Really love Bjork - she sounds like she learned out to sing without ever hearing anyone else do it, as if totally free of so much musical convention. As a songwriter she's got a very unique talent to bring extremely avant-garde ideas into very listenable, accessible music in a way not a lot of other artists can manage.
i think she did, actually. in her new podcast, sonic symbolism, she talks about how when she was a kid in the 70s in iceland she would walk to school every day, and she would sing on her way to school to comfort herself, and she theorizes that having that freedom to sing as loud as she wanted to in the woods developed her unique style.
Her last tour, at least the last one I went to (late 2019), her old choir teacher and the children's choir she sang in as a kid in Reykjavik were part of the performance. She recorded her first album at the age of 6, IIRC. She definitely had a lot of training. Still, doesn't really matter, because she manages to do something unique with music, and I absolutely love her for it.
Fun story if no one's mentioned it. Bjork had her first gold album in Iceland when she was (I wanna say) 8-10 years old. No joke. She's an Iceland treasure!
As a former hobbyist composer/audiophile, I think this style of playing the song without stopping while commenting while the music is playing works well because your voice does not overpower the music and the music does not drown out your voice. In other words, this format works because you've mixed the audio levels perfectly.
Love Bjork! She is incredibly unique and versatile. As for as your reaction format goes, I like the idea of you going with what feels right in the moment for each song. For complex songs, you might have a lot of detail to discuss before the song is over so pause it when you need to. For more repetitive, simpler songs, you might be able to go through the whole song without stopping. I hope that makes sense and is helpful.
Björk is such a creative and ever evolving artist. "Homogenic" is one of my all time favorite albums. Everything she does is unique: performance, melody, rhythm, lyrics, harmonies, and always brilliant production. This style of reaction works for these songs such as "Human Behavior", but as you move through Björk's catalogue her songs become complex, so most likely will take the more broken up approach.
You're definitely gonna love Björk, I can imagine many composers can appreciate her music on a deeper level than most. Her songs are just so uniquely composed and so complex. She got more and more experimental with every album, she just released a new one and it's amazing. I love her so much. I think the song Jóga has to be your next reaction!
The way that the song travels up a half step for the choruses, and then back down for the verses is absolutely genius. It really builds that sense of frustration and escalating tension in a subtle way. I'm honestly surprised it isn't talked about more!! Also the fact that this insanely catchy bassline is carried entirely by timpani... it's bonkers.
She's in a league of her own. More of her please! Pagan poetry, crystalline, it's oh so quiet, are some of my favs. And the singer for Frou Frou is Imogen Heap, really amazing vocalist as well!
oh man, the entirety of Vespertine album and the way it is constructed conceptually, vocally and musically just blew my mind when it first came out. Pagan poetry is still one of my top 5 songs of all time.
Bjork is amazing. This Genre is called Art Pop, by the way. Idk much from Bjork to recommend something with 100% certainty but her first project was with a band called The Sugarcubes. Check out the Song "Birthday". Weird and Odd like all of her Music, but for her being as Young as she was (pre teen I think) the Vocal Power she had was nuts. She definitely has her own vocal style.
"Human Behavior" is of course from her first solo album (not counting the one she released when she was 11). Her work has gone so much further and she's constantly pushing the envelope. Debut is a great place to start, but you really gotta see what she does later-- her third album Homogenic is when she really took full creative control and honed in on a concept and consistent sound. The opener "Hunter" would make for a good follow up reaction, I think. Her choosing not to edit out her breathing has also remained consistent throughout her discography, by the way. There isn't another artist on the planet that understands how to create a sense of intimacy in music quite like she does, and I think utilizing her breath almost like a musical element in its own right is just one of the ways she achieves this. She's often spoken about as though she's an alien from another planet, but I've always found her and her work to be starkly and unapologetically human.
This album had a huge impact on me growing up. I was the weird kid just listening to electronic music like Aphex Twin and Leftfield at age 12 and thinking most other music was always pretty shit (like a tiny hipster before it was a thing). When I my dad played this album it hooked me immediately and after listening to it a bunch of times it opened my horizons to a whole world out there of different genres filled with great stuff. Now I listen to almost all genres, but this album will always have a special place in my heart.
Enjoyed this reaction. I remember this coming out and there’s definitely a trip-hop vibe as other artists emerging at the time like Massive Attack and Portishead were all becoming popular in the UK. Björk did something different though with Debut. The songs fused different things together, soaked up various sounds including Indian influences, South American, dance. Then that unmistakable unique and powerful voice, restrained when it wants but wild too. Absolutely appreciate how fearless and just does what interests her.
bjork just dropped a new album last week. I haven't checked it out yet but I've seen several positive remarks about it. Might be worth it to roll the dice and pick a random song from the album to check out.
It really is a wonderful album. Maybe not her best overall (I don't see how you can top Homogenic or Vespertine), but my favorite of hers since Biophilia. Gives me Medulla vibes.
It's completely weird, and she manages to make earworms out of dissonance. It definitely her most musically experimental one, and is fast on the way to be one of my favorite albums of hers.
Bjork is a huge audiophile and walks around recording lots of sounds. Her artsy stage productions are wild! She is one of a kind. Try “Hunter” next, but don’t overlook the really weird stuff- the sounds take you to other places.
