The Spark

Album: The Spark (2017)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Enter Shikari introduce The Spark with the title track and end it with "The Embers." It was very late in the day that the idea for an intro and an outro song came up. Frontman Rou Reynolds told Kerrang: "They serve the purpose of book ending the record."
  • For Reynolds, "The Spark" is about coming out of a period of struggle. He explained:

    "The spark is a new connection, a new beginning. It can be short and insignificant, but it can create something so significant. The spark is that light at the end of the tunnel - when everything seems to be falling apart, but you're able to see some sort of path out of the dark."
  • Reynolds discussed the track with Kerrang: "The song is made up of chords that I played about with a lot, and as soon as I hear them it's like someone's punching me in the gut, but in a good way (laughs). It's such a visceral, immediate emotional thing for me. And musically it works really well."
  • Asked by HMV.com at what stage in the recording process the album title came, Reynolds replied:

    "It came very late. Normally the way these things work is you end up scouring the lyrics and trying to find something, but that wasn't the case was this record. I wanted something simple and lucid. The first track on the album, which is an instrumental piece, came about and that gave the album a real bookend, that's what inspired the title."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Bill Withers

Bill WithersSongwriter Interviews

Soul music legend Bill Withers on how life experience and the company you keep leads to classic songs like "Lean On Me."

P.F. Sloan

P.F. SloanSongwriter Interviews

P.F. was a teenager writing hits and playing on tracks for Jan & Dean when he wrote a #1 hit that got him blackballed.

Grammar In Lyrics

Grammar In LyricsMusic Quiz

Lyrics don't always follow the rules of grammar. Can you spot the ones that don't?

Barney Hoskyns Explores The Forgotten History Of Woodstock, New York

Barney Hoskyns Explores The Forgotten History Of Woodstock, New YorkSong Writing

Our chat with Barney Hoskyns, who covers the wild years of Woodstock - the town, not the festival - in his book Small Town Talk.

Sarah Brightman

Sarah BrightmanSongwriter Interviews

One of the most popular classical vocalists in the land is lining up a trip to space, which is the inspiration for many of her songs.

Richie Wise (Kiss producer, Dust)

Richie Wise (Kiss producer, Dust)Songwriter Interviews

Richie talks about producing the first two Kiss albums, recording "Brother Louie," and the newfound appreciation of his rock band, Dust.