Bjork at Asiaworld Expo. 28/2/08 - by Nick the Bookman.


It's been more than a decade since Bjork last graced HK with her presence. Can't remember much of that gig at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Happy Valley, except for Bjork singing "It's Oh So Quiet" to an approving/baffled audience. Her opening act was Black Dog a/k/a Plaid who turned in a twisty set of cool electronica. Part Future Sound Of London soundscapes, part curling 'tronic textures recalling Autechre and Andy Weatherall styledance beats and FX. Now, she's bringing The Volta Tour to HK.

There's quite a good turnout at the Asiaworld Hall #6. It's split, more or less evenly, between the $780 punters getting up front and personal and the $480 ticket-holders stuck behind a fence about 60 metres from the stage. It would be nice if more bands emulated Nine Inch Nails who charged a flat rate and allowed the audience freedom of movement. Those iron railings can hurt if you're squashed up a gainst them for too long. The security doesn't seem heavy-handed tonight and people are free to bring their drinks inside with them. Have spotted Jamie (from Bone Table) and Deidre near the mixing desk. Also saw Vivian from Lamma somewhere in the crowd. I know Sian and Chunny are here, slumming it up front. The stage is adorned with 8 green and red silk(?) banners in a Japanese(?)-style. Pictures of mythical animals or Chinese Zodiac logos(?) are embroidered on them.

It's about 2030 before the sporadic cheering becomes sustained and a large brass section parps and tootles its way on stage, stopping at the far right. All ladies, possibly as many as 14. Can't quite tell, because they're all bobbing and weaving around with the beat. Late in the show, Bjork says they're called "the wonderful Wonderbra"s (or Wonderbrass?). They are fantastic in a John Barry meets wistful 60's UK psychedelic sort of way. Haunting trumpets, Viking horns, understated brass licks, flourishes and occasional fanfares. By way of analogy, they're comparable to the Czech-Irish song "Falling Slowly". A simple duet of piano and accoustic guitar, it won the Best Song Oscar. As compared to the other 4 entrants (of which "Happy Working Song" was the next-best for its vocal dexterity). The other 3 tunes were diabetic in the extreme. Slushy, sickly-sweet and mounting a full-blooded stampede into the inhospitable sonic terrain usually occupied by Celine Dion or Kenny G. Excuse me while I vomit...

The other players are Jonas Sen on piano, hapsichord, celeste and organ. Damian Taylor on laptop programming and editing. Mark Bell on beats, breaks and "lots of those things". Finally, Chris Corsano on drums, percussion and beats. He's part of the new Cosmic Cowboy Collective of American bands, the next generation on from the late 80's Paisley Powerpop of Green On Red and Dream Syndicate. As well as playing with Sunburned Hand of the Man, he's part of a freerock supergroup who concocted a musical homage to the 50's sci-fi radio programme "Dimension X". The album incorporates original snippets of dialogue, atmospheric and eerie electronics, percussion and white noise. I am having one hell of a time trying to locate a copy, despite a glowing review in Mojo 171 (Feb. 2008). Any help greatly appreciated.

The show is a stunning success. Complex poly-rhythms, spacy FX, melodies to die for and brutal, thundering percussion leave the crowd both flabber and gasted. Although, Roger Waters' mesmerising "Dark Side of the Moon" show last year set the digital standard, this isn't bad at all. Up there with Nine Inch Nails I'd say. The band crashes into "Earth Intruders" as an opener and then runs through the Volta album, punctuated with the occasional hits like "Big Time Sensuality" (I might be wrong, but it sure sounded like parts of it) and "Hyperballad". Bjork's first comments to the audience are a plea to "do us a favour. Turn the cameras off and be with us in the moment".

Her vocals range from the innocence of The Langley School's Project singing "Space Oddity" to Nina Hagen in her NunSexMonkRock period to German torch singer Ute Klemper as backed by Bernard Herrmann doing "Psycho". She says "Think yew. Think yew verry merch" in her enchanting mix of Icelandic/English at the end of most numbers. I wish she had done less Thanking Of The Audience and more Naming Of The Tunes. Not every person in the hall is a rabid fan who knows every note intimately. A minor quibble, I know. All too soon, the band has finished and marched offstage.They return after about 5 minutes. Bjork sings a song she performed at the Athens Olympics and ends with "Declare Independence", accompanied by spouting columns of confetti which cause the green lasers to sparkle and twinkle. Thanks for a great night.

At her next show in Shanghai, Bjork has A Controversial Moment when she chants "Tibet, Tibet" during her rendition of "Declare Independence" This causes apoplexy among some fuddy-duddies who are quick to show their (anonymous) anger on various websites. I imagine the HK audience would have been broadminded and free thinking enough to understand or even applaud the sentiment. Perhaps Bjork should have chanted Tien An Men(?) instead. Or maybe not as the Chinese leadership doesn't like being reminded it can do wrong in this glorious Year Of The Rat, culminating in The Beijing (and HK) Olympics. Maybe, only one Artist a year is allowed to criticise and don't expect to see Stephen Spielberg visiting the mainland in this lifetime or the next. Meanwhile, Incubus are waiting in the wings, just behind Santana...

_________________
Click here for Lamma-zine stories and recent Lamma Spotlights of the Week:
Photo, Video, Person, Wildlife, Bird, Artwork.