Bjork's voice is haunting. Her oooh's in this song bring the rest of it together. This song is from a movie she acted in, Dancer in the Dark (2000) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0168629/ A very excellent movie, I highly suggest you watch it if you haven't already.
Bjork is a Highly talented individual, not to mention incredibly beautiful and artistic. She's one of.. THEM.
She's also been in a few political controversies lately, in her home country of Iceland. Iceland is also where Sigur Ros hail from, who also make some great music. What is it about Iceland then that gives their people ethereal voices and the gift of melody? Cold and loneliness I;m thinking.. Same thing goes for Canadian writers I guess.
My, she's so pretty...
OK, ADD inspired change, I'm going to dedicate this whole post to Bjork!
Bring on Info, Interviews and Glorious Photos!
Father's occupation: Union Leader and Electrician.
Mother's Occupation: Activist. Now we know where she gets her political streak from.
Studies Classical piano at eleven. One of her instructors sends a recording of Björk singing Tina Charles' song "I Love to Love" to RÚV, which was then the only radio station in Iceland. The recording is broadcast on radio nationally; after hearing it, a representative of the record label Fálkinn contacts Björk to offer a record contract.
Her first album, Björk, is recorded and released in 1977. Not bad for a 12-year old, eh?
Bjork-childhood Photograph
When she was small she wanted to be everything: Skateboard-champion, Buddhist-priestess, globetrotter, earth, air, fire, water - and Björk.
She says of her childhood-
I was a very introverted child, living a very isolated life. Not that I was unhappy or depressed or something like that, I just liked being alone. I didn't care what other people thought about me. I was about 18 years when I started to realise that you have to deal with other people. I bought a tent and a sleeping bag and hitchhiked away. I slept anywhere. At that time you could still do that in Scandinavia without getting mugged. It was incredible: I woke up and crawled out of the tent in an unspoiled landscape, I could sing, yell and scream as crazy as I wanted it. Freedom, total freedom.
After reading that, ^ I wished I was born in Scandinavia.
These are excerpts from this interview:- http://nsd.dyndns.org/tempest/bjork-childhood.html
Read more if you wish to gain some insight into this creature.
I just came across an interesting article(and I mean JUST as in just as I was writing this post) where she speaks to Maclean's about why she wants the Canadian Company Magma booted out of her country. A very interesting article where she comes off very strongly about her ideals and what she opposes.
Excerpts from the conversation;- Bjork with Answers
Interesting, eh? You can view the whole interview on Google documents. https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B7DZSuLqp8PAZWFmNjBmNjktNGQ4My00ZTI5LTk5OTUtNGZkMWU5MTM2MzUz&hl=en&pli=1
take that, Ross
She's got this website Bjork.com, which, although very funky(use the arrow keys!) takes some serious maneuvering to get to the good stuff. Bjork was also one of the first musicians who strongly supported digital music sales(where there was no such thing). Now when you think of it, it was an eventuality, no?
Ok now back to the music. You've probably heard the song at the beginning of this post, now go listen to it again, it'll be better. Done? Now this song is called 'Cocoon'. The underlying theme of this poetry is Motherhood, and its unexpected joys and dissapointment(or that's what I got anyway).
Here's the video(also based on the same theme) and the lyrics follow
Who would have known
That a boy like him
Would have entered me lightly
Restoring my blisses
Who would have known
That a boy like him
After sharing my core
Would stay going nowhere
Who would have known
A beauty this immense
Who would have known
A saintly trance
Who would have known
Miraculous breath
To inhale a beard
Loaded with courage
Who would have known
That a boy like him
Possessed of magical
Sensitivity
Who would approach a girl like me
Who caresses cradles his head
In her bosom
He slides inside
Half awake, half asleep
We faint back
Into sleephood
When I wake up
The second time
In his arms
Gorgeousness
He's still inside me
Who would have known
Who ahhh
Who would have known
A train of pearls
Cabin by cabin
Is shot precisely
Across an ocean
From a mouth
From a
From the mouth
Of a girl like me
To a boy
To a boy
To a boy
That a boy like him
Would have entered me lightly
Restoring my blisses
Who would have known
That a boy like him
After sharing my core
Would stay going nowhere
Who would have known
A beauty this immense
Who would have known
A saintly trance
Who would have known
Miraculous breath
To inhale a beard
Loaded with courage
Who would have known
That a boy like him
Possessed of magical
Sensitivity
Who would approach a girl like me
Who caresses cradles his head
In her bosom
He slides inside
Half awake, half asleep
We faint back
Into sleephood
When I wake up
The second time
In his arms
Gorgeousness
He's still inside me
Who would have known
Who ahhh
Who would have known
A train of pearls
Cabin by cabin
Is shot precisely
Across an ocean
From a mouth
From a
From the mouth
Of a girl like me
To a boy
To a boy
To a boy
Whaddaya think? Music-poetry of the soul, is it not?
Here's a picture of her with her son, Sindri. who\s 20-something old by now.
Heh. Warms the cockles, it does.
Aah, that's it for this article, I'm too exhausted now. The internet is a vast place, especially for ADD sufferers.
Listen to her. I'll leave you with some more stuff.
am leaving this harbour
Giving urban a farewell
Its habitants seem to keen on God
I cannot stomach their rights and wrongs
I have lost my origin
And I don't want to find it again
Whether sailing into nature's laws
And be held by ocean's paws
Wanderlust! relentlessly craving
Wanderlust! peel off the layers
Until we get to the core
Did I imagine it would be like this?
Was it something like this I wished for?
Or will I want more?
Lust for comfort
Suffocates the soul
Relentless restlessness
Liberates me (sets me free)
I feel at home
Giving urban a farewell
Its habitants seem to keen on God
I cannot stomach their rights and wrongs
I have lost my origin
And I don't want to find it again
Whether sailing into nature's laws
And be held by ocean's paws
Wanderlust! relentlessly craving
Wanderlust! peel off the layers
Until we get to the core
Did I imagine it would be like this?
Was it something like this I wished for?
Or will I want more?
Lust for comfort
Suffocates the soul
Relentless restlessness
Liberates me (sets me free)
I feel at home
Whenever the unknown surrounds me
I receive its embrace
Aboard my floating house
I receive its embrace
Aboard my floating house
Can you spot a pattern?
Number 8 on Mtv's 22 greatest voices of the decade. List on Listology;
(Chris Cornell #12, Thom at 18, Kurt at 7. Not entirely a very accurate list, but they DO have most of the greats in English)
Bjork with Thom Yorke, now there's a match made in heaven. Thom Bjork.
A paragraph of the lyrics,
I've seen it all, I have seen the trees,
I've seen the willow leaves dancing in the breeze
I've seen a man killed by his best friend,
And lives that were over before they were spent.
I've seen what I was - I know what I'll be
I've seen it all - there is no more to see!
You haven't seen elephants, kings or Peru!
I'm happy to say I had better to do
What about China? Have you seen the Great Wall?
All walls are great, if the roof doesn't fall!
I've seen the willow leaves dancing in the breeze
I've seen a man killed by his best friend,
And lives that were over before they were spent.
I've seen what I was - I know what I'll be
I've seen it all - there is no more to see!
You haven't seen elephants, kings or Peru!
I'm happy to say I had better to do
What about China? Have you seen the Great Wall?
All walls are great, if the roof doesn't fall!
Here's a wallpaper of hers.
And with that, Adios and Bonne Nuit. This was a big one.
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