Kick IIIII

Kick IIIII (stylized as kiCK iiiii) is the eighth studio album by Venezuelan record producer and singer Arca. The album was surprise released on 3 December 2021 as the fifth and final entry in the Kick quintet. The album was released with no singles or prior announcement.

Kick IIIII
Studio album by
Arca
Released3 December 2021
Recorded2018–2021
Genre
Length41:43
Language
  • Spanish
  • English
LabelXL
ProducerArca
Arca chronology
Kick IIII
(2021)		 Kick IIIII
(2021)		 Kick
(2022)

Background

Upon the release of Kick I, news surfaced that Arca would be releasing three more Kick albums to make a quad-trilogy. The artist took to Pitchfork to say: "There will be four volumes. The third one is a little bit more introverted than Kick I, a little bit more like my self-titled album, I guess. The fourth one is piano only, no vocals. Right now, the least defined one, strangely, is the third one. It's all gestating right now [...] Each Kick exists in a kind of quantum state until the day that I send it to mastering. I try to not commit until I have to. But I have a vision for it. The second one is heavy on backbeats, vocal manipulation, mania, and craziness."[2]

Kick IIIII would end up being similar to Arca's previous description of the fourth entry, focusing entirely on quieter ambient pieces, focused mainly on piano, plucked strings and swirling pads. Famed Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto makes a guest vocal appearance on "Sanctuary".

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic77/100[3]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
The A.V. ClubB−[5]
Evening Standard[6]
Exclaim!8/10[7]
The Guardian[8]
The Line of Best Fit8/10[9]
Loud and Quiet8/10[10]
NME[11]
Pitchfork7.8/10[12]
The Skinny[13]

On review aggregate site Metacritic, Kick IIIII received a score of 77 out of 100, based on reviews from 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[3]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Arca, except "Fireprayer", written by Arca and Sia

No.TitleLength
1."In the Face"0:46
2."Pu"2:35
3."Chiquito" (transl. Tiny)3:07
4."Estrogen"2:43
5."Ether"4:04
6."Amrep"2:55
7."Sanctuary" (featuring Ryuichi Sakamoto)3:08
8."Tierno" (transl. Tender)3:44
9."Músculos" (transl. Muscles)5:21
10."La Infinita" (transl. The Infinite One)4:49
11."Fireprayer"3:54
12."Crown"4:37
Total length:41:43

Sample credits

  • "Sanctuary" contains samples of previous Arca tracks: "Ave María", "Gestation" & "La Exorcista"
  • "Fireprayer contains samples of "Fire Meet Gasoline" from the album "1000 Forms of Fear" written by Sia Furler, Samuel Dixon and Greg Kurstin and performed by Sia.

Interpolates

  • "Sanctuary" contains interpolation of previous Arca tracks: "Construct", "Diva" & "Alien Inside"

References
  1. DuBois, Aymeric (6 December 2021). "Arca: Kick ii/iii/iiii/iiiii". Spectrum Culture. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  2. "Live From Quarantine, It's the Arca Show". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  3. "kiCK iiiii by Arca Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  4. Phares, Heather. "kick iiiii - Arca". Allmusic. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  5. Freedman, Max (3 December 2021). "Avant-pop artist Arca undercuts her musical impact by piling on too much at once". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  6. Smyth, David (3 December 2021). "Arca - KiCk ii/iii/iiii/iiiii review: 47 tracks of wild electronic experimentation". Evening Standard. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  7. Hopfe, Safiya (3 December 2021). "Arca's 'KICK' Cycle Is an Explosive Exploration of Her Multidimensionality". Exclaim!. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  8. Petritis, Alex (3 December 2021). "Arca: Kick ii, iii, iiii, iiiii review – a wild ride to the dark, daring side of pop". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  9. Dziri, Red (3 December 2021). "Arca unleashes her daring mutant universe in the completed KICK anthology". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  10. Butchard, Skye (3 December 2021). "Arca - KICK (ii-iiiii) Album Review". Loud & Quiet. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  11. Hunt, El (3 December 2021). "Arca – 'Kick ii', 'Kick iii', 'Kick iiii' & 'Kick 'iiiii' review: a sprawling departure from definition". NME. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  12. Sherburne, Philip (7 December 2021). "Arca album reviews: KICK ii/KicK iii/kick iiii/kiCK iiiii". Pitchfork. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  13. Wade, Lewis (3 December 2021). "Arca album reviews: Kick ii - iiiii". The Skiinny. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
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