I guess it's because I realized she no longer interests me. Her first three solo albums were a journey of invention and intensity that suddenly deflated and I suspect she's tapped out the vein. For now, anyway.
And she hooked up with that pretentious tit Matthew Barney.
And why are people commenting on this stupid post when I wrote about important things this week?
And her thing is kind of limited, y'know? I mean, scads of talent and all, but even with that Pagan Poetry album (what was it called?) I'm never, ever, ever moved to put it on. Whereas I can still listen to the first three albums.
Of course she did attack Lars Von Trier on set. If the attack had been fatal, she would have permanent goddess status for me.
And she hooked up with that prententious twat Matthew Barney.
Hmm. You are right, I suppose- but then again whose "thing" isn't limited? I mean, I think that as a lot of recording artists try to further develop themselves (their own creative voice and identity and the music they produce by exercising these things) many achieve this by carving out a little niche (complete with quirky loyal fanbase) somewhere in between existing genres (if they do this really well they eventually become a genre all their own) and that is, I think, what Bjork has done with her body of work. Even the albums I don't like all that much (Medulla, for one) are undeniably impressive from a compositional perspective, and just about everything she's recorded has been nearly impossible to properly classify as anything other to say, well, it's just Bjork.
Unfortunately, you and your music have to live in that little room that you carve out for yourself and at some point- for most, if not all the artists I'm familiar with who've done this- you just run out of room to grow in there, and your work begins to repeat itself. Just look at Tori Amos, ya know?
I feel like Bjork has been repeating herself more and more ever since Dancer in the Dark. Sure, there are still occasional sparks of brilliance and beauty, but her latest stuff comes across to me as if she is even tired of it.
Vespertine. I actually really like that one, but I think it's as much about the time and place I was in when I bought it and listened to it as much as it's about the music itself. If that makes sense.
Oh, so true. I guess maybe I'm not interested in what she's doing in the room anymore. That's fair, I guess; she hasn't shown much interest in my work lately either.
Perhaps when you have such a distinctive voice (in multiple senses) you run the risk of wearing out people's ears. For me, she has never been that strong compositionally. That is to say, harmonically and melodically, there are limitations to her craft. It's always been about mood and use of sound (both electronic and human) that have set her apart for me. Her themes were strong (innocence and power, beauty and horror, the refined and the raw) and she was a genius at creating environments where those themes could be played out.
Furthermore, the way she worked with other artists was always inspiring and produced amazing videos and musical collaborations.
I'm just not hearing it anymore. Starting with Vespertine, there was too much of the sanctimonious earth goddess for my taste. That being said, when she performed Oceanic at the opening of the Olympics, I was blown away. When I saw her perform that same year in Toronto, I was painfully underwhelmed.
And FUCKING MATTHEW BARNEY! Have you seen his pretentious bullshit?
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no subject
Date: 2007-10-26 09:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-10-27 02:13 pm (UTC)And she hooked up with that pretentious tit Matthew Barney.
And why are people commenting on this stupid post when I wrote about important things this week?
no subject
Date: 2007-10-27 04:28 am (UTC)I mean, the last time she truly impressed me was...hmm...oh, when I first saw the video for Pagan Poetry. mmm.
But, you know, that was a few years and a couple albums ago. I kinda feel like, lately, she's sorta done her thing to death.
no subject
Date: 2007-10-27 02:16 pm (UTC)Of course she did attack Lars Von Trier on set. If the attack had been fatal, she would have permanent goddess status for me.
And she hooked up with that prententious twat Matthew Barney.
no subject
Date: 2007-10-27 03:09 pm (UTC)Unfortunately, you and your music have to live in that little room that you carve out for yourself and at some point- for most, if not all the artists I'm familiar with who've done this- you just run out of room to grow in there, and your work begins to repeat itself. Just look at Tori Amos, ya know?
I feel like Bjork has been repeating herself more and more ever since Dancer in the Dark. Sure, there are still occasional sparks of brilliance and beauty, but her latest stuff comes across to me as if she is even tired of it.
no subject
Date: 2007-10-27 03:12 pm (UTC)Vespertine. I actually really like that one, but I think it's as much about the time and place I was in when I bought it and listened to it as much as it's about the music itself. If that makes sense.
no subject
Date: 2007-10-27 03:52 pm (UTC)Perhaps when you have such a distinctive voice (in multiple senses) you run the risk of wearing out people's ears. For me, she has never been that strong compositionally. That is to say, harmonically and melodically, there are limitations to her craft. It's always been about mood and use of sound (both electronic and human) that have set her apart for me. Her themes were strong (innocence and power, beauty and horror, the refined and the raw) and she was a genius at creating environments where those themes could be played out.
Furthermore, the way she worked with other artists was always inspiring and produced amazing videos and musical collaborations.
I'm just not hearing it anymore. Starting with Vespertine, there was too much of the sanctimonious earth goddess for my taste. That being said, when she performed Oceanic at the opening of the Olympics, I was blown away. When I saw her perform that same year in Toronto, I was painfully underwhelmed.
And FUCKING MATTHEW BARNEY! Have you seen his pretentious bullshit?
no subject
Date: 2007-10-27 04:03 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-10-29 05:56 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-10-29 04:28 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-10-29 05:56 pm (UTC)And she never calls.