Leave it to Björk to make a concert release that can be treated as part of her regular body of work rather than a side note. While Björk fans have occasionally complained about the amount of repackaging of her albums, Voltaic reaffirms just how important the live aspect is to her music, and provides a couple of different perspectives on it as well. The basic version of Voltaic offers a live CD recorded in one take at London's Olympic Studio, just hours before Björk and her band -- which included Volta collaborators Mark Bell and Chris Corsano as well as the ten-piece all-female Icelandic brass section/choir she put together for the album -- played 2007's Glastonbury Festival. Given that the live CD was recorded in better conditions than many studio albums are, it's no surprise that the sound quality is excellent -- almost too excellent. This is not a warts-and-all concert recording with the occasional muddy audio and lots of crowd interaction; instead, it feels like the listener is hiding in a studio booth as Björk and her band perform a flawless rehearsal. While this approach is a little removed, the results are impressive: the Volta tracks ("Earth Intruders," "Wanderlust," "Vertebrae by Vertebrae," and "Declare Independence") actually have more impact here than they did on the original album, while the classic songs ("Pagan Poetry," "All Is Full of Love," "Hunter," "I Miss You") adapt to the percussion-heavy Volta approach well.
Condition:Brand new factory sealed.
TRACK LISTING
Disc 1
1 Wanderlust / Martin Björk 5:46
2 Hunter / Martin Björk 4:18
3 The Pleasure Is All Mine / Martin Björk 3:20
4 Innocence / Martin Björk 3:59
5 Army of Me / Martin Björk 4:20
6 I Miss You / Martin Björk 3:30
7 Earth Intruders / Martin Björk 3:51
8 All Is Full of Love / Martin Björk 4:04
9 Pagan Poetry / Martin Björk 5:14
10 Vertebrae by Vertebrae / Martin Björk 5:08
11 Declare Independence / Martin Björk 4:18
Disc 2
1 Brennið Pið Vitar / Martin Björk DVD
2 Earth Intruders / Martin Björk DVD
3 Hunter / Martin Björk DVD
4 Immature / Martin Björk DVD
5 Jóga / Martin Björk DVD
6 The Pleasure Is All Mine / Martin Björk DVD
7 Vertebrae by Vertebrae / Martin Björk DVD
8 Where Is the Line / Martin Björk DVD
9 Who Is It / Martin Björk DVD
10 Desired Constellation / Martin Björk DVD
11 Army of Me / Martin Björk DVD
12 Bachelorette / Martin Björk DVD
13 Wanderlust / Martin Björk Live in Paris / Multimedia Track
14 Hyperballad / Martin Björk DVD
15 Pluto / Martin Björk DVD
16 Declare Independence / Martin Björk DVD
17 Pneumonia / Martin Björk Live in Reykjavik
18 My Juvenile / Martin Björk Live in Reykjavik
19 Vokuró / Martin Björk Live in Reykjavik
20 Sonnets/Unrealities XI / Martin Björk Live in Reykjavik
21 Mouth's Cradle / Martin Björk Live in Reykjavik
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