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Album Review
by SashaS
15-8-2001
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| Beauty and sounds |
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Björk: 'Vespertine'
(One Little Indian)
Queen of ice-cool leads into a strange world, again
In the music world overloaded with vogue-fit pop Björk simply shimmers with luminosity of the most precious gem. The Icelandic Diva (respect) rules art, innovation and beauty in creating music that has always defied any biz-prescribed genres and all demands de jour in the talentless world. 'Vespertine' continues the tradition of disturbingly enchanting sonic settings and particular iconography that 3 million people regularly feel compelled to OD on.
What distinguishes Björk is her exploration of the Id, that inner, true-self, the one that is usually censored from being let loose in the civilized company. Macy Gray might have entitled her new album so but it confirms to the ear-appealing territory, whereas Ms Gudmundsdottir's living arrangement, currently New York City, makes no difference because her creativity reflects her inner world that seizes known elements and turns them into an unexpected feast of original noises.
How many contemporary artists can claim a song solely performed on an ice-cube tray? Or a mobile phone, a remote control, a fax, the Net? These are the sources for songs that ring with familiarity of living but do not confirm to the standard of life's ordinariness. 'Vespertine' is about "Being alone in your house," Björk explains, "in a very quiet sort of introverted mood". It's an album of the ttwilight moments when 'you' converses with 'yourself'.
Björk questions what constitutes art: the album's themes are in the lyrical form that allows one to either analyse until midnight-blue facially or just take a ride on an emotional wing. On a listener's end it turns into self-controlled hypnosis when you can get lost in without losing the perspective. Titles like 'Cocoon', 'Pagan', 'An Echo A Stain', 'Harm Of Will' provide escape from the faceless uniformists of the corporate industry of sounds.
This indecently beautiful 35-year-old is one of the music's sexiest ladies who effortlessly overshadow laboured efforts of J-Lo, Mariah or Britney despite the sycophantic media's light-pollution. Björk possesses something deeper, higher, a form of clandestine spell that touches you in a profound, or manic, way that can hardly ever be shaken off.
Once Björk'ed, forever smitten.
8.75/10
SashaS
15-8-2001
'Vespertine' by Björk is released August 27, 2001 on One Little Indian
(Wordage: 358, Wed., August 15, 2001; 09:56:33am)
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