Imogen Heap (I believe that's who you meant by Frou Frou) does have a very characteristic style, I can see the comparison. Bjork's Debut is an impressive album, especially given the musical context of its time.
Do Stereolab next! In the style of post-rock and shoegaze but with groovy bass lines, and complex arrangements involving vocal harmonies, brass instruments, and electronic experimentation. Everything off their album Dots and Loops is killer!
I'm glad you appreciate Bjork! I was fortunate enough to see her before she went solo, and was still lead singer for The Sugarcubes. You will want to enjoy the Sugarcubes' album, Life's Too Good, which contains many of her greatest songs, like Birthday, Mama, Deus, and Cold Sweat.
Frou Frou is an interesting reference, made popular by the Garden State soundtrack. Anyway, Frou Frou is a duo, the vocalist is Imogen Heap, you can find a lot more of her work under that name.
More reactions should be for Bjork. I love tool but it’s great to see Bjork getting attention. I’d love to see a reaction to a smaller band but very unique band “fever Ray” which is definitely inspired by Bjork protege.
Yes. Please try “keep the streets empty for me” by a fever Ray. It’s lovely. Definitely in the vein of Bjork but also very much her own style and mood.
Fever Ray's (Karen Dreijer) first album is my favourite album of all time. It's organic, dark, electronic, tribal, elemental. Highly recommend some Fever Ray reactions (I love seeing Fever Ray and/or The Knife fans!)
I still remember the day I first heard this, it was played on MTV brand new and I just remember hearing her voice for the first time and being completely blown away. I immediately wanted to know who she was and if the tape was released for sale.
Bjork is pretty cool. My favorite song of hers is Play Dead (in case you want to go for another round with her) Also, I'd suggest giving miss Eivor Palsdottir a go. She's a Faroese artist that mixes pop, indie and folk in a pretty unique way. She also co-composes and performs the OST for the TV srries The Last Kingdom.
Bjork's arrangements are top tier level. Hopefully you can react to more songs of her, she has to be one of the most creative and talented musicians of our time. Edit: if you continue the Bjork journey in chronological order, the next songs to react to could be Hyper-ballad and Isobel from the album Vespertine.
Björk remains one of the most surprising and unique vocalists, both soft and beautiful and surprisingly powerful and passionate bursts of vocal performances. I never understood her music when I was growing up but grew up to love it. Managed to catch her live once in a small audience and is still most of the most memorable shows I've ever been to.
Love Bjork. Was just telling someone the other day about how I used the track Hyperballad as a warm up to start my drum practice. Starts off with just a snare rolling and builds, while incorporating more of kit as it builds. Great stuff. 🤘🧙♂️🤘 Rich the Ancient Metal Beast
Chills. Every single time. She’s an alien, in the best possible way. This whole piece, every aspect, is perfect to me. Oh, and I can’t stand when reactors stop the song for any reason. The songs deserve to play out. Good call, sir! Great reaction!
Damn... the hours I spent playing this album while staring at the cover art. This particular track was my initiation- an MTV video that led down paths of both solo Bjork and Sugarcubes.
Massive Bjork fan here! She really is one of the most incredible and unique artists out there. It may well be pop but it's certainly not of the mass produced, throwaway chart pop style. She actually leans pretty heavily into electronica, gabber and breakcore in her later stuff, expecially the album she just released. I'd suggest "Pagan poetry", "Crystalline" or the classic "big time sensuality".
Frou Frou is also now more commonly known by Imogen Heap, and yeah, she's amazing! Since you brought her up, I think it'd be amazing to see you break down her song "Aha!". I find it both spooky and bouncy. Additionally, one of the reasons I enjoy your videos is that you don't talk over the music, it feels more respectful, like you're giving the artist room to express. Regardless, I do enjoy your videos, I've binged quite a few and I love your perspective
Her song "I Miss You" has similar vibes to this one, and the animated video is trippy and a lot of fun too. Björk is absolutely one of my favorite artists, EVER.
She's brilliant. The base and her breath almost reminds me of an irregular heartbeat. Check out Birthday from when she was in The Sugarcubes. Play Dead was a masterpiece, although David Arnold wrote it, I think .
Saw her live twice in the early 2000s, mind blowing. Sounds even better live, somehow, and she does different versions of songs. One of the greatest singers, songwriters, musicians of our lifetime
I so happy you're reacting to Björk! Finally! Björk's composition is other worldly so I really really hope you leap down the rabbit hole with her. Please please do Joga next! It's my favorite song of all time
Love this new reaction format - a full listen-through with minimal interruption, and commentary at the end. Wish more would do this. Perfect & insightful! Suggest Bjork's 'Venus as a Boy' next.
I was recommended your megalovania video, went to your channel to see what else you’ve looked at and I was so excited to see this song at the top! One of my favorite songs and I look forward to hearing you break it down
I like both styles of reaction, so whichever works best is just fine. Bjork is so incredible! It's hard to pick a favorite song to recommend, but maybe The Gate (or anything from the Utopia album tbh). And you're right that Frou Frou (Imogen Heap) has similar vibes. Some other artists that can give me Bjork vibes are Aurora and Wednesday Campanella Edit: Oh I forgot to mention Lido Pimienta too!
I'm curious what you would think of her song Oh So Quiet. It's a jazz song and really gives you a sense of how interesting and varied she is musically.
