TuneLab
The Cover Mix: Björk
Mixmag
A Björk cover mix promised on Mixmag? We immediately brace for art-school levels of obscurity, ready to Shazam avant-garde compositions while pretending we understood them all along. The vibe is cinematic and intimate, like a headphones-on, late-night dive into experimental soundscapes, far from any dance floor. This is an experimental electronic journey, averaging 138 BPM but spanning from ambient drift to rhythmic pulse, with keys like 8A and 8B providing a modal, often melancholic harmonic foundation.
The energy is overwhelmingly mid-range, focusing on textual richness and vocal expression over rhythmic drive, with sparse low-end and minimal high-frequency activity to create a heady, immersive atmosphere. The curation is breathtakingly eclectic: Carl Stone's 'Shing Kee' opens with glitched-out musique concrète, while Arca's 'Anoche' closes with haunting, fragmented balladry. In between, Roomful of Teeth's 'Partita' movement offers choral minimalism, and Shara Worden's 'Death Speaks' delivers art-song fragility.
The inclusion of Björk's own 'Losss' with Arca and Rabit ties the theme together with futuristic grief, and LFZ's 'The Witch' adds a touch of darkwave ethereality. Traditional nasheeds and Berlioz's 'March to the Scaffold' showcase a fearless, global digression. From the abstract opening, through the emotional peak of Kelela's 'Take Me Apart', to the spectral closing track, this mix is a challenging, rewarding full tracklist for the sonically adventurous.