One record at a time: 26. Björk - Vespertine

"Vespertine" is the last Björk vinyl in my collection and like many of the others this is the coloured vinyl that was released in 2015. Strangely my copy doesn't have the corresponding promo sticker on the sleeve so I'm not sure if it from the original 5000 or it just got missed in the manufacturing process. At the time of the original album's release I bought the limited 'gatefold' CD with a card sleeve. This version was mildly irritating as it was much bigger than a standard CD case and I remember it wouldn't fit into my chosen storage solution - clearly I didn't have much to worry about in 2001.

This is something of a break up album for Björk and I. "Hidden Place" was a great single that raised my hopes that its parent album was going to maintain the high standards of previous efforts: but alas I was to be disappointed. How anyone can hear "Cocoon" and think, "That's a single!" is beyond me. The song is boring, the vocal is rubbish and the production is dull. The next track "It's Not Up To You" is fantastic and would have made a far better single than "Cocoon". "Undo" comes and goes without leaving an impression before the mildly entertaining single "Pagan Poetry" helps round out the first record.

To be honest I don't have the will to write about each song on the second disc individually. There is nothing remarkable here and whilst there is another flash of greatness with the last track "Unison", this is generally pretty boring stuff. I'm not sure why this album is so highly regarded by critics and some fans. I acknowledge that my love of electronic music can sometimes leave me blind to music created by other means and unfortunately, this album doesn't do enough to open my eyes more than halfway. 2/5

One record at a time: 25. Björk - Selmasongs

We're about halfway through the first shelf (Kallax obviously) of LPs and coming to the end of my Björk collection. I stopped buying her new records in 2011 when she began to explore a musical direction that wasn't to my taste. I described one album here as "arty tuneless garbage", which seems a bit petulant now, but was probably just me realising that there was never going to be a "Homogenic 2".

However, "Selmasongs" was released back when Björk could still muster a tune and employed production techniques that stretched further than using whistles, human beatboxes and fart noises.

This album is a collection of songs featured on the 2000 feature film "Dancer In The Dark" in which Björk also starred.  I've seen the film and thought it was very good. I also liked the songs and bought the CD when it was originally released. This is a 180g black vinyl from 2016 that I ordered directly from her UK record label One Little Independent (as they are now called). The sleeve seems to make a lot out of the fact hat it is mastered directly from metal but I've never noticed the sonic advantages of this.

There are only seven songs on the album but the quality is pretty high. The opening "Overture" is a beautiful orchestral piece that introduces a theme we will hear again in the final song "New World". Like a lot of songs on his album, "Cvalda" utilises 'found sounds' alongside the orchestra. The use of these mechanical noises is measured, imaginative and melodic; they really help define the sound of the record. "I've Seen It All" is a duet that has some fantastic lyrics, but Björk's powerful vocal blows poor Thom Yorke out of the water. "Scatterheart" hints at the sound of albums to come, but unlike those albums, it is quite good. 

This album is a bit of a watershed moment for me as it is probably the last Björk album I enjoyed. Everything went a bit downhill from here: "Vespertine" and "Volta" had their highlights but nothing has ever approached this, or more particularly "Homogenic", for consistency and quality. 3/5

One record at a time: 24. Björk - Homogenic

Another Björk record is next, but this is the first in my collection we have come across that I own in triplicate (there will be more I assure you). 

I have the coloured vinyl from 2015 along with the black vinyl from the same year which I will play here. I also own the 180g version from 2000 which strangely, I have no recollection of purchasing (I can see it wasn't from Discogs or eBay which is also weird). If you look closely at the sleeve you can see that the later re-releases on the right of the image crop the top of Björk's hair, where the older version retains the artwork of the original 1997 version. 

I'll be clear from the start that "Homogenic" is one of my favourite albums of all time. The first time I put the CD of this on in my Renault Clio back in 1997 I knew it was destined to be a favourite. The album kicks off with "Hunter" which is as original as it is awe inspiring. The new (at the time) production of Björk and Mark Bell were the perfect alchemy weaving the dance sensibilities of LFO and the twisting lush melodies of Björk. The first two tracks are a perfect example of this counterpoint where the string arrangements are perfectly juxtaposed with unique driving rhythms and a sub bass growl. I find the third track "Unravel" absolutely mesmerising to the extent that even the saxophone sounds don't annoy me. The single "Bachelorette" sees the epic string arrangements return to great effect in a track the proves how good Björk is in the role of producer. "All Neon Like" comes next with its infectious beat and intriguing lyrics. 

