Debut
by Björk

First Released: 5th July 1993

One Little Indian & Elektra

Review

Coming a year after the breakup of her former band, the Sugarcubes, Björk’s “Debut” is actually her 9th studio album, including the one she released as an 11-year-old and as a member of various bands. This is the true start of her personal artistic expression, however, so it’s something of a fresh start for her. As a committed Björk devotee, this is a record that I know incredibly well, however isn’t one that I listen to often, with much of her later output getting preference for me personally. With that in mind, this was an interesting revisit to a classic recording at the start of a phenomenal and intriguing solo career. Looking back on this with fresh ears, there are clear moments of great quality that suggest the direction of travel that Björk would take with her subsequent albums. Venus As A Boy is stunning, and showcases the harmonic quality of Björk’s writing, but also her ear for a delicious and hooky melody, as well as the whimsical charm that she has come to be known for. Come to Me is of a similar sonic quality, with both of those songs foreshadowing the work that would follow on the next three of her releases. There are even hints of work that would come much later down the line, with tracks like Aeroplane and The Anchor Song, which called Fossora, her most recent album to mind. With that being said, you can definitely hear that Björk is in the nascent stage of her personal musical development. The complexity and deftness of her work isn’t yet fully formed, and there are times when things feel a touch underdeveloped. I actually feel like the co-writes with Nellee Hooper are actually where the bulk of the weakest tracks on the album lie. There’s a very 90s UK dance style to those tracks sonically, but also from a structural and developmental point of view, with a lot of loops and structure dictated by the addition and subtraction of loops, rather than actual musical development. The sonic palette of the record is also very much of its era, which doesn’t help the record to stand up as well as it could do with a more neutral audio signature. Aside from those elements, it’s always a delight to hear Björk’s unique approach to vocals, and her artistic charm and charisma always carries an album. So while this album does feel a little weaker, over 30 years later, it’s still lovely to hear where such a phenomenal journey began, and there is still enough quality present to make this a thoroughly enjoyable and engaging release.

Track by Track

Human Behaviour

Sonically, this is very typical of early 90s UK electronic dance music, but it’s given extra life and quality by Björk’s melodic writing and vocal performance. The rolling, bubbling rhythms are pretty solid, and there are definitely some interesting harmonic choices in there that help lift this up above more routine examples of the underlying genre. It feels like it’s aged a bit, but still works.

Crying

Similarly to the last track, the beats and monophonic piano line are very of their time. The bounce to the beat is great, and the pre-chorus delivers a fantastic atmospheric build into the chorus. There are some great bits of orchestration and sound design, including the bell tones particularly, and the vocal is wonderful, but musically, this isn’t as rich as Björk’s work would become and is definitely more representative of dance music sample layering of the time.

Venus As A Boy

But now we’re cooking. Perhaps, this is in part due to the fact that this is the first solo writing credit on the album for Björk herself, but the orchestration and harmonic structure of the writing feels much more considered and coherent. Melodically this is magical, and the swirling nature of the different tonal elements really paint a beautiful sonic picture. It’s a wide open composition that has well managed movements and every single part pulls together towards a unifying aim. It’s a masterpiece.

There's More To Life Than This (Recorded Live At The Milk Bar Toilets)

This is quite an intriguing concept for a song. Musically, it’s fairly limited, but the execution is great, and the vocal performance, ambience and sound design elements of it are really good. She’s clearly finding her footing with musical experimentation, which is to be applauded, and the ideas are pretty cool, but it’s not the most musically fulfilling song.

Like Someone In Love

And now it’s Björk’s take on a jazz standard, a trick she would repeat on Post. It’s a stripped back arrangement of vocal, harp and sound effects, with a touch of string work later on. But it’s mainly a showcase of her emotive, nuanced and powerful vocal delivery. The harp work is lovely, and it’s a really nice palate cleanser from the more electronic work across the rest of the album. Very pretty and it holds up well.

Big Time Sensuality

Super 90’s synths ahoy! It’s a banger of a track though. Melodically, it’s incredibly hooky, and that chorus is absolutely killer. There’s so much personality too, despite the fairly generic sound palette, and the groove is brilliantly bouncy. There is a bit of sonic range brought in here and there with the addition of bits like the sax and the electric piano work that floats over the top. Björk just sounds like she’s having the best fucking time, and it’s so infectious.

One Day

This is a bit more stripped back again, with a more nuanced sound palette. There are some interesting musical choices, like when she drifts off into the overlapping layered “one day” vocals. I’m not completely sold on the brass sample, but outside of that, I think this takes things in an interesting and slightly more ambient direction.

Aeroplane

Again, we’re delving into the slightly more obtuse end of Björk’s musical decision making. I’m here for it though. She creates these passages with bubbling tension and unconventional harmonic layering across the woodwind instruments. The melodic work is great, but it’s made to sound almost disturbing due to the way the harmonies are structured. This and Anchor Song really foreshadow where she would go on Fossora nearly 30 years later, but this works brilliantly in the sonic space of this album too.

Come To Me

Is it possible to be beautifully menacing? Perhaps. There’s so much beauty to this, and the main soaring vocal line is stunning, but there’s just this little undercurrent that she dips in and out of that feels almost threatening. She’s like a siren drawing a ship onto the rocks. You know something’s wrong, but you’re being drawn in regardless because it’s so pretty. The orchestration is stunning and along with Venus As A Boy, it’s probably one of the main indicators as to the harmonic strength of Björk’s writing ability. Gorgeous.

Violently Happy

90’s dance music, baby! It’s actually a bit more of a subtle interpretation, with the dance music work occupying the background and a very strong and forward focus on the vocal work. There’s some great production work in the background and some solid bits of synth programming work and groove generation, while never overwhelming the melodic focus of the vocal. The atmosphere and vibe is great and it’s another that works very well despite sounding like it’s aged a bit.

The Anchor Song

Again, there’s foreshadowing of Fossora here. The writing of the woodwind is lovely and has such an interesting texture. I love that she’s rounded out the album with a track like this, because it’s so musically interesting and such a sonic departure from the rest of the record. There’s great dynamic and an interesting layered approach to harmony that works so well with her roaming, narrative driven approach to melody. Lovely.

Debut by Björk