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| Info | Setlist | ||||||||||
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01. Intro - Brennið Þið Vitar 02. Earth Intruders 03. Hunter 04. Pagan Poetry 05. Immature 06. All Is Full Of Love 07. Undo 08. The Pleasure Is All Mine 09. Hidden Place 10. Desired Constellation 11. Army Of Me 12. I Miss You 13. Who Is It 14. Vökuró 15. Wanderlust 16. Hyperballad 17. Pluto encore 18. Oceania 19. Declare Independence |
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| Pictures (email) Observe that there usually is a NO camera policy at these concerts. | |||||||||||
| Reviews |
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| I suppose this is THE review of the Björk concert in Osaka on February 25, 2008. First let me say, the house was packed, and the largely Japanese audience was on its feet, dancing throughout the show. From what I have been told, this is uncharacteristic for Japanese concertgoers, who tend to be very well mannered and subdued: a testimony to the spellbinding charm and popularity of Björk throughout the world, and Japan in particular. First the back story (I’ll keep in short and sweet). At the age of 39 I discovered the music of Björk after purchasing the Greatest Hits album last October in Ottawa, Canada. For some reason I was expecting a jazz and blues album in the Miles Davis vein? However, after a few listens I became intrigued by the modalities exhibited in songs such as Army of Me and Hunter, which had an almost lonely Appalachian folk feel to them, a sense of isolation and claustrophobia. This may be due to the effect of long Icelandic winter nights, perhaps comparable in some sense to early American mountain life. The similarities in rhythmic drive and harmony are haunting…. Very layered and complex, Björk makes music that awakens the soul. By the time of the Osaka concert, I had viewed many videos, concert clips, and interviews on You Tube; purchased Volta and the Surrounded box set; and was spending a lot of time listening to Medulla, which I absolutely love. So I was absolutely surprised and blown away by the songs Björk performed in Osaka. The setlist included 3 songs from Post, 4 from Homogenic, 3 from Vespertine, 5 from Medulla, and 3 from Volta. Much to my liking this was a very Medulla-centric concert. The concert opened much as I had dreamed: Björk danced onto the stage to the primitive beats of Earth Intruders, heralded just before by the spectacular and colorfully vibrant Wonderbrass girl’s opening Brennið Þið Vitar. She appeared to be wearing a golden aboriginal type dress, her forehead was painted brightly, and her feet were bare. Her voice was powerful, flawless, and her pitch was perfect. My seat was far to stage left, so I had largely a profile view of Björk and an over the shoulder view of Jonas Sen, the organ and harpsichordist. Man can he play keyboards! Amazing stuff. Overall, the band was tight. Chris Corsano held rhythm on drums, while Mark Bell and Damain Taylor provided technical wizardry on Mac Book Pros running Ableton Live and hooked to Korg KAOSS pads, JazzMutant Lemur control surfaces, and the ReacTable. The Wonderbrass girls added amazing instrumental and choral arrangements throughout the performance. Behind the scenes technical direction was provided by Alan Pollard (see http://www.apple.com/pro/profiles/pollard/). So everything was perfectly synchronized. At the end of Earth Intruders the stage lit up in pyrotechnics, to be followed by the haunting melodies of Hunter. The girls vocalized beautifully on Pagan Poetry: “she loves him…” The next song I recognized was All is Full of Love (following Immature), very much Beatles inspired. Then Undo, a song I was hearing for the first time. Assisted by the female choir, it was beautiful and stirring. Also, this song from Vespertine was only performed once during the Volta tour, in Osaka. The opening to the next song, The Pleasure is All Mine, was spectacular. To the original al capella was added a dark discordant organ arrangement by Jonas Sen. To me this was one of the concert highlights. With Björk’s powerful voice, this was indeed a moving performance. Next came Hidden Place, the third Vespertine song of the night. With brass replacing strings, it is perhaps one of the more difficult songs to perform live. Beautifully done. Desired Constellation had me hypnotized and launched me into dreamland. Björk could have sung that song 20 times in a row, and I would still shout for an encore. What a song. I was awoken out of my slumber by the heavy synth sounds of Army of Me and the bright flashes of bouncing green lasers. The audience was now back on its feet dancing to the driving modal rhythm. Next the catchy I Miss You from Post, another rocking song that’s fun to sing along. And then Who is It?, another catchy singable number from Medulla. Hearing Björk sing these songs live was a wonderful treat. And after every song, always smiling, Björk thanked the audience: Arigato! Domo arigato! Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrigato!!! Vökuró, an emotive ballad sung in Icelandic, followed. I had to wipe my eyes once or twice during that one. Then the second song from Volta, Wanderlust. This has become my theme song as of late. Having flown to Japan from Ottawa to attend the Björk concert, I am hoping to see three more shows on the final leg of the Volta tour in Europe this summer. And I love the 3D video. Hyperballad came next: when at last the concert ends, will my eyes be closed or open! This song gives me goosebumps, and somehow provides me with a vision of that mountaintop. Another Appalachian parallel, no doubt. The regular set ended with Pluto, the sonic equivalent of fireworks. Björk belted out that one with ease and precision. The rest of the band added drive and energy. Rock and Roll! And then it was over. Or almost over. My eyes were open, wide open. Wow. An amazing set. Everyone left the stage, and the clapping and cheering continued. Louder. The foot stomp. Whistles. Clapping in unison. Encore. And so the stage was again populated by the performers and Björk. She introduced the next song, Oceania, as the song she sang for the opening of the 2004 Olympics in Athens. And finally Declare Independence. The whole band got into the action. Crazy synth and reactable. All the Wonderbrass girls a’ dancing. Confetti. Streamers. What a show. A night to remember. /banjojoe - 3846 |
| setlist 01. Intro - Brennið Þið Vitar 02. Earth Intruders 03. Huner 04. Pagan Poetry 05. Immature 06. Undo 07. All Is Full Of Love 08. Pleasure Is All Mine 09. Hidden Place 10. Desired Constellation 11. Army Of Me 12. I Miss You 13. Who Is It 14. Vökuró 15. Wanderlust 16. Hyperballad 17. Pluto 18. Oceania 19. Declare Independence /Yoshiro - 3750 |
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