True, I think I remember reading that Longstreth wrote it (with her in mind)
― change display name (Jordan), Thursday, 19 April 2018 18:23 (six years ago) link
vespertine shares a dynamic with radiohead's amnesiac for me, in that 1) both records might be my favorites by their respective artists 2) the songs that didn't make each record are better than many of the songs that did
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Thursday, 19 April 2018 18:45 (six years ago) link
"Kinetic" and "Worrywort" were the best Radiohead ever did at trying to make a Bjork track. Better than anything on 'Kid A' or 'Amnesiac'.
― Soundslike, Thursday, 19 April 2018 19:53 (six years ago) link
I'm so here for Björk singing "Aurora" in her living room backed by bored schoolchildren while reading the lyrics from a piece of paper, and then curtsying at the end.
No, seriously, I love it. I wish she sung in Icelandic more often on her albums. BTW that's Jónas Sen on harpsichord and Ólöf Arnalds on koto.
― ˈʌglɪɪst preɪ, Thursday, 19 April 2018 21:13 (six years ago) link
so much bjork that I love but all these opinions are exhausting
― ogmor, Thursday, 19 April 2018 21:55 (six years ago) link
lol
― Dan S, Thursday, 19 April 2018 22:15 (six years ago) link
well opinion THIS: a bjork supercut with all the different times and ways she has sung "e-mo-tion-al"
― Karl Malone, Thursday, 19 April 2018 22:18 (six years ago) link
Vulnicura really is a bookend to Vespertine, isn’t it? A kind of negative refraction. Listening to them in close proximity makes that clearer to me
Utopia feels like the most shrouded of all of her albums, with the middle section almost completely submerged, but it is also maybe the most compelling for me, the one I most want to revisit
I think the relative inaccessibility of those two albums has made them underrated, but they are both really beautiful
― Dan S, Thursday, 19 April 2018 22:33 (six years ago) link
It definitely is. Both are about the same lover (Barney), and I'm in awe at how she managed to make Vulnicura the 'anti-Vespertine', yet sonically and thematically staying as close to the spring of ecstacy that Vespertine was as possible. It is a refraction, yet also something entirely new, something of its own. Vulnicura feels gravely underrated, but I guess we'll soon see if that is indeed so. I for one rate it far higher than Volta and Medulla (Biophilia is another story all together tbh)
― lbi's life of limitless european glamour (Le Bateau Ivre), Thursday, 19 April 2018 22:48 (six years ago) link
i'm... largely baffled by utopia, i assume a second listen will help?
i do like that the front cover looks like amphibian bjork is handing me a weird flute, i assume for some kind of journey
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Thursday, 19 April 2018 22:52 (six years ago) link
for a place to start, the last couple of songs of Utopia kind of emerge from the mist. Future Forever I think is one of the best ever Bjork tracks
― Dan S, Thursday, 19 April 2018 23:13 (six years ago) link
i think i'm gonna vote for "black lake" it's pretty abyssal
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Thursday, 19 April 2018 23:31 (six years ago) link
i was listening to some of my contenders on random, and "black lake" sounded so full and wide
― Karl Malone, Thursday, 19 April 2018 23:38 (six years ago) link
god vulnicura is really good
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Friday, 20 April 2018 00:19 (six years ago) link
the empty space on that record is so consuming, which makes the instrumentation and especially her voice perpetually feel like they're willfully exerting themselves
― lowercase (eric), Friday, 20 April 2018 00:28 (six years ago) link
also i love the anohni feature
― lowercase (eric), Friday, 20 April 2018 00:29 (six years ago) link
Utopia is still totally impenetrable to me, the first two and last two tracks are the only ones I can get remotely into but they still feel very meandering
― ufo, Friday, 20 April 2018 01:21 (six years ago) link
oh wait but “arisen my senses” is amazing. it’s like björk’s sade song
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Friday, 20 April 2018 02:37 (six years ago) link
I know it's a new fan fave, and I keep waiting for it to open up for me, but it just hasn't.
― Uppercase (Eric H.), Friday, 20 April 2018 02:38 (six years ago) link
Ballot sent! Was definitely in danger of overthinking it if I took any longer...
― Gavin, Leeds, Friday, 20 April 2018 09:48 (six years ago) link
I really love the consistency and the progression of her album covers. All with her face and all without words.
https://i.imgur.com/T52DavH.jpg
― mfktz (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Friday, 20 April 2018 11:24 (six years ago) link
Medulla does have the title on it actually - the necklace. I think Post, Vespertine and Biophilia have my favourite covers
― ufo, Friday, 20 April 2018 11:34 (six years ago) link
Ha weird
I never knew what the Biophilia cover looked like until this moment
― nevertheless, he stopped (flamboyant goon tie included), Friday, 20 April 2018 11:52 (six years ago) link
How many ballots so far, you ask? Eight, the answer.
Don't make me wait 5 years!
― Uppercase (Eric H.), Friday, 20 April 2018 14:20 (six years ago) link
hey I got a whole week, I haven't even started listening!