Ahhhh I love that woman. She actually threw a bunch of vocal samples to Death Grips a while back, which ended up being used on The Powers That B album. But like, I grew up listening to Bjork, Army of Me, Hyperballad, Vertebrae by Vertebrae, Pluto (oh Pluto is fucking amazing)
I recommend the album Family Tree. Bjork singing with an Orchestra is good. Volta tour with all the brass instruments was really good. Your in for a treat. She’s Jerry level genius. No joke. My two favorite artists
Bjork is great. Nice you're covering her here! You should check the OS she did for a film named "Dancer in the Dark". It's brilliant. Awwright! PS: BTW, for me, you stopping the music to comment things wasn't a problem. You should do whatever you're more comfortable with!
I only recently found your channel and I'm very glad that I did. I've took a deep dive into a ton of your content and I am so looking forward to what you come out with next. I could honestly write a short story about all of this, so I'll try my best to just keep it clean and concise, haha. Hearing your experience and having your impressions on these various tracks is such a treat. I sincerely long for this kind of discussion and I'm so thankful for creators like yourself on this platform for providing an awesome space to openly talk about how music makes us feel and how it is written. You're the friend I've never had near when it comes to this kind of stuff, so thank you for that! As for the formatting of the videos, I'm happy either way with the "live commentary" or the segmented pausing. Do what you feel is most comfortable and enables you to express what you need at the time, I think. Bjork is also an excellent listen. I discovered her music in my high school career a decade ago and it was hard to put it down. A shame that she was nearly bullied out of publicity for her unorthodox appearance, but it doesn't change the fact that the music hits just the right spots when you listen to them! Thank you again for the content Geebz, and as a fellow coffee enjoyer, I'll be sure to send a cup your way, too. ☕
Bjork is jazz. She's just jazz. There is no stopping her and there is nothing but the music and her vision. It's quite inspiring listening to her exercise her artistic freedom while at the same time expanding it for herself as she moves. She's like a beautiful bulldozer who goes wherever she wants, however she wants, whenever she wants.
@@brianboye8025 To say that you hate jazz is pretty much saying that you don't know jazz. You might as well say that you hate pop or rock. The genre is so wide with so many subgenres that you probably just haven't found the ones that you'd love yet.
Great Job 👋👏. I def enjoy this format. Bjork is one of the few artists who's Discography is best Enjoyed and Appreciated in Chronological order. Her Musical evolution and Affinity for the Unconventional sets her in a Lane of Her Own, Untouchable.
back when mtv actually had videos, this was played all day in ~1993. i remember it was a cool video. BTW i like u talking over the video - doesnt interfere.
Thanks! She has been releasing new songs and videos from her Fosora album. Earthy, grounded, Lovingly warm and weird! Bjork ( Beyeerk) is a true artist in the sense of being of her time. When 14, doing 14 year old music. When 21, dong 21 year old music, when 30, 40, 50.....! All either intimate Colaborations with dome of the now mature great artists of our day. Love it! Possibly, maybe a bit obsessed?! Thanks MP
Before Björk went solo she was very active in the punk scene and was in a punk band early in her career calle Tappi Tíkarass. Then she went on to Sugarcubes which btw was one of the first band from Iceland to reach global fame. Sugarcubes were not huge globally but they were a big band of sorts, then she quit and went solo. Debut is her first solo album, instant hit and the rest is history. She is still creating albums and she's very innovative with her concerts. She likes to have a mix of music, video and like the whole thing is an experience. That sort of thing.
Can’t wait for you to hear some of her tracks with more strings/wind instruments . I think you would love those arrangements . Also her album Medulla where all the tracks are arranged with just voices and some light electronics.
Björk and Radiohead are my two greatest loves.. And to think this was on her debut solo album! There's sooooo many Björk tracks I'd love you to listen to (Lionsong!! Virus!! Oceania!! Hunter!! Notget!! okay all of them..) But you'll get around to it I'm sure. She's otherworldly and soooooo multitalented! And just a pure, real person. There's nothing/nobody like her
Loved that album, and also the Sugarcubes one with Birthday on it. It was her first solo album, and it's the stuff I liked most of her whole career - possibly because some of the later stuff gets more complex and slower.
I am a big metal/rock fan but Björk has always been one of my favourite artist! Her latest album is fantastic and worth a listen! She is a huge part of my soundscape and you should do more of her songs on your main channel! I loved the analogy you made with Tool- i think that a lot of metalheads are a big fan of her work. Try Army of me, Hunter, Atopos, Cvalda (from oscar winning Dancer in the dark), Where is the line (from Medulla album recorded only with voices), so many great tunes to choose from🤘🏼🤘🏼🤙🏻🌸
You mention ‘Frou Frou’ here. I think you’re referring to the duo of Producer Guy Sigsworth and vocalist Imogene Heap’s collaboration circa 2002. Their name was ‘Frou Frou’. Imogene certainly used the breathing in her recordings to great effect. Such a great detail to have noticed!
bjork is a living legend, i consider her a modern day classical composer. once you get into her first 4 albums you can't stop hearing them in pop music everywhere. if you thought this single off of her first album from 1993 was unique, just listen to the new album she put out last week, fossora. i would recommend the tracks atopos, victimhood, and her mother's house (which features her daughter's vocals). the tool comparison is really interesting to me because i've always thought that the song headphones from post (1995) sounds similar to 10000 days/wings for marie, definitely not in tone but the deep droning bass combined with the muted guitar and soft spoken vocals, i don't know what kind of music maynard listens to but i wouldnt be surprised if bjork was on his playlist lol. she has 10 studio albums and 2 film scores and none of her work is bad or even mediocre. she is a dictator over her craft and she knows how to bring out the best in her collaborators and vice versa! so cool that ive discovered you discovering her music!
