Björk is the reigning diva of electronica, always with her finger on the pulse of an ever-diversifying group of remixers, tech-heads, and knob-twiddlers. She smartly passes her work around to elicit a seemingly endless supply of EPs and singles that tie in nicely with her full-length releases. "Hunter," the first single from her album Homogenic, spawned a trio of remix CDs, available separately or as a box set with the accompanying video directed by Paul White. The first track here is the album version, with it's sputtering rhythm and beautiful intensity that showcases her long-time collaboration with sonic pioneer Mark Bell (LFO). A slight twist follows from the electronic duo Funkstorung, who instead provide a warm static remix for "All Is Full of Love," another prominent single from the album. Doing their best Autechre imitation, de Luca and Kakesch keep the tempo from getting predictable, while maintaining the sweetness of the original track with beautiful chords looming in the distance. The third and final mix comes from Mike Paradinas, aka µ-ziq, Kid Spatula, Gary Mocheles, Jake Slazenger, etc.; this mix is atypical for Paradinas, who normally does everything at break-neck speed. Instead he keeps things menacing and slow, as he playfully manipulates the string section from the original "Hunter" recording and interjects piercing, ring-modulated percussives, and keyboard noise, along with generous use of Björk's sweeping vocals that howl, lilt, and whisper with danger. This trio of electronic treasures is not for the dancefloor, but certainly is something to hear.
© Keir Langley /TiVo