On side two the distorted beat of "5 Years" isn't totally to my taste but as the track builds this becomes less of an issue. I remember the first time I heard the next track "Immature" I kept asking myself, "What is this? How can an album track be this good?" I had this song on regular rotation for quite a long time and have never been able to find fault with it. The original sparse vocal/piano version of the song that features on the third CD single of "Jóga" illustrates that good songs can shine regardless of the production. "Alarm Call" has a great bassline and Björk drops an F-bomb. I find "Pluto" a bit annoying as its trying too hard to be different and seems to just end up being a bit repetitive. The album finishes with the suitably sombre "All Is Full Of Love" which I used to think was good until another version was released as a single the following year. The "single" version (which is actually the original version) is produced by Björk and is superior in every conceivable way. I can't help but wish the album finished with this version but then nothing is perfect. 5/5

One record at a time: 23. Björk - Post

The next record in my collection is another coloured vinyl by Björk. I haven't played this LP much as when I first bought it I thought it sounded awful. As I play it today, things are OK for the first track but the sibilance on "Hyperballad" is horrible and "The Modern Things" is spoiled by distracting pops and clicks. Things don't improve much for the rest of the record but as this is the only version of the LP I have, I will have to stick with it.

The poor sound quality is a real shame as "Post" is a great album and I enjoyed it so much in 1996 that I went to see her on the supporting tour. Even though a significant proportion of the album is produced by Nellee Hooper, it sounds miles better than its predecessor, "Debut". I think this must be down to collaborators such as Graham Massey and Tricky who seemed to injected enough grit and imagination to stop another "The Anchor Song" happening.

My favourite track is "Isobel" with its lush arrangement and haunting tune, but there isn't a bad song on here really. Even some of the more 'avant-garde' tracks such as "You've Been Flirting Again" and "Headphones" are entertaining. The only slightly rubbish track is "Cover Me" but happily it is only two minutes long and is buried near the end. The singles "Army of Me" and "Hyperballad" are quirky and highly original and you get the feeling Björk is beginning to find her feet as a solo artist here. "Possibly Maybe" is an OK track but was never a single to my ears. However, this didn't stop me buying no less than three CD singles of it when it was released. More alarmingly all three CDs were full of garbage remixes with only one passable live track in their favour.

There were lots of mixes and singles from "Post" and they culminated in the remix album "Telegram". This collection of mixes tried too hard to be "different" and "arty" and the result was dreadful. Having bought three CD singles of garbage with "Possibly Maybe" I declined "Telegram" at the time. In the last year I picked the CD up from eBay for a few pounds and I don't feel I have missed out in the intervening twenty five years. It won't get listened to again (unless for the purposes of this blog I suspect). 

To summarise, this is a good album but I can't recommend this coloured vinyl version at all. These records seem to be selling between £50 to £100 on Discogs and I find that amazing. My perception has never been that this is a rare pressing and from a sound quality perspective, it certainly isn't desirable. I prefer my limited edition CD in a plastic purse which sounds loads better. 3/5

One record at a time: 22. Björk - Debut

Whilst I bought the original CD of this album back in 1993, I didn't own it on vinyl until 2015. I know this because I posted about acquiring some of Björk's back catalogue on coloured vinyl here. Although I've owned the record for 6 years, I have only played it once to my recollection. I haven't played it much for two reasons. 

Firstly "Debut" isn't my favourite Björk album. Although it starts strongly, it meanders off into weirdness that I can't abide. Everything is going well until we hit "Like Someone In Love" which is a fairly limp interpretation of a dull Jazz standard. Not only is this track inferior, it is also incongruous and ruins the mood that had been building. Things pick up again with a few good tracks before the disjointed mess that is "Aeroplane" sours the atmosphere and "The Anchor Song" vomits everywhere just so we are clear the party is well and truly over. You can tell I hate saxophones.

The second reason I haven't listened this record much is that I had previously played the coloured vinyl of "Post" and "Homogenic" and they had all the sonic fidelity of a hairdryer full of iron filings. Who could have predicted coloured vinyl pressed by GZ media would sound horrible? *sarcasm mode disengaged* But truth be told, this particular record doesn't sound nearly as bad as the others I own and it behaved quite well on this listen through.

Having not heard this album in a long time, I am struck by how 'nineties' it sounds with the guitar samples on "Human Behaviour" and the liberal use of organ being especially dated. My alternate version of this album would jettison "Aeroplane", "The Anchor Song" and "Like Someone In Love" and add in "Play Dead". I would also swap out "Big Time Sensuality" for the Fluke remix that made it a chart hit and substitute "There's More To Life Than This" for its non-toilet version included on the "Venus as a boy" single. It still wouldn't be perfect, but it would be a lot less disappointing than this.