Bjork is great and always sounds like no one else. A personal Favorite is Hidden Place. Thought you would be interested to know she did some work with Mike Patton who you have covered on your other channel. Try looking into Where is the Line.
After this one, you NEED to do "Isobel" (bjork). It haunted me when it came on at midnight... so beautiful and eerie, like this one. It's a spiritual sequel.
Just listened to this “album” this morning. This format work’s for me. Bjork is an interesting musician, I enjoy everything I have heard from her. One of my favorites from Debut is The Anchor Song, give that one a go.
Very surprised and excited to see a Bjork review! Really think you should listen to Bjork's "Venus as a boy" song. Absolutely lovely to me and i wish it was praised more for its elegant brilliance. Appreciate you giving it a chance. Hope you get around to reviewing Venus as a boy.
Björk not only sings but most of the time does the writing, arranging and production on her songs, too. Her "Homogenic" LP is one of the best albums ever, imho. As to the pauses in your reactions, I think I prefer you pause it at least once during the song. I think your pausing has been always good, not too often but better than to let the whole track just run through.
Her new podcast series sheds a lot of light on her thought process on each album. Her early albums used more standard song structures and chord progressions, but she was always interested in discordant and dissonant music. She also wanted to break away from standard song structures and move beyond 4/4 timing.
Hey, thanks for giving Björk a try! One of my favourites and most interesting songs from her is definitely Cocoon from her excellent album Vespertine. Would love to hear your take on it :)
I like the style playing all the way through. So many Björk songs I would love to see you do a reaction to - Play Dead, Possibly Maybe, Jóga, In a Musical, Unravel, Family (if a little long), Virus, Sonnets/Unrealities (a nice short one and beautiful) - but the ultimate would be anything off Vespertine, particularly Pagan Poetry or Unison. Those represent for me the pinnacle of art pop, above even Talk Talk and Kate Bush, and dare I say it above Radiohead (who have made a career of perfection, but haven't taken quite a many risks as Björk has to achieve the ultimate)
I can’t say enough great things about Bjork. We’ve been blessed to have her. She’s a musical genius. Frou Frou was a band that Imogen Heap had and the album itself, Details is a masterpiece. She went to production school so she could become a triple threat. You might remember Imogene’s hit Hide and Seek, where she used a vocoder. It was popular in its time. Bjork: Prominent in the 80’s and 90’s, Imogen came later in the 2000’s.
Björk is total artistic freedom and authenticity.
Really love Bjork - she sounds like she learned out to sing without ever hearing anyone else do it, as if totally free of so much musical convention. As a songwriter she's got a very unique talent to bring extremely avant-garde ideas into very listenable, accessible music in a way not a lot of other artists can manage.
i think she did, actually. in her new podcast, sonic symbolism, she talks about how when she was a kid in the 70s in iceland she would walk to school every day, and she would sing on her way to school to comfort herself, and she theorizes that having that freedom to sing as loud as she wanted to in the woods developed her unique style.
Her last tour, at least the last one I went to (late 2019), her old choir teacher and the children's choir she sang in as a kid in Reykjavik were part of the performance.
She recorded her first album at the age of 6, IIRC. She definitely had a lot of training. Still, doesn't really matter, because she manages to do something unique with music, and I absolutely love her for it.
🤣🤣
Fun story if no one's mentioned it. Bjork had her first gold album in Iceland when she was (I wanna say) 8-10 years old. No joke. She's an Iceland treasure!
So wild that she grew up in a music school being, no doubt, hammered with traditional music conventions.
As a former hobbyist composer/audiophile, I think this style of playing the song without stopping while commenting while the music is playing works well because your voice does not overpower the music and the music does not drown out your voice. In other words, this format works because you've mixed the audio levels perfectly.
AGREED!!!!
Love Bjork! She is incredibly unique and versatile. As for as your reaction format goes, I like the idea of you going with what feels right in the moment for each song. For complex songs, you might have a lot of detail to discuss before the song is over so pause it when you need to. For more repetitive, simpler songs, you might be able to go through the whole song without stopping. I hope that makes sense and is helpful.
Yes, very helpful - thank you :)
bjork - bachelorette live on jools holland = one of my top 5 favorite late night tv music performances.
Björk is such a creative and ever evolving artist. "Homogenic" is one of my all time favorite albums. Everything she does is unique: performance, melody, rhythm, lyrics, harmonies, and always brilliant production. This style of reaction works for these songs such as "Human Behavior", but as you move through Björk's catalogue her songs become complex, so most likely will take the more broken up approach.
You're definitely gonna love Björk, I can imagine many composers can appreciate her music on a deeper level than most. Her songs are just so uniquely composed and so complex. She got more and more experimental with every album, she just released a new one and it's amazing. I love her so much. I think the song Jóga has to be your next reaction!
Was looking for someone to mention Joga. That song is otherworldly.
Almost 30 years old, this song still sounds quite good today, doesn't it?
