News about the upcoming Björk album Volta.

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gone already:
http://www.myspace.com/itishardtofindbandnames

fan archive:
http://www.beyazcorap.com/volta.html

― StanM, Tuesday, 3 April 2007 05:58 (seventeen years ago) link

I don't think I like Earth Intruders.

― Melissa W, Saturday, 7 April 2007 02:39 (seventeen years ago) link

I wonder if it's a rotten radio edit, and I somehow *know* it's going to seem amazing with the video, but yeah, I'm a little nonplussed myself. And yet there's something (in fact there's too much of EVERYTHING) there that makes me not want to call it one way or the other yet... Like how it'll sound with the album. Certainly not an unqualified WHOA! like Oceania, but she sounds pretty refreshed & up for something again, I like the spirit and energy, but the song eludes me a bit, a bit of a mess? :/ I feels like it should be more powerful, more coherent.

It seems a shame she didn't syncopate her vocals somehow, not that I'm trying to put her in a pop/r'n'b box but it's actually pretty annoying how utterly off the beat she is here. It kind of evades the big basic groove/big hook it seems to want for it to work. I dunno, needs more listens, don't hate, but don't massively love it either.

― fandango, Saturday, 7 April 2007 03:47 (seventeen years ago) link

I don't like EI. :-(

― Turangalila, Saturday, 7 April 2007 06:31 (seventeen years ago) link

And fandango strangely OTM. This should sound bigger, more dissonant, weirder. The melody is not remarkable by any means, and her voice in the chorus sounds flatter than it should be.

― Turangalila, Saturday, 7 April 2007 06:38 (seventeen years ago) link

I think the sound quality is really hurting it too... but reckon her voice in the chorus sounds flat 'cos it always does when she's trying this do this kind of semi-martial tempo! (i.e. 'Army Of Me', which I've never much liked) she makes up for it around though. And some of the synth stabs are really grebt.

Apparently the "extended" (4:30 instead of 3:10-something) mix is on iTunes australia now, and a lot less cramped? But yeah, I think unremarkable would be my take on this too, not exactly 'bad', but lacking something.

If it's any comfort I haven't heard a single person who's heard "Volta" already say this is their favourite track, and with it being the single, they seem to have had even more cause to mention that...

― fandango, Saturday, 7 April 2007 10:20 (seventeen years ago) link

OTM, individual elements are great (the rhythm, the woo woo's, etc), but there's WAY too much going on at the same time.

― StanM, Saturday, 7 April 2007 11:34 (seventeen years ago) link

I'm just about to give an ear to the *cough* 'extended' version...

― fandango, Saturday, 7 April 2007 11:55 (seventeen years ago) link

WOW, well it's still a little workmanlike but be assured, the radio edit is FUCKING AWFUL!!! (even by her standards, 'cos her radio edits are usually crude as fuck)

Remember than one Royksopp single "Only This Moment" that sounded like someone sat on it? there you go, except that was better for it, this... isn't.

― fandango, Saturday, 7 April 2007 12:06 (seventeen years ago) link

extended? me no find, help?

― StanM, Saturday, 7 April 2007 13:11 (seventeen years ago) link

"(Mark Stent Extended Edit)" I think it'll be on iTunes monday... ummm not that I'm supposed to have it yet :/

― fandango, Saturday, 7 April 2007 13:22 (seventeen years ago) link

oh, ok! no prob.

― StanM, Saturday, 7 April 2007 13:31 (seventeen years ago) link

I'm liking this more, but surprised and quite disappointed at how muddy & indistinct the actual music is, nothing really feels like it stands out. I hope the album delivers more :-/

― fandango, Saturday, 7 April 2007 17:36 (seventeen years ago) link

This is awesome, you are all mental.

― Matt DC, Saturday, 7 April 2007 20:43 (seventeen years ago) link

Matt OTM

It's like a fierce fusion of organic, jungle drums and technologic, space synths/oooOooOoohs. And it works beautifully, especially in the second half, when Bjork completely tears up the beat. YAY! More, please!

― Tape Store, Saturday, 7 April 2007 21:01 (seventeen years ago) link

Just heard the extended mix. The Konono bits should be heavier/more prominent. The trash can drums and fuzz bass are too loud, also.

― Turangalila, Saturday, 7 April 2007 21:19 (seventeen years ago) link

Ahhhhh...I didn't know that it was Konono. But it makes a lot of sense now.

