The dust has barely had time to settle since the arrival of Body Talk Pt 1, the first instalment of Robyn's ambitious three-part album release plan for this year. Lead single Dancing On My Own, the heartbreaking heir to With Every Heartbeat, went top ten in the UK. It's fair to say many are waiting eagerly for part two, and they wont be disappointed.
Body Talk Pt 2 offers the clearest example yet of Robyn's pop prowess; 8 songs that crystallize her preoccupation with hypnotic repetition, propulsive beats and infectious hooks, and lyrics which display the kind of unabashed emotional vulnerability that only comes with true self-confidence. Body Talk 2 is further proof that Robyn's understanding and love of pop music is as intrinsic as it is accomplished.
As described so succinctly by Sasha Frere Jones in the New Yorker: “(Robyn) is remarkably adept at producing pleasurable, accessible pop that, like some kind of graphite alloy, is light but strong, able to carry humour and emotional weight. Her occasional lyrical references to empowerment and independence are probably exactly what feminism was supposed to look like by 2010.” As Robyn said herself in NME: “I think it's impossible as a sane human being not to have a feminist perspective on the world.”
That perspective, combined with what the Swede describes as “endorphin generating songs”, is at the heart of BTpt2. Album opener In My Eyes sees Robyn rekindling her relationship with With Every Heartbeat collaborator Kleerup to produce a starry-eyed intro which she describes as “Me talking to myself, trying to capture exactly how I feel about my life now”. But listening to her deliver the lines: “I know you think it’s better on the inside with them, you’re better off outside looking back in”, it’s hard not to think of Robyn’s perennial position as the nonchalant outsider amid a crowd of manufactured, vacuous popstars.
Next up it’s Hang With Me, which made its acoustic debut on BTpt1, this time reasserting itself with a thumping backing track provided by her long time collaborator Klas Ahlund (Robyn, Body Talk Pt 1). Track three, Love Kills, is the moody result of a collaboration with Swedish techno-pop duo Savage Skulls, in which the singer warns any romantics out there; “If you’re looking for love, get a heart made of steel, ‘cause you know that love kills” (though being a romantic herself she can’t help but add the caveat: “until that one kind soul reveals itself”). Meanwhile, Criminal Intent sees Robyn back in the familiar territory of steely, tongue-in-cheek rap-pop with lyrics which serve as a reminder of the singer's formidable side. The track also sees her teaming up, once again, with Klas and Diplo, whose many producing plaudits (MIA, Major Lazer) include twiddling knobs on BTpt1's brilliant bout of languid reggae-pop Dancehall Queen.
It’s typical of Robyn that a collaboration between herself and a rapper of Snoop Dogg’s gravitas would see him being the one hoisted out of his natural habitat, forced to keep up with the singer’s penchant for a raised BPM. “When in Rome I sat down with the Romans, said we need a black Pope and she better be a woman,” are the immortal lines she offers to Snoop’s “Ooh-ee!“ in U Should Know Better. Their latest collaboration came about after Robyn remixed Snoops’ Sexual Eruption (original) and Sensual Seduction (alternative version). “He’s a smart guy. He knows when he bumps into something good and he’s open to new things. He liked what I was doing, and so we scheduled some studio time in Los Angeles. I was star struck! But all the things I wanted him to be, he was.” This included, says Robyn, the rapper wearing bath slippers throughout the recording.
Include Me Out sees Robyn once again playing the role of the people’s popstar, one who gives a shout out to the trannies and the grannies. “It is really very simple”, says a computer aided voice at the beginning of this glitchy, triumphant electro-pop gem, “just a single pulse repeated at a regular interval”. We Dance to the Beat is the moment where Robyn returns to the titular theme started on Body Talk Pt1, whereby the physicality of dancing is a constant preoccupation. “We dance to the beat of the continents shifting beneath our feet- we dance to the beat of distorted knowledge passed on” she intones robotically, the beat in question a surprisingly subtle popping played out against stratospherically abstract but equally accessible lyrics that hint at everything from, as Robyn herself says, “numbers and repetition, to seismic shifts, to break-ups and coincidences and earthquakes.”
Then comes the appropriately grand finale Indestructible, orchestrated by a surging string section and ebullient lyrics about the power of love. The closing track feels particularly significant for two reasons; it’s fuelled by Robyn’s innate ability to project utter strength in her lyrics while also wearing her heart proudly on her sleeve. Equally, the song was also arranged by Carl Bagge, meaning that everyone, with the exception of Snoop and Diplo, who collaborated on the album is Swedish.
Robyn has never been afraid to embrace naiveté without irony, but neither is she shy of flexing her intelligence and wisdom. There is brawn to her music, but there is also a huge heart at the centre of everything she writes, encapsulated in every song on Body Talk Pt 2.
As for the final part of the Body Talk trilogy, the singer is remaining tight lipped on what to expect. The entire process of the three albums has involved a rapid turnaround between writing, recording and releasing, so Robyn can capture the energy of the year as it plays out. If Body Talk Pt 2 is anything to go by, there's every reason to keep expectations high for the finale.
