''Country Creatures'' is a collaborative

remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP) by Icelandic musician

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct three-octave vocal range and eccentric persona, she has de ...

; Swedish musician

Karin Dreijer Karin Elisabeth Dreijer (born 7 April 1975) is a Swedish singer-songwriter and record producer. Dreijer was one half of the electronic music duo the Knife, formed with their brother Olof Dreijer. Dreijer released their debut solo album under ...

under their alias Fever Ray; and

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

duo the Knife, consisting of Dreijer and their brother, DJ and record producer

Olof Dreijer Olof Björn Dreijer (born 27 November 1981) is a Swedish DJ and record producer, best known as one half of the electronic music duo the Knife, formed with his sibling Karin Dreijer. Although the Knife very rarely performed live concerts, Olof ...

. The three remixes were initially released digitally as individual singles on 6 September 2019 followed by a limited edition

12" vinyl The twelve-inch single (often written as 12-inch or 12″) is a type of vinyl ( polyvinyl chloride or PVC) gramophone record that has wider groove spacing and shorter playing time with a 'single' or a few related sound tracks on each surfac ...

One Little Indian Records One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In th ...

released on 1 November 2019.

Background

''Country Creatures'' takes its title from the two songs remixed in the collection: "This Country" from Fever Ray's album '' Plunge'', and "Features Creatures" from Björk's ''

Utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', describing a fictional ...

'', both released in 2017; one cover art of the EP combines those of both albums. In a social media post announcing the collab, Björk revealed that she chose the Fever Ray track she would remix and vice versa. On 5 September 2019, Fever Ray shared a photo on their

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

page featuring them and Björk with a countdown clock. At midnight, three separate remix singles were released, one a remix of Fever Ray's "This Country" done by Björk and two remixes of "Features Creatures", one by Fever Ray and the other by the Knife. Despite the fact that the Knife officially disbanded in 2014, ''

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...

'' notes that the name is sometimes still used on remixes. Björk adds her own vocals to Fever Ray's track, and her remix is titled "This Country Makes It Hard to Fuck". It was also announced that the three remixes are collected in a limited edition

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl m ...

called ''Country Creatures'', released by Björk's label

One Little Indian One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In th ...

on 1 November 2019.

Critical reception

Consequence of Sound ''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook ...

'' noted Björk's reworking of Fever Ray's "This Country", calling it "a disturbing,

dissonant In music, consonance and dissonance are categorizations of simultaneous or successive Sound, sounds. Within the Western tradition, some listeners associate consonance with sweetness, pleasantness, and acceptability, and dissonance with harshness ...

industrial Industrial may refer to: Industry * Industrial archaeology, the study of the history of the industry * Industrial engineering, engineering dealing with the optimization of complex industrial processes or systems * Industrial city, a city dominate ...

collage" and praised their newly added vocals as "haunting". It described Fever Ray's "Features Creatures" remix as "moody atmospherics" and noted the Knife's more

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

-oriented take on the track, and in comparing the two felt that they offered "a fascinating look at arin Dreijer'sdifferent musical palettes".

Track listing

Versions

"Features Creatures" * Album version (CD/digital) – 4:50 * Album version (vinyl) – 4:41 * Fever Ray Remix – 4:07 * The Knife Remix – 4:36 "This Country" * Album version – 3:12 * Björk Remix – 3:02

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Country Creatures 2019 albums Albums produced by Björk Fever Ray albums The Knife albums Björk albums One Little Independent Records albums