By the late '90s,
Björk
's playful, unique world view and singular voice became as confining as they were defining. With its surprising starkness and darkness, 1997's
Homogenic
shatters her "Icelandic pixie" image. Possibly inspired by the end of her relationship with
drum'n'bass
kingpin
Goldie
,
sheds her more precious aspects, displaying more emotional depth than even her best previous work indicated. Her collaborators --
LFO
's
Mark Bell
Mark "Spike" Stent
, and
Post
contributor
Howie B
-- help make this album not only her emotionally bravest work, but her most sonically adventurous as well. A seamless fusion of chilly strings (courtesy of
the Icelandic String Octet
), stuttering, abstract beats, and unexpected touches like accordion and glass harmonica,
alternates between dark, uncompromising songs such as the icy opener,
"Hunter,"
and more soothing fare like the gently percolating
"All Neon Like."
The noisy, four-on-the-floor catharsis of
"Pluto"
and the raw vocals and crunching beats of
"5 Years"
and
"Immature"
reveal surprising amounts of anger, pain, and strength in the face of heartache. "I dare you to take me on,"
challenges her lover in
"5 Years,"
and wonders on
"Immature,"
"How could I be so immature/To think he would replace/The missing elements in me?"
"Bachelorette,"
a sweeping, brooding cousin to
"Isobel,"
is possibly
's saddest, most beautiful moment, giving filmic grandeur to a stormy relationship.
lets a little hope shine through on
"Jòga,"
a moving song dedicated to her homeland and her best friend, and the reassuring finale,
"All Is Full of Love."
"Alarm Call"
's uplifting
dance-pop
might seem out of place with the rest of the album, but as its title implies,
is her most holistic work. It might not represent every side of
's music, but
offers some of her most impressive heights. ~ Heather Phares