 22 September 2017 through Ambush Reality and PIAS Recordings. It was recorded in Northamptonshire in early 2017.

The Spark
Studio album by Enter Shikari
Released	22 September 2017
Studio	Angelio Studios Muttley Ranch Radiate Studios
Genre	Alternative rock[1] electronic rock[2] dance-rock[3] electropop[3] grime[3]
Length	40:36
Label	Ambush Reality PIAS Recordings
Producer	David Kosten, Rou Reynolds
Enter Shikari chronology
The Mindsweep: Hospitalised (2015) The Spark (2017) Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible (2020)
Singles from The Spark
"Live Outside" Released: 31 July 2017[4] "Rabble Rouser" Released: 13 September 2017[5] "The Sights" Released: 15 December 2017[6]

Background and production

Following world events in 2016, including Brexit and the election of Donald Trump, leadman Rou Reynolds announced on Twitter that he had been suffering from general anxiety disorder. He declared his frustration and newfound inspiration to write what he intended to be the band's most important work.^[7]

Recording for The Spark took place at Angelio Studios and Muttley Ranch in England with David Kosten and Reynolds acting as producers. Sessions were recorded by Kosten and Tim Morris. Additional recording was done by Reynolds at Radiate Studios with assistance from Luke Gibbs. Koston provided additional keyboards and programming to the tracks. In addition, Will Harvey and Augusta Harris contributed violin and cello, respectively. Koston mixed the album, which was mastered for CD and digital download by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering and for vinyl by Stuart Hawken at Metropolis.

Release

On 31 July 2017, the band released a music video for the first single "Live Outside".^[8] On 13 September 2017, the second single and the music video for "Rabble Rouser" was released.^[9] The album was released on 22 September 2017 through Ambush Reality and PIAS Recordings.^[10] In November and December 2017, the band will support the release of the album with an arena tour of the UK and mainland Europe.^[8]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	74/100[11]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Alternative Press	[11]
Drowned In Sound	8/10[12]
The Guardian	[13]
The Independent	[14]
Kerrang!	[11]
NME	[2]
Sputnikmusic	[15]

The Spark was met with positive reviews from critics. Metacritic gave the album an aggregated score of 74/100, indicating "generally favorable reviews", based on 10 reviews.^[11]

Francesca Gosling writing for The Irish Times gave The Spark a positive score of 8/10, summarising that "Those hoping for a return to the earlier sound may be disappointed, but Enter Shikari's unflinching desire to evolve with every release is something very exciting indeed."^[16]

The Spark won the Best Album award at the 2018 Kerrang! Awards.

Track listing

All lyrics by Rou Reynolds. All music by Enter Shikari.^[17]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Spark"	0:47
2.	"The Sights"	3:18
3.	"Live Outside"	3:37
4.	"Take My Country Back"	3:41
5.	"Airfield"	4:46
6.	"Rabble Rouser"	4:22
7.	"Shinrin-yoku"	4:15
8.	"Undercover Agents"	4:24
9.	"The Revolt of the Atoms"	4:42
10.	"An Ode to Lost Jigsaw Pieces (In Two Movements)"	5:55
11.	"The Embers"	0:44

Japanese bonus tracks^[18]

No.	Title	Length
12.	"Redshift"	3:58
13.	"Supercharge" (feat. Big Narstie)	3:33

Personnel

Personnel per booklet.^[17]

Enter Shikari Rou Reynolds – lead vocals, keyboards, programming, piano, guitar, trumpet Rory Clewlow – lead guitar, vocals, mbira Chris Batten – bass, vocals, organ Rob Rolfe – drums, percussion Additional musicians David Kosten – additional keyboards, programming Will Harvey – violin Augusta Harris – cello Julz Baldwin, Eman Kwenortey, Nathan Killham, Jamie Whymark, Alex Cribbs, Jack Goodwin, Lee Jeffrey, Matt Pendell, Arun Chamba, William Tallis, Matt Knowles, Daniel Griffin, Nathan Harlow, Adam Holdsworth, Zac Houili, George Rockett, Ben Gibson, Patrick O'Hanlon, Clementyne Lavender, Danny Price, Jonathan Kogan, Leo Taylor, Hollie Robinson, Zoe London, Lee Burgess, Ian Drayner, James Power, Corinne Cumming, Fraser Woodhouse, Pip Newby – gang vocals

Production David Kosten – producer, mixing, recording Rou Reynolds – producer, additional recording, art direction Tim Morris – recording Luke Gibbs – studio assistant Bob Ludwig – mastering (CD/digital) Stuart Hawkes – mastering (vinyl) Richard Littler – design, layout, photo edits Ian Johnsen – art direction Pip Newby - A&R Jennifer McCord – band photo Modo – artwork ("machine") Agata Wolanska – object photos

Charts

Chart (2017)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[19]	56
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[20]	50
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[21]	68
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[22]	173
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[23]	60
Scottish Albums (OCC)[24]	4
UK Albums (OCC)[25]	5
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[26]	1
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[27]	2

References

1. "Enter Shikari's Rou Reynolds wants to help you meditate on things". Alternative Press. 15 May 2020.
2. Beaumont, Mark (21 September 2017). "Enter Shikari – 'The Spark' Review". NME. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
3. "The Spark - Enter Shikari | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic.
4. "THE SPARK - Out 22nd September 2017 - Preorders available now". Enter Shikari. 1 August 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
5. "Rabble Rouser". NME. 13 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
6. "Enter Shikari Releases 'The Sights' from Top 5 Album 'The Spark'".
7. "Enter Shikari on Donald Trump, Brexit and using music to fight back". NME. 15 November 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
8. Scott Munro (1 August 2017). "Enter Shikari will release their 5th studio album The Spark in September - watch virtual reality-themed video for new track Live Outside". TeamRock. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
9. Scott Munro (14 September 2017). "Watch Enter Shikari's video for new track Rabble Rouser". TeamRock. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
10. "THE SPARK – Out 22nd September 2017". Enter Shikari. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
11. "Critic Reviews for The Spark". Metacritic. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
12. Beardsworth, Luke. "Album Review: Enter Shikari - The Spark". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 22 September 2017. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
13. Davies, Hannah J. (21 September 2017). "Enter Shikari: The Spark review – innovative post-hardcore quartet push their boundaries". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
14. O'Connor, Roisin. "Album reviews: The Killers – Wonderful Wonderful, The Horrors – V, Enter Shikari – The Spark". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
15. Rowan5215. "Review: Enter Shikari - The Spark". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 21 September 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
16. Francesca Gosling (22 September 2017). "Album Reviews: Fergie's Double Duchess a flawless fusion of hip hop and pop". The Irish Times. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
17. The Spark (Booklet). Enter Shikari. Ambush Reality/[PIAS] Play It Again Sam. 2017. PIASR990CDX.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
18. "ザ・スパーク エンター・シカリ". Oricon. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
19. "ARIA Chart Watch #440". auspOp. 30 September 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
20. "Austriancharts.at – Enter Shikari – The Spark" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
21. "Ultratop.be – Enter Shikari – The Spark" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
22. "Ultratop.be – Enter Shikari – The Spark" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
23. "Offiziellecharts.de – Enter Shikari – The Spark" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
24. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
25. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
26. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
27. "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 April 2023.