whereas ‘debut’ was like the greatest hits of ten years, ‘post’ was like the last two years. for me, all the songs on the album are like saying, ‘listen, this is how i’m doing,’ and that’s why i called the record ‘post’, because i always address my songs back in my head to iceland in a letter. because it was such a big jump for me to move away from all my relatives, all my friends, everything i know.
Björk represents a lot of things to me. I remember on her website (the old one, in the about&about section) when reflecting on Kate Bush, she had mentioned that Bush’s music had a nostalgic quality to them. While she had not really listened to Bush’s records much, she would always have appreciation for their genius, as well as the strength they held during her adolescence. Similarly, Björk’s records held the same nostalgic strength, particularly during my teenage years, and I always reflect on them with excitement (before I reset my last.fm track meter, I was listed as having listened to Björk over 12000 times).
Source: 12 inch |
My first Björk album was Post. I came to it by way of hearing a live version of “Isobel” on a blog’s flash animation probably in 2005 or 2006. I purchased the album version from iTunes, and tried to borrow Post from my public library; However, the only Björk album my library location had was Medúlla. While Medúlla definitely has a place in my heart, I was so set on getting Post that I scrambled as much couch money as I could to get an iTunes card to purchase it off the net. Before I reset my last.fm charts, it was my most played album and “Isobel” was my most played song.
When viewing images from the Post era, you get a sense that everything is new, exciting, and fresh in her career: a new milestone. Currently, I’m feeling the same way – something is on the tip of becoming new, fresh, and exciting for me – a new chapter in my life. Post‘s sense of renewal also reminds me of spring, and I’m really craving an exit from winter, which is equated to death and silence in my mind.
Post is my favorite album, design-wise. It feels so warm, fluid, and cheerful. The color scheme, also used on Cibo Matto’s Viva! La Woman, reinforces those themes. Post is self-actualized: it explicitly and boldly captures Björk’s personality within the album. If Debut is a rookie watercolor painting, and Homogenic is more modern art, but with a computer (think vector art), then Post‘s essence of renewal, warmth, and defined youth is captured through solid paint colors, or oil and colored pencils.
I’m looking forward to a warm and vibrant year.
Ania Kepka
-I love Björk and love this post. Wish more albums gave off visual happiness like this.
Happy new year xx
Ania, nurinek.blogspot.com