― sleeve, Friday, 20 April 2018 14:21 (six years ago) link
Same as Sleeve! You'll probably get mine a minute before (or after) the deadline, as per usual.
― lbi's life of limitless european glamour (Le Bateau Ivre), Friday, 20 April 2018 14:22 (six years ago) link
i'll send mine now! i was gonna try to do remixes but there's just too much!
― challops trap house (Will M.), Friday, 20 April 2018 14:41 (six years ago) link
i'll definitely have one as well, just deciding on the order!
― Karl Malone, Friday, 20 April 2018 15:36 (six years ago) link
I am 20 tracks right now without delving into the post-millennial era (where my relationship with Björk gets iffy).
― Dangleballs and the Ballerina (cryptosicko), Friday, 20 April 2018 15:41 (six years ago) link
Think I should send in my ballot too. I wanted to relisten to stuff I'm less familiar with but I think no matter how many listens I give Biophilia, nothing on there is ever gonna click with me. Did find a few new excellent B-sides in researching for this poll though
― Vinnie, Friday, 20 April 2018 16:25 (six years ago) link
"oceania" is like the patient zero of björk videos where she just wears weird shit on her face/head in roomfuls of cgi
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Friday, 20 April 2018 17:44 (six years ago) link
I like "Earth Intruders"!
― morning wood truancy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 20 April 2018 17:46 (six years ago) link
(apropos of nothing except some nay-saying above)
"Earth Intruders" is B+ Bjork, to use an Alfred-ism
― Uppercase (Eric H.), Friday, 20 April 2018 18:00 (six years ago) link
also as mentioned earth intruders liberally cribs a section of wendy carlos 'c'est afrique'
utopia is a great record. it's one you can live in, staunchly enviornmental/atmospheric.
― after party for the apocalypse (Ross), Friday, 20 April 2018 20:46 (six years ago) link
I love environmental/atmospheric records. But for some reason it's the almost-song-but-not-ness of 'Utopia' that keeps me outside looking in. It could portentially be amazing if Bjork wanted to do instrumental-textural-ambient-etc. records, though her voice would be missed. But when she sings without meter and melody, with sort of auto-Bjork-isms that hint at previous melodies without cohering into melody--it just fundamentally fruatrates me. I feel like the track she did for the closong credits of 'Being John Malkovic' presaged that strand that has made up half her work post-Medulla.
― Soundslike, Friday, 20 April 2018 20:52 (six years ago) link
^I definitely can see this point of view. It is sort of an environmental/atmospheric record, but not quite. I think it functions as mood music for me - my favorite kind of music! Every time I listen it feels slightly different
― Dan S, Friday, 20 April 2018 21:21 (six years ago) link
just read Ross's post, I guess what I meant in mine by 'environmental/atmospheric' was more 'ambient', but I like his description.
― Dan S, Friday, 20 April 2018 21:27 (six years ago) link
third attempt with utopia and "arisen my senses" is going on my ballot, it makes me believe i have synesthesia
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Friday, 20 April 2018 22:14 (six years ago) link
successive blushes each a different color
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Friday, 20 April 2018 22:15 (six years ago) link
it really is a beautiful introduction
― Dan S, Friday, 20 April 2018 22:31 (six years ago) link
first track on utopia barges out the gate, big and bold, love it.
tabula rasa almost brings me to tears
cheers to Dan
oh wow soundslike the track from BJM amphibian is seriously fucking amazing. i hate to say the weakest link on her new records is her voice, ever dove-tailing into the ether, rarely to coalesce into some meaningful melody.
― after party for the apocalypse (Ross), Friday, 20 April 2018 22:32 (six years ago) link
“amphibian” is maybe the best björk song
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Friday, 20 April 2018 22:50 (six years ago) link
Holy tuck is it good
― after party for the apocalypse (Ross), Saturday, 21 April 2018 00:40 (six years ago) link
― sleeve, Friday, April 20, 2018 9:21 AM (ten hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
same, fam
― 21st savagery fox (m bison), Saturday, 21 April 2018 00:54 (six years ago) link
Now "Future Forever" insists on reminding me of its loveliness just to make things difficult. There are far too many casually excellent Björk songs. I have to confess that while I have most of the records on hand and am pro-Björk in principle, I wasn't initially sure I could name 30 tracks I really truly care about at this stage. Boy is my face red!
― Maximum big surprise! (Nag! Nag! Nag!), Saturday, 21 April 2018 01:19 (six years ago) link
every time i'm about to give up on utopia "tabula rasa" starts and i'm mesmerized until the end. "saint" and "future forever" in particular
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Saturday, 21 April 2018 15:29 (six years ago) link
ballot sent
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Saturday, 21 April 2018 16:06 (six years ago) link
lmao i want to change things already, is it possible to resubmit
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Saturday, 21 April 2018 16:44 (six years ago) link
i am finally in the right mood for vespertine! and it is the best album in the world
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Saturday, 21 April 2018 16:54 (six years ago) link