Album: Debut
Artist: Björk
Born: Rejkavík, Iceland
Released: July 1993
Genre: Indie Dance
Of course Björk would go on to make more daring, experimental albums than Debut (her first solo effort), but it still remains a favourite of mine among all her brilliant LPs. Although Björk was initially associated with trip hop thanks to the input of producer Nelle Hooper (who'd already worked with Soul II Soul and Massive Attack), she was very much an original voice with a unique sound, and this accounted for much of Debut's impact on both music critics and the listening public. A recording artist since the age of 11, Björk had been influenced by various British music trends, from punk and gothic rock to house music, and decided to move to London after leaving the Sugarcubes to focus on her solo work. Many of Debut's songs had already been composed years earlier, while others were co-written with Hooper, who helped Björk develop her musical fusion of art pop, electronic music and jazz. Her first UK hit single was the album's opening track, Human Behaviour, with its quirky video by Michel Gondry (the start of a long, creative relationship) and lyrics inspired by watching David Attenborough nature documentaries. With its opening lyric, "If you ever get close to a human", the song helps to set out Björk's stall as an otherworldly figure, an image enhanced by her Icelandic pixie persona.
Crying matches Björk's stunning vocal acrobatics with a funky jazz backing track, while Venus A Boy marks a very noticeable shift in style, towards orchestral pop and exotic instruments, notably Talvin Singh's tabla and string arrangement. The "boy" in question with the "wicked sense of humour" was then boyfriend Dominic Thrupp. On There's More to Life Than This, Björk reveals her fatigue with the London club scene, while jazz standard Like Someone in Love is a rare Björk cover. One of the record's highlights is Big Time Sensuality, the wild abandon of the vocals and the lively sound of the organ a clear contrast to the more measured tone of the previous track. The video was popular on MTV and helped to raise Björk's profile in the US. Violently Happy describes a similar rush of euphoria, accompanied by a house music beat, with lyrics revealing a love of communing with the natural world ("I tip-toe down to the shore / stand by the ocean / make it roar at me / and I roar back"). The Anchor Song is a jazz tone poem, again full of oceanic imagery (boats, anchors and jumping into the sea), which gives Björk the perfect platform for her unique, captivating voice. My CD copy is a late 1993 re-release that also contains the brilliant Play Dead. According to recent estimates, Debut has sold nearly 5mn copies and as the announcement of an exciting, fresh new talent, it remains one of Björk's most compelling statements.
Crying matches Björk's stunning vocal acrobatics with a funky jazz backing track, while Venus A Boy marks a very noticeable shift in style, towards orchestral pop and exotic instruments, notably Talvin Singh's tabla and string arrangement. The "boy" in question with the "wicked sense of humour" was then boyfriend Dominic Thrupp. On There's More to Life Than This, Björk reveals her fatigue with the London club scene, while jazz standard Like Someone in Love is a rare Björk cover. One of the record's highlights is Big Time Sensuality, the wild abandon of the vocals and the lively sound of the organ a clear contrast to the more measured tone of the previous track. The video was popular on MTV and helped to raise Björk's profile in the US. Violently Happy describes a similar rush of euphoria, accompanied by a house music beat, with lyrics revealing a love of communing with the natural world ("I tip-toe down to the shore / stand by the ocean / make it roar at me / and I roar back"). The Anchor Song is a jazz tone poem, again full of oceanic imagery (boats, anchors and jumping into the sea), which gives Björk the perfect platform for her unique, captivating voice. My CD copy is a late 1993 re-release that also contains the brilliant Play Dead. According to recent estimates, Debut has sold nearly 5mn copies and as the announcement of an exciting, fresh new talent, it remains one of Björk's most compelling statements.
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