Which is why I am surprised that a CD as 'contemporary' as this has lept out at me and taken me by surprise. I always liked Bjork, her first CD in 1977 is positively delightful, and I have respected her right from her Sugarcube days. I've even listened to 'Hyperballad' on a rainy day at the beach with an overcast sky - a pleasure even being on earth should experience sometime or the other.

But 'Vespertine' evoked mood more than anything Bjork has ever done. It is never dull and boring, never monotonous. Its one of those Groove Armada albums that you can't get enough of. At the same time, it has the hypnotic effect of a U. Srinivas or Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan CD, which is why, above all things, 'Vespertine' is mystifying. I doubt people will be able to throughly understand just how deep Bjork is as a songwriter and composer. This woman has been put on earth a good 2000 years before she should have been born. Like the alien saviours of 'A.I', Bjork's hand has finally created possibly one of the most engaging and important CDs of the twentieth century.

In my opinion, 'Vespertine' is a combination of the gloom of an arctic dweller, with the joie de vivre of the young umbrella-seller in 'Les parapluies de Cherbourg'. Its a spinal album, dark and moody, and one that needs to be discovered by all.

Highly recommended.