CD Reviews

Björk | Voltaic

Nonesuch (2009)

By MIKAEL WOOD | July 7, 2009

3.5 Stars

As befits an artist who doesn't do much in the conventional manner, Voltaic is a live album unlike many you've heard before. Rather than assemble recordings of songs from various shows, or tape one gig from beginning to end, the singer gathered her live band (whose line-up includes drummer Chris Corsano, synth-meister Damian Taylor, and Mark Bell on "beats and electronics") at London's Olympic Studios three days after her appearance at Glastonbury 2007; the musicians played through their set in a single take, then called it a day.

As Björk no doubt hoped it would, the result — long on material from that year's Volta but also featuring such oldies as "Army of Me" and "Pagan Poetry" — captures both energy and detail. If you found Volta a little dreary, as I did, the versions of "Earth Intruders" and "Innocence" here should cause you to reconsider.

And if you've always loved "All Is Full of Love," well, prepare to love it a little more. Voltaic is available in a variety of configurations; spring for the CD/DVD set if the idea of taking in a Björk concert in Reykjavík is more appealing than it is affordable.

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