Bjork

▪ 1996

      Already unique among pop stars because of her unlikely origins, Björk went a step farther in 1995 and created for herself a distinct musical identity that transcended mere geographic boundaries. The Iceland native, employing spectacular vocal gymnastics and an insatiable desire for experimentation, forged a career that by 1995 had catapulted her from the punk-rock clubs of Reykjavík to international recognition and critical acclaim.

      Björk Gudmundsdottir was born in Reykjavík on Nov. 21, 1965. She recorded her first solo album, a collection of cover versions of popular songs, as an 11-year-old music student in 1977. Although she never took voice lessons, the diminutive singer credited her vocal technique to breath control learned while studying karate. Throughout her teens she performed with various short-lived bands, ending up at age 18 with Kukl, a punk group that eventually became the Sugarcubes. With Björk as lead vocalist the Sugarcubes won acclaim in the U.K. with the single "Birthday" and their first album, Life's Too Good (1986). After recording two more albums, Here Today, Tomorrow, Next Week! and Stick Around for Joy, over the next five years, the band broke up, and Björk embarked on a solo career.

      In 1993 she released Debut, her first international solo album. Debut produced a number of hit singles—"Human Behaviour," "Venus as a Boy," "Big Time Sensuality," and "Violently Happy"—and won Björk the Best International Newcomer and Best International Female Artist awards at the 1994 Brit awards. The album sold more than 2.5 million copies. It was a departure from the harder-edged sound of the Sugarcubes and included a wide variety of musical styles ranging from techno-pop to jazz.

      Never content to conform—even to her own standards—Björk sought to challenge herself even more for her next album because, she said, pop music should reflect the varying moods of the "emotional roller coaster" of everyday life. After two years she produced Post. The 1995 release opened with the single "Army of Me," a characteristically throbbing, synthesized track accompanied by the singer's now-familiar breathy yodel. Farther into the album, however, Björk traveled a strange musical journey, accompanied at times by strings and even a harpsichord. Ironically, the futuristic musical journey of Post reached perhaps its wildest moment with "It's Oh So Quiet," the cover of a 1940s big-band tune originally performed by the movie star Betty Hutton. Björk's shrill version of the song included a 20-piece orchestra. Critics and fans praised the new album and wondered where Björk's musical whims would take her next. (ANTHONY G. CRAINE)

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▪ Icelandic musician

in full  Björk Gudmundsdottir 

born Nov. 21, 1965, Reykjavík, Iceland

 

 Icelandic singer-songwriter and actress, best known for her solo work covering a wide variety of music styles.

      Björk recorded her first solo album, a collection of cover versions of popular songs, as an 11-year-old music student in 1977. Throughout her teens she performed with various short-lived bands, ending up at age 18 with Kukl, a punk group that eventually became the Sugarcubes. With Björk as lead vocalist, the Sugarcubes won acclaim in the United Kingdom with their first album, Life's Too Good (1986). After recording two more albums over the next five years, Here Today, Tomorrow, Next Week! and Stick Around for Joy, the band broke up, and Björk embarked on a solo career

      After moving to London, Björk released Debut, her first international solo album, in 1993. It was a departure from the harder-edged sound of the Sugarcubes and included a wide variety of musical styles ranging from techno-pop to jazz. Debut produced a number of hit singles, including "Big Time Sensuality" and "Venus as a Boy." Her follow-up, Post (1995), opened with the single "Army of Me," a characteristically throbbing, synthesized track accompanied by the singer's now-familiar breathy yodel. Never content to conform, Björk in 1997 released her most experimental works to date: Telegram, an entire album of Post remixes, and Homogenic, a studio effort with collaborator Mark Bell. Bell and Björk also worked together on Selmasongs, the score for Lars von Trier's Dancer in the Dark (2000), a tragic musical in which she also starred. The film won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes film festival, and Björk was named best actress.

      In 2001 Björk released the quiet and hypnotic Vespertine. Her first studio album in four years, it refrained from pushing the musical boundaries that had made her a star of the 1990s and instead focused on a more rhythmic, contemplative intimacy. Björk's later works include Medúlla (2004)—an all-vocals and vocal samples-based album that featured beatboxers (vocal-percussion artists), Icelandic and British choirs, and traditional Inuit vocalists—and Volta (2007), which featured guest production by Timbaland. Björk performed "Oceania," a single from Medúlla, at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. She also composed the sound track for partner Matthew Barney's film Drawing Restraint 9 (2005). As a response to the financial turmoil that rocked Iceland in 2008, Björk partnered with an Icelandic venture capital firm to establish a fund that would invest in socially and ecologically responsible businesses.

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