Tracklisting:
1. In My Eyes
2. Include Me Out
3. Hang With Me
4. Love Kills
5. We Dance To The Beat
6. Criminal Intent
7. U Should Know Better Feat. Snoop Dogg
8. Indestructible (Acoustic Version)
Robyn plays a series of UK shows in October:
18/10 Glasgow ABC
19/10 Manchester Academy 2
21/10 Brighton Concorde
22/10 London Shepherds Bush Empire
The dust has barely had time to settle since the arrival of Body Talk Pt 1, the first instalment of Robyn's ambitious three-part album release plan for this year. Lead single Dancing On My Own, the heartbreaking heir to With Every Heartbeat, went top ten in the UK. It's fair to say many are waiting eagerly for part two, and they wont be disappointed.
Body Talk Pt 2 offers the clearest example yet of Robyn's pop prowess; 8 songs that crystallize her preoccupation with hypnotic repetition, propulsive beats and infectious hooks, and lyrics which display the kind of unabashed emotional vulnerability that only comes with true self-confidence. Body Talk 2 is further proof that Robyn's understanding and love of pop music is as intrinsic as it is accomplished.
As described so succinctly by Sasha Frere Jones in the New Yorker: “(Robyn) is remarkably adept at producing pleasurable, accessible pop that, like some kind of graphite alloy, is light but strong, able to carry humour and emotional weight. Her occasional lyrical references to empowerment and independence are probably exactly what feminism was supposed to look like by 2010.” As Robyn said herself in NME: “I think it's impossible as a sane human being not to have a feminist perspective on the world.”
That perspective, combined with what the Swede describes as “endorphin generating songs”, is at the heart of BTpt2. Album opener In My Eyes sees Robyn rekindling her relationship with With Every Heartbeat collaborator Kleerup to produce a starry-eyed intro which she describes as “Me talking to myself, trying to capture exactly how I feel about my life now”. But listening to her deliver the lines: “I know you think it’s better on the inside with them, you’re better off outside looking back in”, it’s hard not to think of Robyn’s perennial position as the nonchalant outsider amid a crowd of manufactured, vacuous popstars.
Next up it’s Hang With Me, which made its acoustic debut on BTpt1, this time reasserting itself with a thumping backing track provided by her long time collaborator Klas Ahlund (Robyn, Body Talk Pt 1). Track three, Love Kills, is the moody result of a collaboration with Swedish techno-pop duo Savage Skulls, in which the singer warns any romantics out there; “If you’re looking for love, get a heart made of steel, ‘cause you know that love kills” (though being a romantic herself she can’t help but add the caveat: “until that one kind soul reveals itself”). Meanwhile, Criminal Intent sees Robyn back in the familiar territory of steely, tongue-in-cheek rap-pop with lyrics which serve as a reminder of the singer's formidable side. The track also sees her teaming up, once again, with Klas and Diplo, whose many producing plaudits (MIA, Major Lazer) include twiddling knobs on BTpt1's brilliant bout of languid reggae-pop Dancehall Queen.
It’s typical of Robyn that a collaboration between herself and a rapper of Snoop Dogg’s gravitas would see him being the one hoisted out of his natural habitat, forced to keep up with the singer’s penchant for a raised BPM. “When in Rome I sat down with the Romans, said we need a black Pope and she better be a woman,” are the immortal lines she offers to Snoop’s “Ooh-ee!“ in U Should Know Better. Their latest collaboration came about after Robyn remixed Snoops’ Sexual Eruption (original) and Sensual Seduction (alternative version). “He’s a smart guy. He knows when he bumps into something good and he’s open to new things. He liked what I was doing, and so we scheduled some studio time in Los Angeles. I was star struck! But all the things I wanted him to be, he was.” This included, says Robyn, the rapper wearing bath slippers throughout the recording.
Include Me Out sees Robyn once again playing the role of the people’s popstar, one who gives a shout out to the trannies and the grannies. “It is really very simple”, says a computer aided voice at the beginning of this glitchy, triumphant electro-pop gem, “just a single pulse repeated at a regular interval”. We Dance to the Beat is the moment where Robyn returns to the titular theme started on Body Talk Pt1, whereby the physicality of dancing is a constant preoccupation. “We dance to the beat of the continents shifting beneath our feet- we dance to the beat of distorted knowledge passed on” she intones robotically, the beat in question a surprisingly subtle popping played out against stratospherically abstract but equally accessible lyrics that hint at everything from, as Robyn herself says, “numbers and repetition, to seismic shifts, to break-ups and coincidences and earthquakes.”
Then comes the appropriately grand finale Indestructible, orchestrated by a surging string section and ebullient lyrics about the power of love. The closing track feels particularly significant for two reasons; it’s fuelled by Robyn’s innate ability to project utter strength in her lyrics while also wearing her heart proudly on her sleeve. Equally, the song was also arranged by Carl Bagge, meaning that everyone, with the exception of Snoop and Diplo, who collaborated on the album is Swedish.
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