August 28, 2001 by A.S. Van Dorston

How do you find a diamond in the snow? Walk barefoot until it cuts you. Retrace the bloodstained tracks to the source and you might find the subterranean Icelandic pixie-headquarters where it sounds like Björk has been hibernating and creating (actually San Pedro, Spain and New York). With Vespertine (which means “of the evening”), Björk has created a bravely unfashionable nocturnal misfit dream. No dance rhythms, no bombastic showbiz productions, Vespertine, is profoundly intimate and personal, with whispered secrets and passionate declarations of devotion.

Björk evokes themes of solitude and isolation (“Threading the glacier head/Looking hard for moments of shine”) while realizing her coziness is best shared (“I thrive best hermit-style/With a beard and a pipe/And a parrot on each side/Now I can’t do this without you…I never thought I would compromise/Let’s unite tonight”). In contrast to the unsettling, dramatic strife of 1997’s Homogenic, Vespertine finds Björk in a much calmer space, a Zen-like reverie. It feels lighter, but is more concise and focused, much like the e.e. cummings poem used for “Sun In My Mouth” — “I will wade out till my thighs/Are steeped in burning flowers/I will take the sun in my mouth/And leap into the ripe air alive.”

Clearly influenced by cummings, her lyrics often distill vivid images of sensuality, like “Swirling black lillies totally ripe” (“Pagan Poetry”) and “I fill my mouth with snow/The way it melts/I wish to melt before you” (“Aurora”). Björk has words of wisdom to offer — “Unthinkable surprises about to happen/But what they are/It’s not up to you/Well it never really was” (“It’s Not Up To You”) and “It’s not meant to be a strife/It’s not meant to be a struggle uphill/You’re trying too hard/Surrender/Give yourself in” (“Undo”).

She has proven that it is possible to grow as a mature, worldly adult, but still retain a childlike wonder. Indeed, her voice varies from a shy, if sexually charged, girl (“Cocoon”) to an ancient, wailing elemental spirit (“Aurora”). The music chimes, clicks, chirps and bleeps like a symphony of serenading cybertronic bugs in frozen trees. While Radiohead’s experiments are exploratory like finding their way through an unfamiliar home in the dark, Björk struts through the house of electronica like she’s owned it for a decade, as indeed she has. No single artist has navigated the nexus of accessible songwriting and edgy electronica with as much authority and consistency as Björk.

Part of her success has been the seamless integration of impeccably chosen collaborators, from Nellee Hooper and Tricky to Leila and Howie B. This time she enlists Matmos for beat programming duties (“Aurora” and “Unison”). On the latter, she also includes sample of “Aero Deck” by Germany’s Oval. Björk learned how to use Pro Tools and self-produced the album. The crystalline production is focused and sharp. Vespertine is so beautiful it hurts.