Before Volta was released, I read a press release from the record company that said they were really looking forward to the release of the album and it was the most mainstream and commercially accessible album she’d put out to date. And then I listened to it, as did my friend, who provided the above quote. I’m not sure if it’s accessible or not, but I do know I’m not a fan of this latest effort.

I have a great admiration for Debut, Post, and Homogeneic; I absolutely loved Medulla. Each of those albums have a sense of excitement and fresh ideas about them. But Volta doesn’t. There are a few neat tracks, but even my favourite song on the album (“Innocense”) sounds like something that could have been taken from one of her earlier albums. They must have hoped that Timbaland would have helped boost album sales, but he’s nothing really special on this album. Including Antony Hegarty (from Antony and The Johnsons) is an interesting choice, but his vocals are very specific and don’t blend with Björk at all, which might be the point but doesn’t make me like it any better. Another thing that really irks me is the cd package: needing to peel off a sticker every time you have to open the cd is really user-unfriendly.

Overall, Volta is flat, boring, and at times, unlistenable. A few good tracks don’t make up for it.

Notable Tracks: Earth Intruders (until the end); Innocence.