Categories : Electronica, Music Reviews, Rock + Pop.
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Rating: 3.5/5 Released: May 8, 2007 Reviewer: Nathan Atnikov |
With every release, Iceland’s Bjork just seems to get more and more bizarre, culminating with 2004’s Medulla, an album built entirely around her vocals with no accompaniment. But when she went out and hired hit-maker Timbaland to produce three tracks for her new album, Volta, that was truly a sign that she’d finally gone off the deep end, right?
Well, despite the big name assistance, Bjork still manages to tease the edges of sanity on Volta. The best Timbaland-produced track here is ‘Earth Intruders.’ Its driving beat and odd noises make sense when you it’s Tim, but it still doesn’t come close to the radio readiness of his recent hits for Justin Timberlake or Nelly Furtado.
Surprisingly, or perhaps not surprisingly at all, Bjork is at her best on Volta without Timbaland’s assistance. The vulnerable and sweet ‘I See Who You Are’ and the forceful ‘Declare Independence’ are particular highlights, and the latter is a good example of Bjork out-Timbalanding the man himself.
Volta, as with Bjork’s entire catalogue, is an all-in or all-out affair. There isn’t a lot of grey area for people to “sort of†like this album. If you’re a fan of Bjork, this is a fine example of her at her experimental and eccentric best. If you don’t like her past work, Volta is not a great place to try to dive in.
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