VESPERTINE was nominated for the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.
Bjork's first non-soundtrack album since HOMOGENIC is positively pastoral compared with that release's experimental electronic textures. Swathed in strings and laced with beautiful choral arrangements, VESPERTINE has more in common with SELMASONGS, echoing that DANCER IN THE DARK soundtrack album's meandering melody lines, while smoothing out and adding an ethereal sheen to the more angular approaches of the singer's previous work.
Here the idiosyncratic Icelander lets loose with her full range of vocal stylings, though even her most innocent, little-girl-lost persona can't hide her steely intelligence. The album-opening "Hidden Place" starts with foreboding electronic rhythms--it's about unspoken or unfulfilled desires, and it's simultaneously exotic-sounding and dripping with melancholy, a mood that persists until the gently cathartic "Undo," with its mantra-like line "It's not meant to be a strife/It's not meant to be a struggle uphill." Though VESPERTINE's textures might ostensibly seem smooth and seamless, beneath the surface Bjork's emotions run raw and exposed, as evidenced by the final naked outburst of "I love him" in the coda to "Pagan Poetry." VESPERTINE is Bjork's most mature, fully realized integration of her pastoral Icelandic roots and her contemporary electronica (electronic scamps Matmos are collaborators here) inclinations to date.
Multi-talented Superstar Bjork returns with her long awaited solo Elektra album Vespertine, featuring groundbreaking songs such as Harm Of Will, and Cocoon. The new disc caps a breakthrough year for the mercurial vocalist, which has seen her receive a Best Acting Award at the Cannes Film Festival for her role in the award winning movie Dancer In The Dark, as well as snag an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song for I've Seen It All.
Engineers include: Jake Davies, Damian Taylor, Erik Gosh.
Personnel: Björk (programming, music box); Björk; Damian Taylor (programming); Guy Sigsworth (celesta, clavichord, programming); Matmos, Matthew Herbert , Thomas Knak (programming); Jake Davies.
Recording information: Air Lyndhurst Studios; Astoria, NY; Avatar Studios, New York, NY; El Cortijo, San Pedro, CA; Greenhouse Studios, Reykjavik, Iceland; Looking Glass, NY; Magic Shop, NY; Quad Studios, NY; Sear Sound, NY; The Loft On Lafayette Street, NY; Thule Studios, Reuykjavik, Iceland.
Personnel: Bjork (vocals, programming); Caryl Thomas, Zeena Parkins (harp); Guy Sigsworth (celeste, Clavichord, programming); Jake Davies, Damian Taylor, Matthew Herbert, Matmos, Thomas Knak, Valgeir Sigurdsson, Marius De Vries, Martin Console (programming).
Producers: Bjork, Thomas Knak, Marius De Vries.
Rolling Stone (4/11/02, p.106) - Ranked #16 in Rolling Stone's "50 Coolest Records". Rolling Stone (1/03/02, p.118) - Ranked #4 in Rolling Stone's "Top 10 2001". Rolling Stone (9/13/01, pp.105-6) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...The best solo record of her career...a particle beam as weightless as light but concentrated with direction....awash with strings and choirs...When she opens her mouth...you go in, swept up to a box seat inside her head..." Spin (1/02, p.76) - Ranked #5 in Spin's "Albums of the Year 2001". Q (9/01, p.109) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...an album which sounds like nothing else while also powerfully evoking the complex and emotional spirit of its creator....Not far from ideal." Uncut (9/01, p.104) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...Extraordinarily intimate and tender....She uses her voice as well as she ever has, giving the moods light and shade..." Alternative Press (2/02, p.64) - Ranked #3 in AP's "25 Best Albums of 2001". Alternative Press (10/01, p.77) - 8 out of 10 - "...A smoldering heart of emotion and a true pop sensibility reveal themselves..." The Wire (1/02, p.40) - Ranked #1 in Wire's "50 Records of the Year 2001". The Wire (8/01, p.52) - "...A beautiful thing..." Mojo (Publisher) (1/02, p.69) - Ranked #7 in Mojo's "Best [40] Albums of 2001". Mojo (Publisher) (9/01, p.99) - "...A gorgeous reverie that lives up to its devotional title..." NME (Magazine) (12/29/01, p.59) - Ranked #32 in NME's 50 "Albums Of the Year 2001". NME (Magazine) (8/25/01, p.51) - 8 out of 10 - "...Enchanting splendor is the overriding rule....way, way off the beaten track..."
wow!! This a u-turn from the excellent and dense album "Homogenic", this time Björk makes it ecstaticly intimate, delicate and tender, diaphanous and ethereal. If you already have "Selmasongs", you could feel the transition and you could have expected the style of Vespertine. The album is great, Björk is definitively the most creative female musician nowadays. Her voice is better than ever and it outstands beautifully in songs like "Cocoon" and "Aurora". The electronic beats, mixed with harp, musicboxes and beautiful choirs creates a kind of music like you've never heard. For me the best songs are "Hidden Place", "It's not up to you", "Aurora" and I think "Pagan Poetry" (excellent!! no words to describe it...!!) by itself makes the album worth buying. Submitted by a reviewer (San José, Costa Rica) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 1 of 1 found this helpful.
Good, but not as fresh as earlier albums. I appreciate the intimacy of this album, but I do not think it has the blatant originality and as unique a sound as "Homogenic" and other of Bjork's earlier efforts. I'd say buy if you're a fan, but don't expect to hear any groundbreaking work. Submitted by a reviewer (Annapolis, MD) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
4.7 stars Just when you thought Bjork couldn't get any more creative, she does. Vespertine is an amazingly unique and sharp piece of work. 'Undo' is gorgeous. Instrumentation is wonderful and moving throughout, apart from the lapse in 'it's not up to you'.. If you are looking to buy Bjork's music you could divide her body of work in two categories: before Vespertine and after Homogenic. Both are good, but she has now definitely matured as an artist. She deserves much applause for abandoning rules of her usual savvy pop and going out on a limb to create such defined and multi-faceted work. This is definitely not 'homogenic'! Submitted by louis_pagie (Encino, CA, USA) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Vespertine...a colt classic. With past albums, Bjork has tried to accomplish what is now know as simply Vespertine. The soft, introverted Bjork creates a world of inner human fanatasy, pushing to explore every inch. The shy and forward Hidden Place starts the journey into the soul, somber yet reassured of what is wanted, and pushes all the way to the culminating finale of rembracing in Unison. The length of the album proves to be perfect in setting the quite, almost un-noticed micro beat-sound, produced by a wide range of artists spanning from Matmos, Mark Bell, Thomas Knak, and finally to the ever impressive Console with the most improtant amount of care. We must take Vespertine as Bjork asks...in a generous mood, and hope for all the best. Submitted by des_junky (Denver, Co) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
What else can be said? What can I say about this album that others haven't? Georgeous, haunting, a completely perfect album from start to finish, and beyond! The b-sides from the singles off the album are equally mesmerizing! Bjork is a Goddess, no one can touch her!!!! Submitted by TFarris70 (Birmingham, AL) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Good, but not as fresh as earlier albums.
Share this Product