The only sure thing that we know about Alejandro Ghersi aka Arca is that we can find him where he is the least expected. From his breakthrough debut “Xen” to the incredibly weird “Entrañas,” the Venezuelan artist shows once again the complexity of his persona.
“Piel”, the first single of his upcoming eponymous third album, comes as the exploration of his physical self. His first LPs were a travel around the limits of experimental electronics while now, we are getting into the core of his imagination. Singing for the first time, and in Spanish, his music is getting more real, as a travel to where it all started: his childhood. “Piel”, meaning Skin, is dramatic, wounded, open and raw. Spanish being his mother-tongue, serves as a way to make us travel to the origins, at that moment where everything had no filter, where his emotions were exposed and the artist is truly showing his vulnerability.
Considering that he co-produced “Vulnicura,” Björk‘s most vulnerable album to date, Arca is using this experience to his own music as it never sounded that open. His vocals transport us to an opera journey where sadness is not only encouraged but celebrated. And also, where violence is extremely beautiful: the cover for the album, made by his long time collaborator Jesse Kanda, shows the artist’s face wounded, bruised, as his own music. The teaser of the song let us see Arca, half-naked in the nature. Not only it reminds the personal journey of Björk in the video for her track “Black Lake” but also how entirely exposed his music can be, opening himself to the mystical quest of vulnerability.
The album will be released on April 7 via XL Recordings, one of the biggest indie labels in the world. For such an experimental artist, this release can be considered as a true accomplishment. You can check the tracklist below.
Arca:
01 Piel
02 Anoche
03 Saunter
04 Urchin
05 Reverie
06 Castration
07 Sin Rumbo
08 Coraje
09 Whip
10 Desafío
11 Fugaces
12 Miel
13 Child
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