From now on

I left work early yesterday afternoon to arrive early at the Montreal old port to have a good place for the show. On the ticket it was mentioned “show at 19:00 – doors open at 18:00”, I arrived at 17:00. There was already a couple of hundreds people waiting in line to get in. Around 18:30 after passing the security check point (We had to remove the caps of our bottles of water!!? Because some people fill their bottle with sand and throw them like projectiles?? People are crazy...)

I enter the site and found myself feet away from the stage and ready to be blown away by the Icelandic phenomena. But the show didn't start right away, We had to wait that the thousands of fans forming an endless line behind us get in too. Finally more than 1 hour later, the show began but with a non-announced first part. The poor group had to struggle with many equipment problems and couldn't perform like they could probably do. After they left the stage, there was of course a stage reorganization that last another half hour.

And finally after more than 4 hours, the Wonderbrass made their entrance followed by Björk in an elvish dress and the show began. On the first songs, I began to worry that the gifted voice singer wouldn't give us the performance that we could expect because she seemed to save her voice. She even ate some frozen yoghourt between the songs. Although, the set list was so amazing that even a only okay performance was ear candies. And suddenly the rolling beat of “army of me” began and wow! we had a completely different show. Like if her voice was now warmed enough and from that moment, the show evolves into a initiatory experience with trance peaks especially during the sing-along “hyperballad” and the hallucinating version of “I miss you”. Before the encore, the show end with her synthesized madness named “Pluto”. And during that song, at least in the first rows, a real communion happened between the all together moving mass that had become the crowd and the frenzy dancing possess woman.

For the encore, surrounded by the Wonderbrass, she sang “Oceania” and “Declare independence”. I record the song but unfortunately the small microphones on my camera didn't like the speakers located at 20 feet besides me so the sound is truly awful but you can click on the link bellow to have an idea of the ambience during the song and also see Björk's surprise and enjoyment by the loud crowd reaction at the lyrics "Protect your language"...



Declare Independance video

I finally have it in my hand. Since yesterday, I'm discovering the new Björk album Volta. Like any other Björk album, when you hear it for the first time, it's not obvious. And that's exactly what I like in a new CD. When I hear a song of an artist that I appreciate but I don't understand immediately the assemblage between the beat and the melody or the song pattern, I'm happy because I know that it will be a long term discovery instead of a quick satisfying experience that may not last. In these kind of albums, normally I'm only grabbed by one song or only one beat at first and then starting from this beat or song I slowly discover another aspect of the song and so on until all the songs one by one become little treasures of creativity. Sometimes a simple phrase sang in a special way can keep me amazed for months but I guess I'm a real music freak! After a half-dozen listening sessions of Volta so far, I have all the reasons to believe that it will be this type of album.

If you are not familiar with Björk's work, like her last album “Medulla”, Volta might not be the perfect album to make a first contact. Despite songs like the first single “Earth intruders”, most of the songs are part of an eclectic collage of different type of music going from the Japanese sound of “I see who you are” to the trash/punk electronic sound of “declare independence” there's a whole spectrum of style transform in Björk's style to hear. The uniting line of her last CD is the addition of a brass section in almost every songs. For this woman who always had a predilection for chords arrangement, it certainly brings an unusual aspect to her music. Of course, those brass arrangements are like most of Björk's work, quite singular and mixed in an unexpected way.

It's a little early to give a full review but if you are a Björk fan, I can already tell you that it's a must have. I will definitively go see her live performance even if her closest venue so far, out of her beginning world tour, is in a Fall festival in Toronto (but I'm quite confident Montreal dates will be announce shortly).

Here is my first “coup de coeur” of Volta: “Wanderlust”. A full and rich multiple layers song with powerful brasses, Björk's electronic beat trade mark, synthesizers and of course, her great voice.

Can you spot a pattern?

Wanderlust.m4a - Volta

I am leaving this harbour
Giving urban a farewell
Its habitants seem to keen on God
I cannot stomach their rights and wrongs

I have lost my origin
And I don't want to find it again
Whether sailing into nature's laws
And be held by ocean's paws

Wanderlust! relentlessly craving
Wanderlust! peel off the layers
Until we get to the core

Did I imagine it would be like this?
Was it something like this I wished for?
Or will I want more?

Lust for comfort
Suffocates the soul
Relentless restlessness
Liberates me (sets me free)

I feel at home
Whenever the unknown surrounds me
I receive its embrace
Aboard my floating house

Wanderlust! relentlessly craving
Wanderlust! peel off the layers
Until we get to the core

Did I imagine it would be like this?
Was it something like this I wished for?
Or will I want more?

Wanderlust! from island to island
Wanderlust! united in movement
Wonderful! I'm joined with you

Wanderlust!

Can you spot a pattern?