― Tape Store, Saturday, 7 April 2007 22:19 (seventeen years ago) link

i like it a lot! i don't know bout the lyrics to earth intruders.

― Surmounter, Saturday, 7 April 2007 23:21 (seventeen years ago) link

i think it's fuckin' aces.

for those who haven't heard it yet.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77BJ1uh55I4

― funny farm, Saturday, 7 April 2007 23:37 (seventeen years ago) link

Also, "we are the earth intruders!" is crying out for some awesome robotic-voice doom-laden remix action.

― Matt DC, Saturday, 7 April 2007 23:41 (seventeen years ago) link

Trentemoller-style!

― Matt DC, Saturday, 7 April 2007 23:41 (seventeen years ago) link

WOW, this is GREAT!

― Spencer Chow, Sunday, 8 April 2007 00:53 (seventeen years ago) link

It's like her take on MIA.

― Spencer Chow, Sunday, 8 April 2007 00:54 (seventeen years ago) link

I went and saw Julien Temple's new film Glastonbury today and there is a minute or two of footage of her on stage and man, I don't think I've ever seen her look that pretty before, despite seeing her live myself years ago.

― Bimble, Sunday, 8 April 2007 01:16 (seventeen years ago) link

i know she's a looker

― Surmounter, Sunday, 8 April 2007 01:29 (seventeen years ago) link

This is great. Makes me think of "I Miss You" more than "Army of Me". I like the idea of a return to the kaleidscopic craziness of Post.

― Tim F, Sunday, 8 April 2007 01:38 (seventeen years ago) link

yes that's what i'm getting too. funny got a bit of that from the cover art too.

― Surmounter, Sunday, 8 April 2007 01:43 (seventeen years ago) link

I'm pretty often camped with the M.I.A. hataz... so it chokes me that I wish this sounded more like her, and less like fumbling, horribly produced, less-than-special Björk :-(

― fandango, Sunday, 8 April 2007 10:39 (seventeen years ago) link

There are plenty of harder beats on the album apparently. I hope so, 'cos this is about as fierce as a drained teabag (or a wet sugarcube lol).

― fandango, Sunday, 8 April 2007 10:43 (seventeen years ago) link

The more I listen to "Earth Intruders," the less I like it. Why hire Konono and Timbaland when they didn't really NEED to be in this track? You can barely hear the niceish Konono plinky plink bits. It reminds me of the worst aspects of Post. I don't know, I never expected this kind of cheap, musical ethno-tourism from Björk.

― Turangalila, Sunday, 8 April 2007 21:49 (seventeen years ago) link

I'm...lukewarm on it. I'm sure it will grow on me and it sounds very much like a "single" but I hope that the record will have something a bit more unexpected.

― admrl, Sunday, 8 April 2007 21:54 (seventeen years ago) link

yeah but you might be taking it for granted as cheap, musical ethno-tourism. meaning beneath the aspect of this-has-been-done-before, there will probably be an element of, yeah but she went ahead and did it anyway, and made it sound great. good for her.

also we shouldn't assume anything yet.

― Surmounter, Sunday, 8 April 2007 22:07 (seventeen years ago) link

I wish it had less aimless Bjork-style caterwauling and more of a... tune. There was a time when Bjork was good with a tune.

― ^@^, Sunday, 8 April 2007 23:34 (seventeen years ago) link

I mean, sure, the production is great, but she's kind of just phoning her parts in now, wouldn't you say?

― ^@^, Sunday, 8 April 2007 23:40 (seventeen years ago) link

The people over at britneyspears.org are LOVING it. Me? Meh.. The earth intruders 'theme' is o_0-p

I want PLUTO vocals and heavier beats.

― MRZBW, Sunday, 8 April 2007 23:45 (seventeen years ago) link

this is about as fierce as a drained teabag

Did you miss the part where she was screaming "CARNAGE - FURIOOSITY! - TURMOIL! - THE BOOONES! - BRAAAANCHES!" over rapid African drum beats and freaky, haunting choir singers?
What else do you want? A roaring tiger sample? A Killer Mike guest spot? Alanis Morissette circa Jagged Little Pill?

― Tape Store, Sunday, 8 April 2007 23:50 (seventeen years ago) link

Dalek voices would be nice. A tiger wouldn't go amiss either. Maybe a robot tiger?

