Human Behaviour

From Debut (1993)

Music written by Björk & Nellee Hooper

Lyrics written by Björk

Produced by Nellee Hooper

This is very special. It was Björk's first solo single She did sing on a cute Icelandic album (self-titled) as a child (and wrote one recorder instrumental track for it), and throughout her teens and early-to-mid 20s she was in bands, such as Tappi Tíkarrass, K.U.K.L. and most famously, The Sugarcubes. I've listened to those bands too and they are worth checking out, although the sound is usually quite different from Björk's solo stuff. K.U.K.L. had an intriguing gothic rock sound, and The Sugarcubes was more like melodic punk-rock I guess.

I just love that this was her solo debut single as it's a song she wrote way before Debut was even in production, and lyrically is partly inspired by David Attenborough and is a reflection of how animals might see humans. ('they're terribly, terribly, terribly moody')

I also love that it sets the tone for what was to come - Björk is a highly explorative artist, lyrically, emotionally, sonically, visually, conceptually. It's almost as if 'Human Behaviour' in a sense predicted that Björk would have a long-lasting career where she explores different facets of human nature in the form of music!

Sonically, don't get me started on what a banger this is. One of her catchier songs, I just love the intriguing production, and the surreal / fantastical / fairy tale-y music video directed by Michel Gondry is great as well, again setting the tone for many of her future music videos. In the video, Björk is chased by a giant bear. ('And the animals are always supposed to win in the end')

I've also heard this song live, with added flutes which was interesting.

Just caught up and I'm a big fan of 'Isobel' too another heavenly example of her textured production with added swirling strings.

'Human Behaviour' was a great start and the public had taste, gifting her a U.K. top 40 so quickly ❤️ "they're terribly, terribly, terribly moody" reminds me of a less flattering "so wonderfully, wonderfully, wonderfully, wonderfully pretty" from The Cure's 'Lovecats' now I'm wondering how my cat perceives me. Anyway, agreed that the production is intriguing, very atmospheric.

Undo

From Vespertine (2001)

Music written by Björk & Thomas Knak

Lyrics written by Björk

Produced by Björk

Okay, we now have a song from 2001's gently euphoric and introverted Vespertine - it's about time! Vespertine was in some sense a reaction to 1997's more extroverted (in Björk's words) album Homogenic, as well as the pressures of shooting the movie 'Dancer in the Dark' (2000), where Björk starred in the leading role. I guess in reaction to those projects, Björk felt the need to retreat or withdraw emotionally and musically.

An online friend of mine recently told me out of the blue that he just recently realised what a beautiful song 'Undo' is with headphones. I had this same realisation many years ago, just randomly connecting to it like never before when listening one evening with headphones. I might as well put it here, my friend specifically said: "Idk why I never noticed but holy f*** Undo with headphones is a f****** masterpiece. The harp floating amongst the other parts of the production is just like… idk why you notice some songs in their entirety so much later than when you start listening to them."

To me, 'Undo' evokes a warm, comforting hug, gently repeating to the listener 'It's not meant to be a strife, it's not meant to be a struggle uphill'. It evokes a feeling of letting go, or perhaps a desire to do so amongst the stresses and pressures of your daily life, making it a truly gorgeous and comforting song.

Production-wise, I enjoy... well, everything here, but I'd like to specifically mention the sounds of someone tapping away on a keyboard for the beat which I think is such a cool touch! My own guess is that perhaps the song is called 'Undo' as inspired by the undo function on various computer programs? Björk did say Vespertine was largely inspired by her getting her first laptop, learning how to use it, and making music on it. Vespertine is essentially an introverted, wintery, romantic, 'sit euphorically under your kitchen table on your own with your laptop' kind of album.

The song starts off minimalistic, almost in an ambient techno style, but adding a choir and a string section to this as the song goes on is genius.

I have done 10 songs out of 60, woo-hoo! LOL

I'm actually still tweaking the list occasionally, as it's sad to have to leave some songs out. I'm kinda overthinking it gah

Bachelorette

From Homogenic (1997)

Music written by Björk

Lyrics written by Sjón

Produced by Björk

Video version (adds spoken word intro; song shortened slightly):

Time for more Homogenic now. This was the second single from it. 'Bachelorette' was seen by Björk as a kind of sequel to 'Isobel', hence why the lyrics are written once again by Icelandic poet Sjón. In 'Isobel', a girl was born from a spark in the forest and goes to explore the city, finding the people there too complicated and clever. In 'Bachelorette', she is a grown adult who is now faced with the complexities of relationships.

'Bachelorette' was originally written for the movie 'Stealing Beauty' (it certainly sounds cinematic!), but in the end was not included there and Björk put it on her album instead. It's probably the most epic moment on the record, with dramatic, romantic strings, strong 'volcanic' beats and a dramatic melody. This, while beautiful, also creates a chaotic sort of sound.

The wonderful, unusual and epic music video, directed once again by Michel Gondry, features Björk as 'Bachelorette', who finds a book called 'My Story' in her garden that starts writing itself. The book gets turned into a musical, but the character is not happy with her newfound fame and attention and retreats back into nature. #spoilers

The music video won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Art Direction, yay.

On a personal level, I guess the reason I enjoy the song (and the video!) is that it is almost ridiculously epic. I particularly love the dramatic strings, Björk's wordless vocalizations towards the end, as well as the added touch of accordion at the end, which adds to the cinematic drama!

