Enter Shikari

Enter Shikari is an eclectic U.K. rock outfit that incorporates elements of post-hardcore, alternative rock, pop, and electronicore into their versatile and voltaic sound. The band found success early on with its 2007 debut album Take to the Skies going gold in the U.K. Since then, they have continued to make a name for themselves both at home and abroad, issuing a string of successful LPs like A Flash Flood of Colour (2012), Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible (2020), and A Kiss for the Whole World (2023), that deliver a radio-ready amalgam of electro-pop, grime, and post-hardcore-influenced dance-rock that's as consistently surprising as it is sonically invigorating. Enter Shikari formed in Hertfordshire, England in 2003 from the remnants of the group Hybryd, whose original lineup comprised vocalist Rou Reynolds, guitarist Liam "Rory" Clewlow, bassist Chris Batten, and drummer Rob Rolfe. In June 2003, Enter Shikari issued the demo EP Nodding Acquaintance, which they sold at gigs and via their website. The success of two additional self-released EPs, Sorry, You're Not a Winner and 2004's Anything Can Happen in the Next Half Hour, further developed their growing fan base and cemented the band's decision to go it alone, rejecting the overtures of major labels. As Enter Shikari continued their relentless live schedule, they also embraced the social networking website MySpace, and in 2006 secured a spot at the Gibson/MySpace stage at the annual Download Festival. That same summer, the group founded its own record label, Ambush Reality, and issued the digital-only single "Mothership." At year's end, Enter Shikari were just the second unsigned band to sell out the famed London Astoria. In March 2007, they issued their first proper LP, Take to the Skies, which entered the British Top Five on the strength of the smash single "Anything Can Happen in the Next Half Hour." In April of 2009 the single "Juggernauts" announced the coming of their second album, Common Dreads, which appeared in June of that year. The band set out on tour at home and abroad before settling down in Bangkok, Thailand to work on new material with producer (and former Sikth guitarist) Dan Weller in 2011. Their third album, A Flash Flood of Colour, was released in early 2012. They returned to the studio with Weller after a heavy touring schedule in 2013 to work on new material for their fourth studio album. During the recording process they joined the Warped Tour, as well as appearing on the bill for the Reading and Leeds Festivals in 2014. Toward the end of the year, the four-piece announced the release of The Mindsweep, which arrived in January 2015. At the end of that year, the group recorded the Live and Acoustic from Alexandra Palace EP in a seldom-seen part of the legendary London venue, before their full "arena show" in February of 2016. A recording of the show was released at the end of 2016, featuring 16 of Enter Shikari's hits drawn from their back catalog. To close out the year, they released two stand-alone singles, "Redshift" and "Hoodwinker," before calling an end to the Mindsweep era of the band. Early 2017 saw them play an extensive European tour, in part to mark the tenth anniversary of their debut album, Take to the Skies. As the tour drew to a close with a headlining show at the Slam Dunk Festival, they released the lead single from their new album; "Supercharge" demonstrated a change in direction by including elements of grime and a guest appearance from London MC Big Narstie, indicating that a broader mix of electronic genres would be featured on the album. The resulting LP, The Spark, arrived later that September. The band's subsequent tour of Europe, Japan, and North America produced two limited-edition live albums, Take to the Skies Live in Moscow May 2017 and Live at Alexandra Palace 2. Enter Shikari then returned to the studio to record their sixth album, with Rou Reynolds producing for the first time. Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible, released in 2020, was an ambitious semi-concept piece featuring the most eclectic mix of styles the genre-bending band had yet utilized. The LP reached number two on the U.K. album charts. Moratorium (Broadcasts from the Interruption) appeared the following year and featured live and acoustic performances recorded remotely while the bandmembers were in lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They kicked off 2023 with the release of "(Pls) Set Me on Fire," the first single from their seventh long-player, A Kiss for the Whole World, which arrived later that April. The album led to another round of touring, with many of the shows being recorded. The live rendtions would appear in an official capacity a year later, upon the release of Dancing on the Frontline, which also collated various remixes and bonus tracks into as a retrospective to everything post A Kiss for the Whole World. ~ Jason Ankeny