Bjork is so super unique! Just love it!
The way that the song travels up a half step for the choruses, and then back down for the verses is absolutely genius. It really builds that sense of frustration and escalating tension in a subtle way. I'm honestly surprised it isn't talked about more!! Also the fact that this insanely catchy bassline is carried entirely by timpani... it's bonkers.
She's in a league of her own. More of her please! Pagan poetry, crystalline, it's oh so quiet, are some of my favs.
And the singer for Frou Frou is Imogen Heap, really amazing vocalist as well!
Seconding Pagan Poetry
Imogen is wonderful
oh man, the entirety of Vespertine album and the way it is constructed conceptually, vocally and musically just blew my mind when it first came out. Pagan poetry is still one of my top 5 songs of all time.
Bjork is amazing. This Genre is called Art Pop, by the way. Idk much from Bjork to recommend something with 100% certainty but her first project was with a band called The Sugarcubes. Check out the Song "Birthday". Weird and Odd like all of her Music, but for her being as Young as she was (pre teen I think) the Vocal Power she had was nuts. She definitely has her own vocal style.
There it goes... The one labeling Björk's music. Hello darkness, my old friend... 😒
Pre-teen? Really? I think she was almost in her mid 20s when they recorded that...
"Birthday" was her band "The Sugarcubes." That's a whole other rabbit hole.
@@piznoctsauo8141 Art Pop 😂😂😂
This one.. She was already phenomenal th-cam.com/video/149Fln0DtUc/w-d-xo.html
"Human Behavior" is of course from her first solo album (not counting the one she released when she was 11). Her work has gone so much further and she's constantly pushing the envelope. Debut is a great place to start, but you really gotta see what she does later-- her third album Homogenic is when she really took full creative control and honed in on a concept and consistent sound. The opener "Hunter" would make for a good follow up reaction, I think.
Her choosing not to edit out her breathing has also remained consistent throughout her discography, by the way. There isn't another artist on the planet that understands how to create a sense of intimacy in music quite like she does, and I think utilizing her breath almost like a musical element in its own right is just one of the ways she achieves this.
She's often spoken about as though she's an alien from another planet, but I've always found her and her work to be starkly and unapologetically human.
Tori Amos uses the breathing technique also, but I agree with all you say.
This album had a huge impact on me growing up. I was the weird kid just listening to electronic music like Aphex Twin and Leftfield at age 12 and thinking most other music was always pretty shit (like a tiny hipster before it was a thing). When I my dad played this album it hooked me immediately and after listening to it a bunch of times it opened my horizons to a whole world out there of different genres filled with great stuff.
Now I listen to almost all genres, but this album will always have a special place in my heart.
So glad you are stepping into Bjork, one of my favourites as well as Radiohead. I'm loving the direction you are going. Thank you x
Ahh a fellow Bjork + Radiohead enjoyer. Cheers.
Enjoyed this reaction. I remember this coming out and there’s definitely a trip-hop vibe as other artists emerging at the time like Massive Attack and Portishead were all becoming popular in the UK. Björk did something different though with Debut. The songs fused different things together, soaked up various sounds including Indian influences, South American, dance. Then that unmistakable unique and powerful voice, restrained when it wants but wild too. Absolutely appreciate how fearless and just does what interests her.
bjork just dropped a new album last week. I haven't checked it out yet but I've seen several positive remarks about it. Might be worth it to roll the dice and pick a random song from the album to check out.
It really is a wonderful album. Maybe not her best overall (I don't see how you can top Homogenic or Vespertine), but my favorite of hers since Biophilia. Gives me Medulla vibes.
It's completely weird, and she manages to make earworms out of dissonance. It definitely her most musically experimental one, and is fast on the way to be one of my favorite albums of hers.
Loved this
Bjork is one of my all time favorite artist. She is AMAZING! I'm so glad that you reacted to her.
Bjork is a huge audiophile and walks around recording lots of sounds. Her artsy stage productions are wild! She is one of a kind. Try “Hunter” next, but don’t overlook the really weird stuff- the sounds take you to other places.
Imogen Heap (I believe that's who you meant by Frou Frou) does have a very characteristic style, I can see the comparison. Bjork's Debut is an impressive album, especially given the musical context of its time.
Do Stereolab next! In the style of post-rock and shoegaze but with groovy bass lines, and complex arrangements involving vocal harmonies, brass instruments, and electronic experimentation. Everything off their album Dots and Loops is killer!
Cosmic Country Noir, is my favourite.
I'm glad you appreciate Bjork! I was fortunate enough to see her before she went solo, and was still lead singer for The Sugarcubes. You will want to enjoy the Sugarcubes' album, Life's Too Good, which contains many of her greatest songs, like Birthday, Mama, Deus, and Cold Sweat.
Frou Frou is an interesting reference, made popular by the Garden State soundtrack. Anyway, Frou Frou is a duo, the vocalist is Imogen Heap, you can find a lot more of her work under that name.
More reactions should be for Bjork. I love tool but it’s great to see Bjork getting attention. I’d love to see a reaction to a smaller band but very unique band “fever Ray” which is definitely inspired by Bjork protege.
Yes. Please try “keep the streets empty for me” by a fever Ray. It’s lovely. Definitely in the vein of Bjork but also very much her own style and mood.