― Matt DC, Monday, 9 April 2007 00:06 (seventeen years ago) link

I agree that she's using exactly the same vocal tricks she's used for ages now, especially on the 'CARNAGE! TURMOIL!' swooping bits, but somehow I don't particularly care.

― Matt DC, Monday, 9 April 2007 00:08 (seventeen years ago) link

Robot Tiger FTW!

― funny farm, Monday, 9 April 2007 00:23 (seventeen years ago) link

I think I will probably grow to like "Earth Intruders", but it's kind of sad that we're at a point where Bjork is now the least interesting thing about her own singles.

― ^@^, Monday, 9 April 2007 00:23 (seventeen years ago) link

There was a time when Bjork was good with a tune.
Exactly.

Well, it's just one song, anyway. The other songs could still potentially be awesome. :)

― Turangalila, Monday, 9 April 2007 00:30 (seventeen years ago) link

Hee, I think Earth Intruders would be awesome if it would be a cover of Milhaud's L'Homme et Son Désir.

― Turangalila, Monday, 9 April 2007 00:31 (seventeen years ago) link

Oh, I like this! I don't really hear the Konono contributions either, but I do like this quite a bit. I'm hearing it for the first time as I am typing. It's all spooky and bouncy. Those buzzy synths underneath are quite nice. And since when has Bjork not been about a kind of musical ethno-tourism? This is a woman who uses throat singers and an Inuit women's choir on her records. She's always been all over the map.

― Emily Bjurnhjam, Tuesday, 10 April 2007 21:27 (seventeen years ago) link

But I agree, to hear it in the album context would probably be even better.

― Emily Bjurnhjam, Tuesday, 10 April 2007 21:30 (seventeen years ago) link

I think Earth Intruders in pretty damn good. Best thing Timbo's done for years as well.

― chap, Tuesday, 10 April 2007 21:41 (seventeen years ago) link

Did you miss the part where she was screaming "CARNAGE - FURIOOSITY! - TURMOIL! - THE BOOONES! - BRAAAANCHES!" over rapid African drum beats and freaky, haunting choir singers?
What else do you want? A roaring tiger sample? A Killer Mike guest spot? Alanis Morissette circa Jagged Little Pill?

-- Tape Store

No I caught all that but I'm not convinced. The words just sound like words like she couldn't be bothered to write any depth into them and hoped the dream logic & vividness they might have originally posessed would just carry over, it doesn't (though that line about "the beast with many heads and arms rolling" is good, unsettling). Beats are soft & lame, synths absolutely horrid, choir predictable and none of it feels like a delicious "fusion" just a crap smoothie, the production, the 'eh'-ness of the tune in general reminds me of fuckin' Goldfrapp believe me that's not a compliment.

"Fierce", "Awesome"? Meh. It's ok. I'll probably enjoy it a bunch live, and I certainly won't skip it as the first track on Volta. But by her standards (by a few other peoples too) it's pretty average :/

― fandango, Tuesday, 10 April 2007 22:30 (seventeen years ago) link

reminds me of fuckin' Goldfrapp believe me that's not a compliment.

Heh, my friend Nick said the exact same thing to me last night.

― Turangalila, Wednesday, 11 April 2007 01:25 (seventeen years ago) link

[i]And since when has Bjork not been about a kind of musical ethno-tourism?[i]
Well, yes. But I meant a cheap, frosted-on kind of musical ethno-tourism. I meant the Damon Albarn sort of musical ethno-tourism.

Anyway, yeah, fandango OTM. I wanted burning distorto mbira funk with phat drums, man. This just sounds like a very average pop song with "cool"& "ethnic" stuff attached to it peripherically.

― Turangalila, Wednesday, 11 April 2007 01:31 (seventeen years ago) link

I nominate "Innocence" as singularly most revolting vocal melody by Björk ever. :(

― Turangalila, Wednesday, 11 April 2007 17:18 (seventeen years ago) link

I'm not listening those tracks yet (live, youtube perchance?). I can wait. I still have good hopes for the album. Though I did listen to a tiny bit of one of the Anthony duets, and liked it! After seeing a few photos of them together, and live on stage I'm starting to think they actually make a great couple (musically speaking) weirdly. I couldn't have imagined it before.

― fandango, Wednesday, 11 April 2007 17:27 (seventeen years ago) link

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