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| Genre = | Length = 55:33 | Label = One Little Indian | Producer = | Last album = ''Selmasongs'' (2000) | This album = ''Vespertine'' (2001) | Next album = ''Greatest Hits'' (2002) | Misc = }} ''Vespertine'' is the fifth studio album by Icelandic musician Björk, released on 27 August 2001, on One Little Indian Records. It was recorded at locations in Spain, Iceland and the United States in 2000; production began during the filming of ''Dancer in the Dark'', which was characterized by conflict between the singer and director Lars von Trier. ''Björk'', a self-titled coffee table book containing photographs of the singer throughout her career, was released simultaneously with the album. The album peaked at number 19 on the ''Billboard'' 200 in the US and at number 8 on the UK Albums Chart. Three singles were released from ''Vespertine'': "Hidden Place", "Pagan Poetry" and "Cocoon". The record was certified Gold in Canada, France and the UK. It is her first number one album. Björk wanted to make an album with an intimate, winter, domestic sound. With the rising popularity of Napster and music downloads, she decided to use instruments whose sound would not be compromised when downloaded and played in a computer: these include the harp —played by Zeena Parkins—, celesta, clavichord and music boxes, the latter were custom made; strings are also heavily featured. In ''Vespertine'' Björk also added "microbeats" made from the sampling of shuffling cards and ice being cracked, among other household sounds with the help of the duo Matmos. Lyrically, it revolves around sex and love —sometimes explicitly—, inspired by the singer's new relationship with Matthew Barney. Other lyrical sources include a poem by E. E. Cummings, the play ''Crave'' and collaborator Harmony Korine. ''Vespertine''s sound reflected Björk's newly found interest in the music of artists such as Thomas Knak, who was also enlisted as a producer. ''Vespertine'' was widely acclaimed by critics. Praise centred on its erotic, intimate mood and sonic experimentation. The record has been featured in several publications' lists of the best albums of 2001 and the best albums of the decade, and was often considered Björk's best album to date. In 2001, the singer enlisted Zeena Parkins, Matmos and an Inuit choir to embark in the Vespertine World Tour. == Background and development == Björk had released her previous studio album, ''Homogenic'', in 1997. The album was highly acclaimed on its initial release and stylistically differed from her previous two releases, described by her as "very emotionally confrontational and () very dramatic", and "everything on 11..f. a lot of steroids in the air." In 2000, she acted in Lars von Trier's ''Dancer in the Dark'', and composed its soundtrack, ''Selmasongs''. The filming process was conflictive; Von Trier believes the problem was they both were used to being the "dictator" over their products and Björk's inability to separate herself from her character. Björk wrote "he has to destroy (female leads ) during the filming" and declared that she would never make another movie.〔 However, the film was awarded the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, and she received the Best Actress award. On 25 March 2001, Björk attended the 73rd Academy Awards —as she was nominated for Best Original Song— wearing a swan dress designed by Marjan Pejoski that caused media frenzy and was widely criticized. While she worked on the film, she also began producing her next album, writing new music and teaming with new collaborators; she has said "''Selmasongs'' was the day job and ''Vespertine'' was the hobby" Her new relationship with artist Matthew Barney and the tension while filming ''Dancer in the Dark'' have been referred to as the two major forces that shaped what would become ''Vespertine''.〔Pytlik, 2003. p.155〕 As the process of filming demanded her to be extroverted, the new music she was creating became hushed and tranquil as a way to escape.〔Pytlik, 2003. p.155〕 Björk commissioned Valgeir Sigurðsson to relocate some of his studio equipment from Iceland to Denmark, where ''Dancer in the Dark'' was being filmed.〔Pytlik, 2003. p.155〕 While living in Copenhagen she also contacted the electronic musician Thomas Knak (aka Opiate), after having enjoyed his 1999 album ''Objects for an Ideal Home''.〔Pytlik, 2003. p.156〕 Björk's musical taste shifted from the "clang and clatter" and "thumping techno that characterized ''Homogenic'',〔Pytlik, 2003. p.159〕 as she "was bored with big beats".〔 Björk then set to make a record with a domestic mood featuring "everyday moods and everyday noises translating into melodies and beats,"〔 hence its working title ''Domestika''.〔 As she wanted to write her own songs in music boxes, Björk contacted a music box company, requesting see-through acrylic glass boxes because she wanted it to sound "as hard as possible, like it was frozen." She also began to use her laptop to write music, and decided to use instruments whose sound wouldn't be compromised when downloaded from sites such as Napster. She explained:
Her relationship with Barney influenced her lyrics, which now were more intimate, detailed and revealing as opposed to her past works.〔Pytlik, 2003. p.160〕 A particular example is the heart of the album, "Cocoon", which is sexually explicit.〔 The eventual title change of the record reveals its changing nature: writer and critic Mark Pytlik writes "where () signified a focus of extracting magic from the platitudes of everyday life, () () suggested a creation of magic through much more powerful forces. In fine style, Björk had set out to write an album about making sandwiches. She'd ended up with an album about making love."〔 "Heirloom" was an existing instrumental track titled "Crabcraft" by electronic musician Console, off his 1998 album ''Rocket in the Pocket''. Björk contacted Console in early 2000 and they met in London, she then added her vocals on top.〔Pytlik, 2003. p.161〕 "Undo" was written in a two-week session with Knak that January in Reykjavik, Björk recorded her vocals on top of Knak's minimalist rhythmic backbone and months later she had added a full choir and string section.〔〔Pytlik, 2003. p.162〕 "Cocoon", also produced by Knak, was one of the last songs to be written for the album; its melody came to Björk in a sudden rush and she contacted him.〔 Knak took it as a chance to make a more minimal track, similar to his own releases.〔 His original treatment of "Cocoon", made with an Ensoniq ASR-10, appeared relatively intact in the final version.〔 Björk also worked with Bogdan Raczynski on the song "Who Is It", but the track did not follow the direction of the record and was subsequently included in the album ''Medúlla''.〔 In ''Homogenic'' Björk usually used one loud beat, but in ''Vespertine'' she wanted to make a "microcosmos of thirty or forty beats interacting."〔Gestsdóttir, R. (Director). (2003). ''Minuscule'' (). One Little Indian〕 She then started to record noises around her house to make beats out of them. Once the songs were almost finished, Björk contacted the duo Matmos, who she considered "virtuosos" in the field, and sent them various songs to work with.〔 They added beats made from the noise of crushing ice and shuffling cards, among others. In her documentary ''Minuscule'', Björk explained that "the key to what we were looking for was taking something ''very very very very'' tiny and magnifying it up to big. And it sorta gave you a sensation that you've been told a secret, the same way as if you see a picture of a cell in the body magnified very big, you get this feeling that you are being trusted for some insight information. And I guess this whole album is very much like this."〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Vespertine」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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