Medúlla

''Medúlla'' is the fifth studio album by Icelandic recording artist Björk. It was released on 30 August 2004 in the United Kingdom by One Little Independent Records and in the United States by Elektra Entertainment. After the release of her electronic-influenced previous album '' Vespertine'' (2001), Björk intended to make an album almost entirely constructed with human vocals, in contrast to the previous album's intense process of composition and multiple layers of instrumentation. The album's title derives from the Latin word for "marrow".

''Medúlla'' received critical acclaim from music critics, with many calling it "unique", although others deemed it "confusing". The album was not as commercially successful as her previous albums, but did reach number one in France, Iceland and Wallonia, whilst also peaking within the top ten in the United Kingdom. ''Medúlla'' is estimated to have sold more than a million copies worldwide, and received two nominations at the 47th Grammy Awards.

Two singles were released from ''Medúlla'': " Who Is It" and " Triumph of a Heart", with both charting inside the top 40 in the United Kingdom and the top 10 in Spain. Björk further promoted the album by performing the song "Oceania" at the 2004 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, ''Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'' and other television and radio shows. Other than these few performances, no concerts or tours were arranged to promote ''Medúlla'', as Björk thought it would be too difficult to play the songs live. In 2015, the album was adapted into an opera at the Brussels opera house La Monnaie by Sjaron Minailo and Anat Spiegel.

Background and production

Björk began working on her fifth studio album in 2002, being known as ''The Lake Album'' at the time. In an interview with ''The New Yorker'', she explained that she wanted to get away from the world of instruments and electronics present on her previous album, '' Vespertine'' (2001), and remarked that the project was "very introverted" and avoided eye contact. When she was finishing ''Vespertine'', Björk knew she wanted to make a vocal album, and had known since her teenage years that one day she would. For her, the majority of the album is connected to the time when she was 17 to 18 years old, focusing on aspects of life, love, family, and friends. She commented that she was thinking about how she used to live her life, how carefree she was, and how others around her affected the way she thought, saying it is shown clearly at the core of ''Medúlla''. Björk began working on the album while eight months pregnant by adding her own live drumming to the arrangements of previously recorded demos. She then started muting the instruments, and liked the result of it. She was inspired by paganism, and the idea of returning to a universe that is entirely human, without tools or religion or nationalities. "I wanted the record to be like muscle, blood, flesh. We could be in a cave somewhere and one person would start singing, and another person would sing a beat and then the next person sing a melody, and you could just kind of be really happy in your cave. It's quite rootsy", she added.

Tanya Tagaq, an Inuk throat singer who worked with Björk on her 2001 Vespertine world tour, was also featured. Björk was so impressed with her voice's ability that she invited Tagaq to work with her on the album. She asked British singer Robert Wyatt to be a featured vocalist on the album, as she was looking for something more "passionate" and "human". Additionally, the musician "wanted a bit of rock" on ''Medúlla'', so she invited singer Mike Patton of rock band Faith No More. Björk also invited the London and Icelandic choirs, in order to have a classical feel on the album. However, the "musical fascist" in her decided using any MCs or vocal percussionists would be too "cheesy"; she later changed her mind when she saw beatboxer Rahzel from The Roots freestyle a whole Kraftwerk track without pausing for breath. Björk found his voice "above and beyond any cliché" and thought he was perfect for the album's beat-based songs. Another beatboxer, Dokaka, was invited after Björk got a link to his webpage and liked his covers so much that she decided to work with him; he appears on a few songs.

American singer Beyoncé was planned to be featured on the album as well, but she did not appear due to scheduling issues. When asked what she liked about Beyoncé, Björk stated that " 'Medúlla''is an album about voices, and she's got the most amazing voice."

Artwork and title

The album cover for ''Medúlla'' was photographed by duo Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin in London, on 28 June 2004, and designed by M/M Paris. It features Björk wearing a mask made of hair, which was made specifically for the shoot, a black dress and a necklace that is made of black "bones" that says "Medúlla". The hair mask was created by Icelandic artist Shoplifter. The artist stated that in 2004, she had a show at ATM Gallery, where she displayed a wall mural made of brown braids. Björk appreciated it, and then invited her to work on creating a hair sculpture for the ''Medúlla''s character. She also explained that the singer wanted it to have a darkness about it, and then she sent Björk several references of extreme hairstyles, and because the album was made with voices, Björk wanted something that was part of the human body.

Van Lamsweerde said that they "were all inspired by women's handicrafts and this idea of being in your own cocoon in your home, with your family, and this reclusive character that hand-makes the whole world around her". The hairpiece was part of her 2015 MoMA retrospective. In an interview with ''Style'' magazine, Shoplifter talked about her part at the exhibition, explaining that it dedicated a room to each album of Björk's career, with the ''Medúlla'' section having a mannequin wearing the hairmask and the dress designed by Alexander McQueen which she wore in the music video for " Who Is It".

The title was announced in June 2004 through Björk's official website. She had struggled to choose a suitable title while preparing the album. She said that something in her "wanted to leave out civilisation, to rewind to before it all happened and work out, 'Where is the human soul? What if we do without civilisation and religion and patriotism, without the stuff that has gone wrong?'" She provisionally called it ''Ink'', a title that suggested to her the idea of "that black, 5,000-year-old blood that's inside us all; an ancient spirit that's passionate and dark and survives." Her friend Gabriela then suggested " medulla", a medical term for "marrow" in Latin. She noted that the word refers not only to bone marrow, but also to various other anatomical structures, including parts of the kidney and of hair; in this sense, she said the word represented "getting to the essence of something". The accent on the letter "ú" was intended to make the word cuter with a pun on the Icelandic word " dúlla": "We thought it was funny," she said, "then it became mysterious."

Composition

Style and influences

At the time of its construction, Björk considered ''Medúlla'' to be her most political album, saying that it countered outbreaks of racism and patriotism that followed the 11 September attacks. "On 9/11, in the space of a half an hour, this became the most patriotic place on earth", she recalled. "I remember describing to my friends on my phone that fI turned 180 degrees anywhere I was in New York. I would count at least 37 American flags. So it was kind of scary for a foreigner to be here". Regarding the album's composition, Björk also mentioned that she tried to find the common soul in everything, outside nationality and religion, whilst elaborating that she felt that "in that sense, it's a greatest hits of human spiritualism 'laughs'' I think it's the first time I have done an album while I am reading the news. These are crazy times. It just seems that patriotism is a bad idea. I don't know how directly the album reflects that, but it is sort of anti-patriotic. Anti-Iceland as much as anti-anything".

''Medúlla'' is almost entirely a cappella, also demonstrating avant-garde and experimental music. musicOMH's review stated that, "Despite its voice-only premise, ''Medúlla'' shows off a mile-wide scope of influences", noting elements of folk and medieval music, despite Björk previously stating that ''Medúlla'' was "folk music, but without any folk attached" to the album. She also considered the styles encompassing the album as "primitive and silly". '' Wondering Sound'' wrote that despite "its comparative starkness, 'Medúlla'' isevery bit as sensual as 'Vespertine''. The publication also added: "The electronic treatments range from industrial distortion to percussive glitches and dreamy layering, rarely descending into novelty". The album combines beatboxing