Björk goes full Björk on new song ‘Atopos’
Every time it seems as though the outside world is finally catching up with Björk, the Queen herself returns to remind us that nobody on earth actually sounds like Björk except Björk. The legendary Icelandic singer-songwriter once again proves this notion in the trippy first preview of her upcoming tenth studio album Fossora, the wonky and wonderful new song ‘Atopos’.
Earlier this month, Björk stated in an interview that the European dance music of Gabber, specifically the music made by Indonesian duo Gabber Modus Operandi, was a major influence on Fossora. Now, Björk is putting her money where her mouth is by featuring one of the duo’s members, Kasimyn, on ‘Atopos’. Even with a feature credit, make no mistake: this is pure Björk, mostly for better and occasionally for worse.
First, the better. ‘Atopos’ is a sprawling and singular song that proves Björk is still five steps ahead of any of the most progressive or aggressively forward-thinking artists. Featuring slamming percussion and a wild orchestra of wind instruments, most notably the bassoon, ‘Atopos’ is experimental, synthetic, and organic all at the same time. Over the top of the insane arrangement, Björk unfurls a beautiful melody with an appropriately head-scratching set of lyrics.
The worse can depend on how you take your music. If you have absolutely no context for the kind of sounds that usually follow Björk, the mix of bassoons, atmospheric keyboards, and slamming dance beats can sound less like a logical progression and more like a disjointed mess. In parts, ‘Atopos’ is a disjointed mess. But it’s a gloriously curious mess, one that finds Björk pushing her own boundaries rather than leaning into her established sound.
On her social media accounts, Björk describes ‘Atopos’ as “a good intro… kinda like Fossora‘s passport. Sonically a heavy bottom-ended bass world we have 6 bass clarinets, punchy sub drilling, nesting and digging us into the ground.” That might not make any sense out of context, but after listening to ‘Atopos’, it is actually the perfect description.
‘Atopos’ isn’t unpleasant to listen to, it’s just challenging in a way that a lot of Björk’s best work is challenging. If you’ve become bored with the traditional verse-chorus structure of most popular music, Björk has always been waiting to bring you into a completely different world. ‘Atopos’ is just the latest signpost in that ever-expanding world of Björk, and it’s a damn fine piece of work that continues to build her ongoing legend.
Check out the video for ‘Atopos’ down below. Fossora is set for a September 30th release.
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