We went to see Bjork in concert last night at the Olympic Stadium here in Seoul. Approx 5000 people were there to see her first performance in Korea and to promote her latest album ‘Volta’.
I bought Bjork’s then latest album ‘Post’ back in 1997, ‘Homogenic’ was released very soon after so I picked that up too.
Cover art for ‘Post’
Her style is very unusual. Electronic music (which as a general rule, I don’t enjoy) mixed with brass and her unusual vocal style. I think that’s why I do enjoy her, because of her eccentricity. The concert was super. It took about two or three songs for her to get warmed up, but it just kept getting better. I must admit, I’m not familiar with her material since ‘Homogenic’ but she performed plenty of her earlier stuff, so that was cool. She didn’t communicate with the crowd much, a very cute “Thank you” between songs was about it. She did however introduce the band prior to the encore. Not that the crowd seemed to mind, everyone was rocking – except me. I enjoy concerts rather in the same fashion as I enjoy a movie. The band consisted of her, four members on percussion, electronics and synthesizer, and a 10 piece brass section called the ‘Wonder Girls’ from her native Iceland.
She has an incredible voice. Very powerful and varied. The highlight for me was ‘Army of Me’ from the ‘Post’ album. It was awesome. Seemed to be the crowd favourite too. Though I was a little disappointed she didn’t perform ‘Oh, So Quiet’ from the same album as that was the song that turned me on to her. At about 80 minutes, the concert was a little short I felt. But I’m not complaining. The wife loved it too. She was never a huge Bjork fan, but she likes her visual style (clothes, atmosphere etc). She’s a fan now.
I am still.
Too Many Questions, Not Enough Answers 