A collection of Björk’s favourite songs
There is no other artist in the music industry quite like Björk. The Icelandic musician has been a pioneering figure for decades, inspiring countless artists spanning genres through her innovative and refreshing approach to pop music.
After bursting onto the scene at age 11, the experimental icon reappeared when she was 20 as the vocalist for the alternative rock band The Sugarcubes. Labelled as “the biggest rock band to emerge from Iceland,” Björk ensured her legacy would not fade after she left the band. Instead, she became the country’s best-selling solo artist in the years that followed. With albums such as Debut, Post and Homogenic helping to define the 1990s and reinvent the pop landscape, Björk continued her reign into the following decades, releasing more incredible albums such as Vespertine, Vulnicura and Utopia.
The musician is known for weaving copious different genres into her sound, which, paired with her distinctive singing voice, makes for an incredibly unique result. Post, for example, was noted for blending jazz, rock, trip-hop, ambient, house, industrial, IDM, techno, and pop – resulting in an incredibly entertaining yet thoughtful listen. Despite Björk’s incredible instrumental efforts, she never fails to provide flawless lyrical accompaniments too.
It is clear that her musical inspirations come from all across the globe and span countless decades. She has noted love for Joni Mitchell, admiring the musician for her “emotional depth” and Kate Bush for her “emotional generosity” and originality. Furthermore, she picked out some of her favourite albums, including It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back by Public Enemy and Drukqs by Aphex Twin.
However, in 2009, Björk shared some of her favourite songs on an NPR radio broadcast. She first declared a fondness for Syrian techno artist Omar Souleyman, who she discovered on YouTube. She discussed her fascination with his music, which uses traditional instruments alongside synths to create what sounds like “a high-energy, crazy party”. Most of his recordings are performed live, which Björk describes as “lo-fi”. The songs she picked were ‘Lansob Sherek [I Will Make a Trap]’ and ‘Shift al Mani [I Saw Her]’.
Another pick from Björk was Eyeless in Gaza, an “underrated” band from the 1980s that she had the privilege of seeing perform for 50 people. She calls Martyn Bates’ vocals on the track ‘Throw A Shadow’ “incredible” and “optimistic”. The musician also picked fellow Icelandic singer Ólöf Arnalds, who she describes as harnessing an “idiosyncratic sense of chords and chord structure and an interesting voice, somewhere between a child and an old woman”. Björk chose the track ‘Skjaldborg’, a word that refers to shield-shaped cliffs in Iceland. The beautiful folk number lays Arnalds’ voice out on full display and carries a deep emotional weight, which Björk expressed great love for. The two have since collaborated on the track ‘Surrender’, and Arnalds has also supported Björk on tour.
Another favourite of Björk’s is Pokrovsky Ensemble’s ‘Birch Tree’, which the singer said she is glad to have discovered after her acoustic album Medulla; otherwise, she would have been “too influenced by it”. Tired of “Southern Hemisphere operas” that are focused on “drama”, Björk expressed admiration for the Nordic vocal performances on ‘Birch Tree’, based on Russian folk music.
Finally, to round things off, ‘Golden Phone’ by Micachu and the Shapes, the former band of Mica Levi, who has since scored the haunting Jonathan Glazer film Under the Skin. However, in 2009, Micachu and the Shapes had just realised their highly-praised debut album Jewellery. Björk described Levi as “sonically adventurous,” stating that they are “fun” and “a bit of a prankster.”
A collection of Björk’s favourite songs:
- ‘Lansob Sherek [I Will Make a Trap]’ – Omar Souleyman
- ‘Shift al Mani [I Saw Her]’ – Omar Souleyman
- ‘Throw A Shadow’ – Eyeless in Gaza
- ‘Skjaldborg’ – Ólöf Arnalds
- ‘Birch Tree’ – Pokrovsky Ensemble
- ‘Golden Phone’ – Micachu and the Shapes