Anything from Fever Ray's self-titled album would be amazing!
@@SquishypuffDave absolutely.
Fever Ray's (Karen Dreijer) first album is my favourite album of all time. It's organic, dark, electronic, tribal, elemental. Highly recommend some Fever Ray reactions (I love seeing Fever Ray and/or The Knife fans!)
I still remember the day I first heard this, it was played on MTV brand new and I just remember hearing her voice for the first time and being completely blown away. I immediately wanted to know who she was and if the tape was released for sale.
Bjork is pretty cool. My favorite song of hers is Play Dead (in case you want to go for another round with her)
Also, I'd suggest giving miss Eivor Palsdottir a go. She's a Faroese artist that mixes pop, indie and folk in a pretty unique way. She also co-composes and performs the OST for the TV srries The Last Kingdom.
Play Dead is just a sumptuous song. She works so incredibly well with an orchestra,
Her song “Hunter” Has to be one of the most beautiful she arranged. But gosh… They are really so many!
There is only one voice like hers....maybe once in a century. Absolutely astonishingly unique
Bjork's arrangements are top tier level. Hopefully you can react to more songs of her, she has to be one of the most creative and talented musicians of our time.
Edit: if you continue the Bjork journey in chronological order, the next songs to react to could be Hyper-ballad and Isobel from the album Vespertine.
Björk remains one of the most surprising and unique vocalists, both soft and beautiful and surprisingly powerful and passionate bursts of vocal performances. I never understood her music when I was growing up but grew up to love it. Managed to catch her live once in a small audience and is still most of the most memorable shows I've ever been to.
checkin in ...an icelandic pixie ,love her voice and non guitar for this she made a song with sounds and echoes ...so unique . beautiful
"All is full of Love" is the most emotional tune she has.
Love Bjork. Was just telling someone the other day about how I used the track Hyperballad as a warm up to start my drum practice. Starts off with just a snare rolling and builds, while incorporating more of kit as it builds. Great stuff.
🤘🧙♂️🤘
Rich the Ancient Metal Beast
Chills. Every single time. She’s an alien, in the best possible way. This whole piece, every aspect, is perfect to me.
Oh, and I can’t stand when reactors stop the song for any reason. The songs deserve to play out. Good call, sir! Great reaction!
Damn... the hours I spent playing this album while staring at the cover art. This particular track was my initiation- an MTV video that led down paths of both solo Bjork and Sugarcubes.
Yes! More Bjork and yes LOVE when the track isn’t stopped/paused…!
Funny to have this song pop up now. I was just singing it to myself the other day after not hearing it for 25 years or so.
This song is where her singing absolutely works on every level for me. Amazing tune, and her first single as a solo artist.
Massive Bjork fan here! She really is one of the most incredible and unique artists out there. It may well be pop but it's certainly not of the mass produced, throwaway chart pop style.
She actually leans pretty heavily into electronica, gabber and breakcore in her later stuff, expecially the album she just released.
I'd suggest "Pagan poetry", "Crystalline" or the classic "big time sensuality".
As a composer you might dig her mainly vocal-based album Medulla, the song ‘where is the line with you’ blew my mind when I first heard it!
FEATURING MIKE PATTON AND RAHZEL :D
Frou Frou is also now more commonly known by Imogen Heap, and yeah, she's amazing! Since you brought her up, I think it'd be amazing to see you break down her song "Aha!". I find it both spooky and bouncy.
Additionally, one of the reasons I enjoy your videos is that you don't talk over the music, it feels more respectful, like you're giving the artist room to express. Regardless, I do enjoy your videos, I've binged quite a few and I love your perspective
Bjork is a wonderful performer, would highly recommend Violently Happy and More to Life than This, from the same album. Stunning voice.
Check out Bjorks "where is the line" it features Mike Patton and its composed using only vocals and mouth sounds. Pretty mind blowing.
How many years have I been listening to this song and only now do I notice that the tympani IS the backbone of this masterpiece . Genius.
Her song "I Miss You" has similar vibes to this one, and the animated video is trippy and a lot of fun too. Björk is absolutely one of my favorite artists, EVER.
She's brilliant. The base and her breath almost reminds me of an irregular heartbeat. Check out Birthday from when she was in The Sugarcubes. Play Dead was a masterpiece, although David Arnold wrote it, I think .
Saw her live twice in the early 2000s, mind blowing. Sounds even better live, somehow, and she does different versions of songs. One of the greatest singers, songwriters, musicians of our lifetime
Bjork is light years ahead in music. She uses industrial sound, city, nature, orchestra.
I so happy you're reacting to Björk! Finally! Björk's composition is other worldly so I really really hope you leap down the rabbit hole with her. Please please do Joga next! It's my favorite song of all time
Love this new reaction format - a full listen-through with minimal interruption, and commentary at the end. Wish more would do this. Perfect & insightful! Suggest Bjork's 'Venus as a Boy' next.
I was recommended your megalovania video, went to your channel to see what else you’ve looked at and I was so excited to see this song at the top! One of my favorite songs and I look forward to hearing you break it down
I like both styles of reaction, so whichever works best is just fine. Bjork is so incredible! It's hard to pick a favorite song to recommend, but maybe The Gate (or anything from the Utopia album tbh). And you're right that Frou Frou (Imogen Heap) has similar vibes. Some other artists that can give me Bjork vibes are Aurora and Wednesday Campanella
Edit: Oh I forgot to mention Lido Pimienta too!
