20-06-2010, 00:02
released June 15th, 2010
![[Image: n94057mp3jn.jpg]](http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drn900/n940/n94057mp3jn.jpg)
from the album - Dancing On My Own
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMth6xZlVJU
from all music
An international pop star -- despite repeated problems with labels that halted her career's momentum several times -- Sweden's Robyn blends the gritty sound of American urban R&B with the sunny pop of her homeland. Robyn found a hit with Do You Know (What It Takes), which hit the Top Ten around the world, including the U.S. Born Robyn Carlsson in Stockholm in 1979, she traveled around the Continent with her parents' traveling theater group, also listening to classic American soul on the hi-fi. She wrote her first song at the age of 11 about her parents' divorce; at 12, she recorded the theme for the Swedish television show Lilla Sportspegeln.
Her big break came at 13, however, when the pop star Meja held a workshop at Robyn's school and heard her sing her song about her parents. In 1994, Meja got her a record contract with Sweden's Ricochet Records, which released her debut single, You've Got That Somethin' and the hit Do You Really Want Me (Show Respect). Though she was still only 16, Robyn began recording her debut album in 1995 with producers Max Martin and Denniz Pop and co-songwriters Ulf Lindström and Johan Ekhé. The results, Robyn Is Here, quickly topped the Swedish charts. When the album was released in the U.S. almost a year and a half later, the single Do You Know (What It Takes) hit the Top Ten, as did Show Me Love. She was set to support the Backstreet Boys on their 1997 tour, but she had to pull out of the shows due to exhaustion. In 1998 Robyn began work on her second album, My Truth, which was released the following year in Europe, where Electric was a smash hit single. However, Robyn's U.S. label didn't feel that America would respond to My Truth as it was, and suggested that she re-record parts of the album. She refused, and the album was not released in the States. Robyn also became a UNICEF ambassador in 1999 and traveled the world for two years.
She returned to music by contributing "Say You'll Walk the Distance" to the On the Line soundtrack, and moved from RCA to Jive for her 2002 album, Don't Stop the Music, which ended up being a Swedish-only release; only the album's singles were released in Europe. Despite the album's limited release, other artists covered songs from it, including Beverley Knight, who released a version of "Keep This Fire Burning." Disheartened by her continuing label troubles, Robyn returned to Stockholm in 2003, where she heard the Knife's debut album, Deep Cuts. She was so impressed by the duo's experimental, futuristic synth pop that she collaborated with them on her next single, Who's That Girl. However, her label didn't like the track and instead released 2004's Robyn's Best in the U.S. and another compilation in Sweden.
Robyn bought herself out of the rest of her contract, formed her own label, Konichiwa, in 2005, and collaborated with the Knife, the Teddybears STHLM's Klas à hlund, and Alexander Kronlund. The single Be Mine and her fourth, self-titled album arrived later that year and earned several Swedish Grammys, including Best Album, Best Female Pop Artist, and Best Songwriter (which she shared with à hlund). Robyn continued to gain momentum in 2006, appearing on Basement Jaxx's Crazy Itch Radio and releasing the Rakamonie EP, a collection of covers and alternate takes. Robyn was released in the U.K. in 2007, as was the single Konichiwa Bitches. The ballad "With Every Heartbeat" really reestablished Robyn in the U.K., reaching number one on the singles chart that summer. Rakamonie was finally released in the U.S. in early 2008, and Robyn was scheduled for a U.S. release that spring. She began working on new material that year, choosing Diplo, Klas à hlund, and Röyksopp as some of her collaborators. Early in 2010, the single Fembot arrived, along with the news that Robyn would release not one album that year but three short ones, beginning with Body Talk, Pt. 1, which was released that June.
