The Alt-Queens Rate

Fuchsia

Fuchsia

Time to explode...















































































06. Pluto
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Average : 8.96
Highest score : 10 x 7 (@Sprockrooster, @Kuhleezi, @NecessaryVoodoo, @Andy French, @constantino, @Petty Mayonnaise, @kumba)
Lowest score : 7 x 2 (@Aester, @ohnostalgia)

The only non-single left in the rate is booted out just before the top 5. This is such an incredible, abrasive TUNE, one that always makes me want to fuck shit up. I'm actually a little shocked I didn't give it a 10!

@One Stop Candy Shop : Pluto is obviously a very memorable part of Homogenic, but it lacks the subtlety of the rest of the album. It's both essential and out of place, maybe that's its strength. I love that Hyperballad/Pluto medley from Voltaïc.
@AshleyKerwin : This feels like a Garbage demo or remix for the stuttering sound effect.
@Kuhleezi : I don't know a song that goes harder than this. The last minute or so is quite insane and unbelievable. Jaw-dropping.
@blissteria : Brutal stomping electronic rhythms make this propulsive track a real standout.
@NecessaryVoodoo : Catharsis in song is always wonderful and B really lets rip here. A total racket obviously.
@constantino : I live for those aggressive, batshit beats! The timing of the synths and the searing instrumental breaks that carry the track through are so fricking out there, but so very Bjork. And the grunting? YESS! Scream at me!
@Sprockrooster : Jesus mother of a monster. THIS GOES HARD! You have to be in the mood for this guess and currently I am in the mood. This is a blaze of fierce musicality and I lost my wig in the process. So close to my 11! I probably now feel bad as it probably goes now...














































































05. Bachelorette
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Average : 9.3
Highest score : 11 x 1 (@NecessaryVoodoo) 10 x 9 (@One Stop Candy Shop, @Sprockrooster, @Kuhleezi, @Aester, @ohnostalgia, @Andy French, @A&E, @Petty Mayonnaise, @kumba)
Lowest score : 7 x 1 (@blissteria)

We are in the 9s, as the second single from Homogenic leaves us. It made it to #21 in the UK, and the music video even won a VMA. This was in the lead for the longest time, until a few scores around 7 dragged it down. I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with this song- well not so much, 'hate', but I just find it a bit too much at times. However, unsurprisingly most of you love the drama...

@constantino : Not her best but the vocal runs are pretty nice on this track.
@AshleyKerwin : I was gonna say that this sounds like a spy move song, but I feel like you can say that about most of this album.
@blissteria : The spiritual successor to Isobel, this sounds like a Bond theme with the bombast turned up to 11. The whole thing nearly collapses in upon itself, but Bjork manages to right the ship with some of her strongest, most ferocious vocals.
@Sprockrooster : Outstanding lyrics and a massive music video. At first listens this song brings several layers in your face and you have to take the time to dig deep into them.
@Kuhleezi : Pure melodrama done excellently. Let's take a moment to thank the good sis Sjon for writing the best lyrics of the album.
@One Stop Candy Shop : This sounds so rich. You can hear how much effort was put in this song. Dannii Minogue would call this Perfection.
@NecessaryVoodoo : So cinematic and powerful. I also love how everything builds to this dramatic crescendo with Bjork belting out those wordless phrases then it all drops away to just the piano accordion at the end. A hugely underrated instrument that.

 
D

Deleted member 312

Fuck me...that racket Pluto was still in?! What the actual fuck? And Cloudbusting?! It's awful!

Bachelorette and Hunter are the best things on Homogenic. Joga is a bit boring. Running Up That Hill is obviously a classic, but I've never really liked it that much.
 
Kuhleezi

Kuhleezi

9.3, wow, so excited for the average for #1.

The most unique thing about Bachelorette is that the verses sound like a chorus, and vice versa, but she pulls it off. And that accordion, bring me to Montmartre queen.

And I won't stand for all this shade, the top 4 is made up of flawless songs and you'll have to deal.
 
A&E

A&E

they&she
I'm disappointed that Jóga is still in over Bachelorette, but then I guess the former's a fan favourite. It is really lovely but marred by the horrible and completely out of place bassline in the second and third chorus. After the third chorus it just meanders for quite a while which is a bit of a letdown as well, as it never achieves a proper climax.