I'm curious what you would think of her song Oh So Quiet. It's a jazz song and really gives you a sense of how interesting and varied she is musically.
Brilliant artist. Her live performances are incredible
Ahhhh I love that woman. She actually threw a bunch of vocal samples to Death Grips a while back, which ended up being used on The Powers That B album. But like, I grew up listening to Bjork, Army of Me, Hyperballad, Vertebrae by Vertebrae, Pluto (oh Pluto is fucking amazing)
I recommend the album Family Tree. Bjork singing with an Orchestra is good. Volta tour with all the brass instruments was really good. Your in for a treat. She’s Jerry level genius. No joke. My two favorite artists
Bjork is great. Nice you're covering her here! You should check the OS she did for a film named "Dancer in the Dark". It's brilliant. Awwright! PS: BTW, for me, you stopping the music to comment things wasn't a problem. You should do whatever you're more comfortable with!
I only recently found your channel and I'm very glad that I did. I've took a deep dive into a ton of your content and I am so looking forward to what you come out with next. I could honestly write a short story about all of this, so I'll try my best to just keep it clean and concise, haha.
Hearing your experience and having your impressions on these various tracks is such a treat. I sincerely long for this kind of discussion and I'm so thankful for creators like yourself on this platform for providing an awesome space to openly talk about how music makes us feel and how it is written. You're the friend I've never had near when it comes to this kind of stuff, so thank you for that!
As for the formatting of the videos, I'm happy either way with the "live commentary" or the segmented pausing. Do what you feel is most comfortable and enables you to express what you need at the time, I think.
Bjork is also an excellent listen. I discovered her music in my high school career a decade ago and it was hard to put it down. A shame that she was nearly bullied out of publicity for her unorthodox appearance, but it doesn't change the fact that the music hits just the right spots when you listen to them!
Thank you again for the content Geebz, and as a fellow coffee enjoyer, I'll be sure to send a cup your way, too. ☕
Bjork is jazz. She's just jazz. There is no stopping her and there is nothing but the music and her vision. It's quite inspiring listening to her exercise her artistic freedom while at the same time expanding it for herself as she moves. She's like a beautiful bulldozer who goes wherever she wants, however she wants, whenever she wants.
Beautiful bulldozer is an awesome way to describe her! Thanks for that image
I hate jazz but I love Bjork. There I said it.
@@brianboye8025 To say that you hate jazz is pretty much saying that you don't know jazz. You might as well say that you hate pop or rock. The genre is so wide with so many subgenres that you probably just haven't found the ones that you'd love yet.
Great Job 👋👏. I def enjoy this format. Bjork is one of the few artists who's Discography is best Enjoyed and Appreciated in Chronological order. Her Musical evolution and Affinity for the Unconventional sets her in a Lane of Her Own, Untouchable.
back when mtv actually had videos, this was played all day in ~1993. i remember it was a cool video. BTW i like u talking over the video - doesnt interfere.
Thanks!
She has been releasing new songs and videos from her Fosora album. Earthy, grounded, Lovingly warm and weird! Bjork ( Beyeerk) is a true artist in the sense of being of her time. When 14, doing 14 year old music. When 21, dong 21 year old music, when 30, 40, 50.....! All either intimate Colaborations with dome of the now mature great artists of our day.
Love it! Possibly, maybe a bit obsessed?!
Thanks
MP
Before Björk went solo she was very active in the punk scene and was in a punk band early in her career calle Tappi Tíkarass. Then she went on to Sugarcubes which btw was one of the first band from Iceland to reach global fame. Sugarcubes were not huge globally but they were a big band of sorts, then she quit and went solo. Debut is her first solo album, instant hit and the rest is history. She is still creating albums and she's very innovative with her concerts. She likes to have a mix of music, video and like the whole thing is an experience. That sort of thing.
Can’t wait for you to hear some of her tracks with more strings/wind instruments . I think you would love those arrangements . Also her album Medulla where all the tracks are arranged with just voices and some light electronics.
Format wise, just whatever you feel works in the moment is good, mate ☺️
Great video as always.
Björk and Radiohead are my two greatest loves.. And to think this was on her debut solo album!
There's sooooo many Björk tracks I'd love you to listen to (Lionsong!! Virus!! Oceania!! Hunter!! Notget!! okay all of them..)
But you'll get around to it I'm sure.
She's otherworldly and soooooo multitalented! And just a pure, real person.
There's nothing/nobody like her
Even though I have known this track for ages, upon rehearing it, it is a work of fragile beauty the like of which I have rarely heard.
Loved that album, and also the Sugarcubes one with Birthday on it. It was her first solo album, and it's the stuff I liked most of her whole career - possibly because some of the later stuff gets more complex and slower.
"Bachelorette" and "Hyperballad" are my favorite Bjork songs.
Am so glad you are listening to Bjork!!
I am a big metal/rock fan but Björk has always been one of my favourite artist! Her latest album is fantastic and worth a listen! She is a huge part of my soundscape and you should do more of her songs on your main channel! I loved the analogy you made with Tool- i think that a lot of metalheads are a big fan of her work.
