Aikea-Guinea is a 7-inch single and EP

Extended play

An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...

 by the Scottish rock group Cocteau Twins

Cocteau Twins

Cocteau Twins were a Scottish alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997, known for innovative instrumentation and atmospheric, non-lyrical vocals...

, released on 4AD

4AD

4AD is a British independent record label that was started in 1979 by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent, funded by Beggars Banquet Records, and is still active today...

 records in March 1985. The 7-inch format features two non-album tracks, the EP also features these plus another two.

Aikea-Guinea was included as a bonus with some Canadian pressings of Treasure. The title track also appears on the compilation disc The Pink Opaque

The Pink Opaque

The Pink Opaque is a 1986 compilation album composed of tracks originally recorded between 1982 and 1985 by Cocteau Twins. A joint release by the UK-based 4AD and the USA-based Relativity Records, it was the band's the first official domestic USA release.-History:After signing to 4AD in 1982,...

(1985), and a remastered version appears on Stars and Topsoil

Stars and Topsoil

Stars And Topsoil is a compilation album by the Scottish rock group Cocteau Twins, released on the 4AD label in October 2000. The album features tracks released between 1982 and 1990, covering every Cocteau Twins album from Garlands to Heaven or Las Vegas.-Track listing:# "Blind Dumb Deaf" - 3:47#...

(2000). On the 7-inch format the song "Kookaburra" has a short percussive introduction that is not present on the EP.

The EP was reissued in 1991 as part of The Box Set

The Box Set (Cocteau Twins)

The Box Set is a 1991 collection of EPs by the Scottish band Cocteau Twins. It collects their non-album releases up until that time. It also contains a bonus disc including songs from throughout their history which have not been otherwise released....

and again in 2005 as part of the Lullabies to Violaine compilation, this time with a remixed "alternate" version of the title track.

A promotional video was made for the title track and all tracks have been performed live.

According to Robin Guthrie, "Aikea-Guinea" is a Scottish colloquialism for a seashell.

Track listing

1. "Aikea-Guinea" – 3:57
2. "Kookaburra" – 3:19
3. "Quisquose" – 4:10 (EP only)
4. "Rococo" – 3:08 (EP only)

Personnel

• Elizabeth Fraser
  Elizabeth Fraser
  Elizabeth Davidson Fraser is a Scottish singer best known as the vocalist for the pioneer alternative rock group Cocteau Twins...
  
   – vocals
• Robin Guthrie
  Robin Guthrie
  Robin Guthrie is a musician best known as co-founder of the Cocteau Twins. During his career Guthrie has played guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, drums and other musical instruments, in addition to programming, sampling and sound processing...
  
   – guitar
  Guitar
  The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
  
  
• Simon Raymonde
  Simon Raymonde
  Simon Philip Raymonde is an English musician and record producer. He is the son of the late arranger and composer, Ivor Raymonde.-Career:...
  
   – bass

All tracks written and produced by Cocteau Twins.