Meanwhile, Bachelorette was the first Björk song (along with its video) which really clicked with me and made me go "wow, I think now I get why everyone praises her output". It's just Björk turned up to 11 for the entire duration of the song.
JamesJupiter said:
Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)
Cloudbusting
Hunter
Jóga​
Click to expand...
I'd be happy with this order from #1 to #4. Hunter is great with the cellos and the cascading drums towards the end but it's 'just' body-level perception of "great" (sound waves reaching to my eardrums and running through my bones) whereas the two Kate songs have the additional quality which resonates with my heart.

Cloudbusting is one I had to warm up for a long time though, and only 2 years ago or so did I finally start to 'get' it. Regardless of the context of the whole song I was at a place where I really needed to hear "I just know that something is good is going to happen, I don't know when but just saying it could even make it happen" and it became a mantra of sorts for me. Kate delivers that line with hope but also a suggestion of helplessness which is just so fitting to my situation.

Surprisingly, while Running Up That Hill (which remains my favourite) could have used a bit more of a kick live, Cloudbusting exceeded all my expectations. It was touching but also comforting, and with the entire audience chanting – and it being the last song of Kate's last concert to date – I turned into a sobbing mess.
 
D

Deleted member 312

I'm actually a proper fan of Tori, whilst the others I range from being a casual fan (Bjork), to only liking (but really liking) a minority of their material (Kate), to knowing a minute amount of their discography (Joni) to actively disliking (PJ). So I'd always be pulling for La Amos!
 
blissteria

blissteria

So just Kate and Bjork for the top 6? Nothing beats quality songs like quirk!

Winter is handily the best song of the rate by the way. Should have given it my 11. I saw her do it live in my home town a few years ago, and I'm not much of a crier at all, but I started sobbing uncontrollably the moment she got real quiet before one of the choruses. My parents were starting to get to the age that I had to be concerned about their well-being instead of the other way around, and the unguarded tenderness of the lyrics just really got to me. OK, boring personal story over.
 
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blissteria

blissteria

I would have given Bachelorette a 6 but that opening lyric is incredible.
"I'm a fountain of blood, in the shape of a girl"
That is the actual lyric right? I haven't misheard her yet again?!
 
Fuchsia

Fuchsia

Let's kick out another...



































































04. Hunter
hunter_zpsgf1dl6nz.png

Average : 9.36
Highest score : 11 x 1 (@Remorque) 10 x 6 (@Kuhleezi, @ohnostalgia, @NecessaryVoodoo, @Andy French, @constantino, @kumba)
Lowest score : 8 x 3 (@Sprockrooster, @Aester, @AshleyKerwin)

The album opener and third single from Homogenic falls at #4. It's position here slightly better than it's #44 peak in the UK charts. She had this to say about the song...

I guess that song's about when you have a lot of people that work for you and you sort-of have to write songs or people get unemployed, you know? In most cases, it's inspiring but in that particular song I was pissed off with it. I was ready for a break but it didn't seem fair on the people I worked with at the time.
Click to expand...


@Sprockrooster : Not how I expected the album would start. I had no expectations, but this is way more accessible than I imagined. Not an instant stand-out, but at the very least likable. Upped my score for that breathtaking video!
@One Stop Candy Shop : Excellent production and so timeless. And when will your faves go bald and turn into a CGI-icebear?
@Kuhleezi : The production in this is amazing. It totally sets the arctic landscape of the album, and I can't help loving the line "I thought I could organize freedom, how Scandinavian of me". Queen of self-irony.
@blissteria : skittering drumbeats, bolero strings, swooping robotic vocals. Various musical elements fade in and out at seemingly random intervals, culminating in a chaotic middle-8. The blueprint of the album and a gorgeous intro.
@constantino : A stone cold classic. The production, particularly during the intro, makes my poor puss quiver every time. Hunt me down, queen!
@NecessaryVoodoo : Boring personal story time - I was a huge metal fan as a teenager but I was always drawn to metal that incorporated electronics so one day I just randomly decided to download some Bjork from LimeWire (give me a break it was 2002) and I downloaded Hunter and Bachelorette after reading an AllMusic review and being drawn to the striking cover. Beforehand I had just known Bjork as the annoying It's Oh So Quiet hitmaker so when I heard those galloping skittering beats and pulsing bass synth and then Bjork's ghostly vocals I was hooked and that's how she became my ultimate fave.


 
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