Try Army of me, Hunter, Atopos, Cvalda (from oscar winning Dancer in the dark), Where is the line (from Medulla album recorded only with voices), so many great tunes to choose from🤘🏼🤘🏼🤙🏻🌸
You mention ‘Frou Frou’ here. I think you’re referring to the duo of Producer Guy Sigsworth and vocalist Imogene Heap’s collaboration circa 2002. Their name was ‘Frou Frou’. Imogene certainly used the breathing in her recordings to great effect. Such a great detail to have noticed!
First time seeing your channel. This was nice to watch you both listen and put your interpretations into words. I liked the flow of your video. ☺️
bjork is a living legend, i consider her a modern day classical composer. once you get into her first 4 albums you can't stop hearing them in pop music everywhere. if you thought this single off of her first album from 1993 was unique, just listen to the new album she put out last week, fossora. i would recommend the tracks atopos, victimhood, and her mother's house (which features her daughter's vocals). the tool comparison is really interesting to me because i've always thought that the song headphones from post (1995) sounds similar to 10000 days/wings for marie, definitely not in tone but the deep droning bass combined with the muted guitar and soft spoken vocals, i don't know what kind of music maynard listens to but i wouldnt be surprised if bjork was on his playlist lol. she has 10 studio albums and 2 film scores and none of her work is bad or even mediocre. she is a dictator over her craft and she knows how to bring out the best in her collaborators and vice versa! so cool that ive discovered you discovering her music!
Thumbs up on Björk und thumbs up on not stopping the track!
Bjork is great and always sounds like no one else. A personal Favorite is Hidden Place.
Thought you would be interested to know she did some work with Mike Patton who you have covered on your other channel. Try looking into Where is the Line.
Bjork, mutual core, is another of my favorite songs.
I'd recommend Bachelorette for your next Bjork song. Epic strings and vocals.
After this one, you NEED to do "Isobel" (bjork).
It haunted me when it came on at midnight... so beautiful and eerie, like this one.
It's a spiritual sequel.
Just listened to this “album” this morning.
This format work’s for me.
Bjork is an interesting musician, I enjoy everything I have heard from her. One of my favorites from Debut is The Anchor Song, give that one a go.
You should learn what words and punctuation marks mean.
@@waytospergtherebro
Thanks for the encouragement!
Sorry.
I will reduce my interaction so I do not offend.
"Army of Me" is probably her most popular track, (it's definitely a good one). "It's Oh So Quiet" is my personal fave of hers, though
From her album titled Vespertine check out the two songs Pagan Poetry, and Hidden Place. ✌️
Like the full song format...keep that going
Best concert of my life. I'd recommend 'Cocoon', 'Bachelorette'. and, 'Pluto' (it's in Locrian!).
Very surprised and excited to see a Bjork review! Really think you should listen to Bjork's "Venus as a boy" song. Absolutely lovely to me and i wish it was praised more for its elegant brilliance. Appreciate you giving it a chance. Hope you get around to reviewing Venus as a boy.
Björk not only sings but most of the time does the writing, arranging and production on her songs, too. Her "Homogenic" LP is one of the best albums ever, imho.
As to the pauses in your reactions, I think I prefer you pause it at least once during the song. I think your pausing has been always good, not too often but better than to let the whole track just run through.
I would absolutely love to see how you would react to "Doom Eternal: The Only Thing They Fear is You" It's a fantastic one
Unravel by Bjork is a beautiful piece, also Thom Yorke said it was his favorite song
Her new podcast series sheds a lot of light on her thought process on each album. Her early albums used more standard song structures and chord progressions, but she was always interested in discordant and dissonant music. She also wanted to break away from standard song structures and move beyond 4/4 timing.
Hey, thanks for giving Björk a try! One of my favourites and most interesting songs from her is definitely Cocoon from her excellent album Vespertine. Would love to hear your take on it :)
She recently started a podcast discussing the production of each of her albums. Worth checking out.
That stock sample, though :D
Pet peeve of mine. Where else did I hear this sample, and which Babylon 5 episode did it feature in... off I go!
so cool!
I like the style playing all the way through. So many Björk songs I would love to see you do a reaction to - Play Dead, Possibly Maybe, Jóga, In a Musical, Unravel, Family (if a little long), Virus, Sonnets/Unrealities (a nice short one and beautiful) - but the ultimate would be anything off Vespertine, particularly Pagan Poetry or Unison. Those represent for me the pinnacle of art pop, above even Talk Talk and Kate Bush, and dare I say it above Radiohead (who have made a career of perfection, but haven't taken quite a many risks as Björk has to achieve the ultimate)
You have to check out "It's Oh So Quiet" her cover of an old 50s song. It's nuts and I think an old composer like yourself would enjoy it.
I can’t say enough great things about Bjork. We’ve been blessed to have her. She’s a musical genius.
Frou Frou was a band that Imogen Heap had and the album itself, Details is a masterpiece.
She went to production school so she could become a triple threat.
You might remember Imogene’s hit Hide and Seek, where she used a vocoder. It was popular in its time.
Bjork: Prominent in the 80’s and 90’s, Imogen came later in the 2000’s.
She just brought out a new ablbum called fessora. Be sure to check out the track fungal city it's such a treat.
I love that movie The professional but I'm not remembering this track anywhere in it. Now I'm going to have to watch the movie LOL
You must do her track Anchor Song. It's the other bookend of the same album and has such a simple but rich saxophone arrangement.