Björk shimmies and sways in a strange mushroom forest in the video for “Atopos,” the first single from her upcoming album Fossora. In the Viðar Logi-directed clip, Björk is surrounded by a bass clarinet section and Gabber Modus Operandi’s DJ Kasimyn as she sings about the importance of interpersonal connection:
“If we don’t grow outwards towards love / We’ll implode inwards towards destruction / If my plant doesn’t reach towards you / There’s internal erosion towards all / Pursuing the light too hard is a form of hiding.”
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Musically, “Atopos” extends Björk’s devotion to unconventional instrumental backdrops topped by her instantly recognizable vocals, and lives up to her description last week of the album as “biological techno.”
“It is a good intro — kinda like Fossora´s passport. Sonically a heavy bottom-ended bass world. We have 6 bass clarinets, punchy sub drilling, nesting and digging us into the ground,” Bjork wrote of “Atopos” on Twitter.
The track received an immediate co-sign from Matmos’ Drew Daniel, who worked with Björk on her 2001 album Vespertine. “Top lyrics, bold form/arrangement, wide dynamic difference between pillow soft breakdown and the clamor of its ending,” he wrote on Twitter. “Plus she’s found a way to mix gabber into a tune without a bunch of flammy kicks sounding like a flatulent motorboat. It’s class.”
Fossora is the follow-up to 2017’s Utopia, which was nominated for the best alternative album Grammy. Björk has been fairly active on the road this year after having not toured since 2019, and will play three shows in South America in November as part of Primavera Sound’s expansion to the region.
Björk is also looking back at her discography in the new podcast Sonic Symbolism, which launched last week with episodes on the albums Debut, Post and Homogenic.
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