Björk returns with enchanting album

Björk's iconic image is intrinsic to her art. Prominently featured on the cover of all her albums and most of her singles and videos, the way she presents herself on the outside packaging is usually a good clue to what's going on inside. \nCompare the cyber-kabuki queen of 1997's Homogenic with the reclining, vulnerable Björk on the cover of her new album Vespertine and you'll get the idea. Homogenic's Atari bleeps and bloops, skittering beats and taut string quartets have been replaced with a more delicate, flowing musical texture that is not as immediately arresting as some of her earlier work, but rewards repeated listening.\nVespertine's song titles and lyrics seem preoccupied with escape and desire for emotional safety ("Hidden Place," "Cocoon") -- again, the temptation to contrast the mood with Homogenic's far more aggressive "Hunter" and "Bachelorette" is irresistible. On "Undo," she flatly states, "Surrender/Give yourself in/You're trying too hard." Presumably, some of these songs came out of the emotionally draining experience of filming her lead role in "Dancer in the Dark," her first -- and apparently last -- film.\nBjörk has always chosen her collaborators well, and Vespertine is no exception. San Francisco's resident avant-garde techno duo Matmos help out on the electronic end, while harpist Zeena Parkins and string arranger Vince Mendoza give the tracks a lush, layered feel. But the most innovative instrumentation on Vespertine is the music box, arranged by Björk and "adapted to music box" by Jack Perron. Their delicate sounds anchor the middle of the record, giving songs like "Pagan Poetry" a crystalline grace that's undeniably Björk.\nIt's hard to tell after a dozen listens what Vespertine will sound like a year from now, but unlike some electronic-based pop, Björk's records tend to get better with age. Vespertine is not a landmark like Homogenic, but judged on its own merits, it's a thing of rare beauty.