album review
Robyn's 2005 self-titled album showed that when she was free to do whatever she wanted, she could do just about anything. However, it took a while for Robyn to reach all of her listeners -- the U.S. had to wait until 2008 to discover it was a modern pop classic -- and during that time, she amassed enough songs to fill three mini-albums. Since she doesnât have to prove what she can do in the confines of one release, Body Talk, Pt. 1 is a more focused listen than Robyn was. At eight songs long, itâs also leaner, and a little meaner: Robyn sounds more frustrated and assertive than ever on âDonât ******* Tell Me What to Do,â a hard-edged dance track topped by a litany of everything thatâs killing her: her shoes, her diet, her manager, her label. The words and tension are so dense that thereâs no room for any musical embellishment besides stark beats and synths, and itâs not till the song is almost finished that Robyn finally lashes out with the songâs titular chorus. Sheâs not afraid to brag on the dancehall-tinged âNone of Demâ and Diplo-produced âDance Hall Queen,â but her boasts are more tempered than Robyn's taunts. Instead, she shows that sheâs as independent as ever in different ways -- most often by displaying her vulnerability. As revved-up as Robyn sounds on âFembot,â thereâs a sensitive undercurrent behind Klas à hlund's whiz-bang production, and though âCry When You Get Olderââs melody is pure bubblegum simplicity, Robyn's advice to boys and girls (âlove hurts when you do it rightâ) is anything but. She can also capture the heartache of a fiercely independent woman like few others, and âDancing on My Ownâ's wounded strength and soaring melody make it Body Talk, Pt. 1's âWith Every Heartbeat.â The album takes a much more intimate turn as it closes, with the acoustic version of âHang with Meâ finding a unique perspective on being âjust friendsâ; the traditional Swedish song âJag Vet en Dejlig Rosaâ (I Know of a Lovely Rose) ends the album with Robyn singing of a faraway love with just a vibraphone accompanying her. Capturing the freedom and loneliness of independence, Body Talk, Pt. 1 is a concise set of songs on its own, and an impressive first third of the whole ambitious project.
Track Listing
1 Don't ******* Tell Me What to Do Ahlund, Robyn 4:12
2 Fembot Ahlund, Robyn 3:34
3 Dancing on My Own Berger, Robyn 4:48
4 Cry When You Get Older Ahlund, Robyn 3:35
5 Dancehall Queen Ahlund, Robyn 3:39
6 None of Dem Berge, Brundtland, Robyn 5:11
7 Hang with Me Ahlund, Robyn 3:18
8 Jag Vet en Dejlig Rosa Ahlund, Robyn 2:10
from the album - Dancing On My Own
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMth6xZlVJU
from all music
An international pop star -- despite repeated problems with labels that halted her career's momentum several times -- Sweden's Robyn blends the gritty sound of American urban R&B with the sunny pop of her homeland. Robyn found a hit with Do You Know (What It Takes), which hit the Top Ten around the world, including the U.S. Born Robyn Carlsson in Stockholm in 1979, she traveled around the Continent with her parents' traveling theater group, also listening to classic American soul on the hi-fi. She wrote her first song at the age of 11 about her parents' divorce; at 12, she recorded the theme for the Swedish television show Lilla Sportspegeln.
Her big break came at 13, however, when the pop star Meja held a workshop at Robyn's school and heard her sing her song about her parents. In 1994, Meja got her a record contract with Sweden's Ricochet Records, which released her debut single, You've Got That Somethin' and the hit Do You Really Want Me (Show Respect). Though she was still only 16, Robyn began recording her debut album in 1995 with producers Max Martin and Denniz Pop and co-songwriters Ulf Lindström and Johan Ekhé. The results, Robyn Is Here, quickly topped the Swedish charts. When the album was released in the U.S. almost a year and a half later, the single Do You Know (What It Takes) hit the Top Ten, as did Show Me Love. She was set to support the Backstreet Boys on their 1997 tour, but she had to pull out of the shows due to exhaustion. In 1998 Robyn began work on her second album, My Truth, which was released the following year in Europe, where Electric was a smash hit single. However, Robyn's U.S. label didn't feel that America would respond to My Truth as it was, and suggested that she re-record parts of the album. She refused, and the album was not released in the States. Robyn also became a UNICEF ambassador in 1999 and traveled the world for two years.