Mouth's Cradle

From Medúlla (2004)

Written by Björk

Produced by Björk

The 12th track from 14-track almost all-vocal album Medúlla, 'Mouth's Cradle' is for me a song that's difficult to describe! The almost all-vocal song (the only other instrument apart from various vocals is apparently a bass synth, although personally I can't pick out where it is lol) is apparently inspired by breastfeeding as Björk had recently given birth to her daughter. The lyrics are almost inscrutable but the amalgamation of various voices as well as the fun catchy melody produces a song that's so fun and almost endearingly ridiculous I wanna say?

I heard this song live on Björk's Cornucopia tour, with a very different arrangement. Her fans, including myself, have noted that Björk often loses her timing when singing this song live as it's such a complex song and I guess the new arrangement didn't help with that

It's a strange bop! One of my favourite parts of the song is towards the end when The Icelandic Choir, throat singer Tanya Tagaq, beatboxer Rahzel and some programmed vocals by Björk herself amalgamate into an epic climax for just a little while. For such a bizarre song / arrangement, it's one of the catchiest songs on the album.

It's In Our Hands

From Greatest Hits (2002) - not on any studio album

Written by Björk

Produced by Björk & Drew Daniel (from Matmos)

The first non-studio album song on my list now! This was the only previously unreleased song included on 2002's Greatest Hits compilation, as the last track. It was also released as a single (and has a music video, above). Apparently it reached #37 on the UK charts which I'm surprised about! That's nice.

I love this song so much! It has been described as having 'bubbling keyboards and clicks', which is a good way of putting it. The production and Björk's very clear vocals on this song are terrific. Lyrically it seems to be about optimism and taking control of your life and your reality, which can also be tied to more collective themes. Lyrically it reminds me a bit of some of the themes she would go on to explore on 2017's album Utopia.

The night-vision music video, directed by Spike Jonze, features a heavily pregnant Björk hanging out in nature, with Björk being edited to seem smaller than the plants and bugs. It's a really cool accompaniment to the fantastic song, and goes well with Björk's obvious love of nature.

During the Vespertine tour, before the song had been released, Björk performed the song live as the closer of the show and there is an especially fun and energetic version from the Royal Opera House performance (which was released and also televised). It goes beautifully bonkers towards the end. It's such an experience x

omg i'm not late to the party!

currently loving the song selection you decided to include.

after a long period of thought-making, i decided that undo is my favorite song from her, the simplistic approach leading to the ominous choir section is pure heaven for me.

Unison

From Vespertine (2001)

Written by Björk

Produced by Björk

This song. THIS. SONG. 🥲 One of my favourites! Definitely a general fan favourite as well. I don't even know what to say, heh... The closing track from Vespertine, the almost-seven-minute song was lyrically inspired by Björk's very challenging/difficult experience starring in the movie 'Dancer in the Dark' as the leading role. It's a heartbreaking movie, with several musical sequences, and Björk is captivating in it. She won the Cannes award for Best Actress for her role. For someone who never even considered herself 'an actress' ('too much talking - I'm more into singing', she said), that is so interesting to me.

'Dancer in the Dark' was directed by Lars von Trier and Björk's 'Unison' lyrics are tied in with some of her experiences and reflections about working with him ('I never thought I would compromise... Let's unite tonight, we shouldn't fight').

Musically, it has so much going on but the amalgamation of everything is just stunning to me. The song builds and builds, and towards the end there is a giant climax that I could almost describe as 'heavenly'. Trying to describe it adequately is difficult though and is getting me a bit emotional actually. With a choir, a harp, electronic bleepery and bloopery, and Björk's almost ecstatic vocals and melody, the song is, in my opinion, a true accomplishment in her discography.

Venus as a Boy

From Debut (1993)

Written by Björk

Produced by Nellee Hooper

The second single from Debut, 'Venus as a Boy' captures the essence of a boyfriend of Björk's who saw everything from "a beauty point of view, and not superficial beauty but the beauty of brushing your teeth and the beauty of waking up in the morning in the right beat and the beauty of having a conversation with a person." She has described the song as more of a poem, with the chorus repeating 'He believes in beauty, he's Venus as a boy.' Venus is of course a Roman goddess of beauty.

Musically, the song was partly inspired by Björk's interest in Bollywood and for that, she had some beautiful Bollywood strings recorded on it by a film studio orchestra in Bombay. Björk has also described an encounter at a party with Timbaland who said he loved the bassline in the song, making Björk feel 'chuffed' as she was the writer of this 'bouncy' bassline. Timbaland went on to collaborate with Björk for her 2007 album Volta on the songs 'Earth Intruders', 'Innocence' and 'Hope'.

Björk has also described the writing of this song when she wrote it in her living room in Iceland, sang it into her dictaphone (!) and later accidentally found a broken bottle sound while going through sound banks, which she used in the song. The song also features tabla (Indian hand drum) and a vibraphone. It was one of the last songs recorded for Debut (possibly the very last one) as the album had already been 'ready to go.' I'm glad it was able to be included as it's a big standout on the album.

As a listener, I particularly enjoy how 'clear' this song sounds. Debut has some of Björk's clearest and most straightforward vocals in my opinion. Sonically there is a lot to love about this track, with the amalgamation of strings, the memorable bassline and Björk's powerful wordless vocalizations towards the end resulting in an unusual yet still romantic love song.

Interestingly, I heard this song live on Björk's 'Cornucopia' tour in 2019 when she sang a stripped-down version with flutes!

The music video features Björk singing the song while frying eggs, as you do in a music video of course. Much of the cutlery in the video came from Björk's house.

Should I finish this before Björk turns 61 in November? x