Another disappointment of this re-pressing is the sleeve. I understand that record companies may not have the original artwork for a record lying around twenty years after it was released, but at least make some effort to reproduce it to a reasonable quality. The sleeves on these coloured vinyl versions look like bad scans in places and just aren't very sharp. If you consider the poor sleeve combined with the poor vinyl, it mystifies me why people are asking such high prices for these albums on Discogs and eBay. Acquiring them may have posed me some initial problems but they aren't that rare and they really aren't as desirable as you might think. 2/5

Bjork Coloured Vinyl

Amongst my new years resolutions was the promise not to buy any new music by Bjork. I haven't enjoyed one of her albums since "Homogenic" from 1997 so buying more seemed like a waste of money.

The all important sticker

However, I have never ruled out buying her old music again. So when I noticed amazon listing reissues of her albums on vinyl I was intrigued. Add the lure of the first 5000 (yes this is hardly limited quantities, but what the hell) copies being pressed on coloured vinyl and I found myself pre-ordering "Debut" "Post" and "Homogenic" without hesitation. They are only 140g and not the 180g that vinyl enthusiasts seem to crave, but how can you resist coloured vinyl?

Now, I am aware that every vinyl pressing plant in Europe is working at full throttle with an overflowing order book; so when the release dates for these albums slipped a couple of times I wasn't unduly surprised. However, when the first disc turned up I was unduly surprised: the vinyl was black. I immediately began scouring the Internet to find out what was going on. The coloured vinyl seemed freely available, just not from amazon it would seem. I cancelled the remainder of my order and went looking elsewhere.

My first order was placed with a website called Boomkat who were showing all coloured vinyls as available for 'pre-order'. A week or so later a copy of "Homogenic" arrived carrying the telltale sticker in the top left corner denoting it was a limited coloured vinyl edition. Brilliant. Around a week later Boomkat emailed me to say their distributor had 'let them down' and they weren't able to offer the remaining albums. "Sorry about that. We've cancelled your order". Not so brilliant.

Nice discs, but why green?

Next on the hit list was "Post". A quick look through Discogs brought up lots of sellers with sealed copies at reasonable prices so I ordered one. Two days later I owned the coloured version of "Post" too. "Debut" was a tougher and much more elusive opponent if I wasn't willing to spend over £30. I would have to bide my time.

A few weeks later I found myself in an HMV store and whilst I was idly flicking through the vinyl I noticed a Bjork section. It contained a copy of her latest album "Vulnicura" (strictly off limits) along with a coloured vinyl of "Debut" for the startlingly good sum of £15.99. So my mission to own 3 coloured vinyls was complete, all it took was one month, a bit of poking around on the Internet and some good luck. No thanks to amazon on this occasion.

The discs themselves are rather nice, but I can't help but feel "Homogenic" should have been a burgundy coloured disc to match the rear of the artwork, I just don't see where the green came from. Each disc has a card with a download code for 320kps MP3 files but I haven't manged to get any of them to work first time. For "Post" I had to input the code at least 10 times before the website would let me download.

I can't really work out what amazon are doing when it comes to these releases. Why I ended up with a black vinyl remains a mystery (on the plus side it is a 180g edition rather than the 140g of the coloured version). Amazon really need to change their listing to reflect the fact that they haven't got any of the coloured versions. They still list theses albums as "Limited Edition" and state associated colour of the vinyl, but in my experience they just dispatch the black vinyl.

Is a tune too much to ask for?

What in the name of god has happened to Björk? “Homogenic” is one of my top ten albums of all time and I am certain no one will ever surpass her live performance I witnessed in 1996 as part of the “Post” tour. Her versatility and originality were beyond compare. But, to me, her new album “Biophilia” represents a low point in her fall from musical grace.

There were three components to the work of Björk. Firstly she was the most amazing and unique vocalist, secondly she could write a great song and finally her music was well produced. Whilst her vocal ability remains, it seems Björk has come to the conclusion that she doesn’t need to write tunes and that a dirge will now suffice. To add insult to injury, she has decided that she will, in the main, produce these dirges herself. Predictably the result is something of a disaster.

There really is not one song to redeem this album. Recent albums such as “Volta” and “Medulla” had one or maybe two tracks that proved to be entertaining and thus the CD’s were not a complete waste of money. However, “Biophilia” is a stinker and even illegally downloading it for free will cost more in electricity than it is worth. A truly awful album.

In my imagination I give Björk a nudge and a wink and say: “Hey. Go back and make something a bit more like “Post”. I don’t expect another “Homogenic” but Jesus stop it with the arty, tuneless garbage and give us something with a beat now and again.”