She returned to music by contributing "Say You'll Walk the Distance" to the On the Line soundtrack, and moved from RCA to Jive for her 2002 album, Don't Stop the Music, which ended up being a Swedish-only release; only the album's singles were released in Europe. Despite the album's limited release, other artists covered songs from it, including Beverley Knight, who released a version of "Keep This Fire Burning." Disheartened by her continuing label troubles, Robyn returned to Stockholm in 2003, where she heard the Knife's debut album, Deep Cuts. She was so impressed by the duo's experimental, futuristic synth pop that she collaborated with them on her next single, Who's That Girl. However, her label didn't like the track and instead released 2004's Robyn's Best in the U.S. and another compilation in Sweden.
Robyn bought herself out of the rest of her contract, formed her own label, Konichiwa, in 2005, and collaborated with the Knife, the Teddybears STHLM's Klas à hlund, and Alexander Kronlund. The single Be Mine and her fourth, self-titled album arrived later that year and earned several Swedish Grammys, including Best Album, Best Female Pop Artist, and Best Songwriter (which she shared with à hlund). Robyn continued to gain momentum in 2006, appearing on Basement Jaxx's Crazy Itch Radio and releasing the Rakamonie EP, a collection of covers and alternate takes. Robyn was released in the U.K. in 2007, as was the single Konichiwa Bitches. The ballad "With Every Heartbeat" really reestablished Robyn in the U.K., reaching number one on the singles chart that summer. Rakamonie was finally released in the U.S. in early 2008, and Robyn was scheduled for a U.S. release that spring. She began working on new material that year, choosing Diplo, Klas à hlund, and Röyksopp as some of her collaborators. Early in 2010, the single Fembot arrived, along with the news that Robyn would release not one album that year but three short ones, beginning with Body Talk, Pt. 1, which was released that June.
album review
Robyn's 2005 self-titled album showed that when she was free to do whatever she wanted, she could do just about anything. However, it took a while for Robyn to reach all of her listeners -- the U.S. had to wait until 2008 to discover it was a modern pop classic -- and during that time, she amassed enough songs to fill three mini-albums. Since she doesnât have to prove what she can do in the confines of one release, Body Talk, Pt. 1 is a more focused listen than Robyn was. At eight songs long, itâs also leaner, and a little meaner: Robyn sounds more frustrated and assertive than ever on âDonât ******* Tell Me What to Do,â a hard-edged dance track topped by a litany of everything thatâs killing her: her shoes, her diet, her manager, her label. The words and tension are so dense that thereâs no room for any musical embellishment besides stark beats and synths, and itâs not till the song is almost finished that Robyn finally lashes out with the songâs titular chorus. Sheâs not afraid to brag on the dancehall-tinged âNone of Demâ and Diplo-produced âDance Hall Queen,â but her boasts are more tempered than Robyn's taunts. Instead, she shows that sheâs as independent as ever in different ways -- most often by displaying her vulnerability. As revved-up as Robyn sounds on âFembot,â thereâs a sensitive undercurrent behind Klas à hlund's whiz-bang production, and though âCry When You Get Olderââs melody is pure bubblegum simplicity, Robyn's advice to boys and girls (âlove hurts when you do it rightâ) is anything but. She can also capture the heartache of a fiercely independent woman like few others, and âDancing on My Ownâ's wounded strength and soaring melody make it Body Talk, Pt. 1's âWith Every Heartbeat.â The album takes a much more intimate turn as it closes, with the acoustic version of âHang with Meâ finding a unique perspective on being âjust friendsâ; the traditional Swedish song âJag Vet en Dejlig Rosaâ (I Know of a Lovely Rose) ends the album with Robyn singing of a faraway love with just a vibraphone accompanying her. Capturing the freedom and loneliness of independence, Body Talk, Pt. 1 is a concise set of songs on its own, and an impressive first third of the whole ambitious project.
Track Listing
1 Don't ******* Tell Me What to Do Ahlund, Robyn 4:12
2 Fembot Ahlund, Robyn 3:34
3 Dancing on My Own Berger, Robyn 4:48
4 Cry When You Get Older Ahlund, Robyn 3:35
5 Dancehall Queen Ahlund, Robyn 3:39
6 None of Dem Berge, Brundtland, Robyn 5:11
7 Hang with Me Ahlund, Robyn 3:18
8 Jag Vet en Dejlig Rosa Ahlund, Robyn 2:10