Medúlla

About

In Latin, the word <i>medulla</i> is often translated as the marrow or soft inner part of an object—not a bad metaphor for the molten core of pure humanism that undergirds Björk’s woozy, elegantly constructed fifth studio album. Released in 2004, <i>Medúlla</i> served as a deliberate pivot from the skittering electronics of 2001’s <i>Vespertine</i>. Björk’s new self-imposed mandate was to build a record almost completely out of a cappella vocal. “I want to see what can be done with the entire emotional range of the human voice—a single voice, a choru, trained voice, pop voice, folk voice, strange voice,” she told a journalist at the time. “Not just melodie, but everything else—every noise that a throat make.” The result is a collection of songs that are organic and warmly textured, featuring a panoply of guest, including beatbox legend Rahzel, Robert Wyatt of the prog-rock legends Soft Machine, Inuk throat singer Tanya Tagaq, composer Nico Muhly, and Faith No More vocalist Mike Patton. (Don’t let your ears deceive you: Thanks to <i>Medúlla</i>’s impressive guest list, many of the album’s most “machine”-like moments spring from flesh and bone.) Constructed in sessions across England, Spain, Brazil, New York, and her native Reykjavik, <i>Medúlla</i> is one of Björk’s most political albums—conceived in the wake of 9/11, and its consequent surge of patriotism, jingoism, and generalized fear. Still, hope surges throughout, on tracks like the soulful, swaying opener “Pleasure Is All Mine”; the plaintive “Show Me Forgiveness”; and the propulsive and tuneful “Who Is It (Carry My Joy on the Left, Carry My Pain on the Right).” .

via Apple Music

The Clerk says

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