Rating: 
Summary: Bad haircut aside, Bjork delivers!
Review: After I bought "Dancer in The Dark" last year I developed this fascination with Bjork. Everything that she's in where it involved singing I would have to buy it which is why I purchased this. I would have given it 5 stars but I considered it to be slighty inferior to the "Live in Cambridge" DVD. What also makes the Shepard Bush Empire performance not as good as the Cambridge performance is the lack of an orchestra backing Bjork which she conviently replaces with a guy playing an accordian which just does not fly well after comparing the two....The only thing that could possibly make her series of DVDs better would have been 5.1 or DTS sound!
Rating: 
Summary: This girl never ceases to amaze me.
Review: Ah yes, one more "björk product" which not only don't I regret buying but left me asking for more. Although I must confess that the concert wasn't exactly what I expected, but it turned out to be better. What I expected was Björk singing and a lot of mixers backstage playing the exact track of each song as it appears on the album. But instead, she decided to take a much more instrumental approach by joining with Yasuhiro "Coba" Kobayahsi on the Accordion, Trevor Morais in the drums and the well known Guy Sigsworth on the keyboards. But she also calls on stage her programmers and mixers who really deserve as much attention as the rest of the musicians.But of course, the center of attention is Björk. As I expected her voice is as superb as always. She doesn't run out of air for once and she doesn't miss a note (I'm starting to suspect that she's not human at all ;) ). Her verbal communication with the public is limited to a "thank you" after every song (with that peculiar icelandic accent) but the again, all she needs to communicate with them is her music. But what's interesting as well is the way she communicates the songs with her body. The way she dances, walks, the gestures she makes.... But perhaps what's so great about this album is that it's very spontaneous. Since it was only one take there's no chance to "edit" the mistakes. In fact, the video has it's "dramatic" moment when the mixer, Leila Arab, seems to be having some problems with the mixing machine while Björk's singing "enjoy". In the end it seems as if the machine just dies and kills all the audio on stage. But the spontaneous aspect of the video doesn't end there. If your planning on singing along while Björk sings you'll be surprised because she changes the order of the lyrics of the songs as she pleases. In fact, she adds up a new paragraph to "possibly maybe". Musically the songs are quite different as well as she takes a much more instrumental approach to each song, in particular with the addition of the accordion. The video also includes a song that doesn't appear on any album composed by Mark Bell and Björk. The song is called "I go humble". As for the other aspects of the video I must mention that the direction is superb. Hats off to David Barnard because this is probably the best directed concert video that I've ever seen, although he doesn't focus much on the public. The scenery was also very nice. Very simple but very nice indeed. Especially when she sings "isobel". So 5 stars for this video. If you're a fan of björk then you should probably buy it. But if what you're looking for is to listen to the songs just as the sound on the album blended with a live performance then you should probably think about it before buying.
Rating:
Summary: Bjork Volumen
Review: Bjork Volumen is one of the best videos that I had ever seen. Bjork writes her own music and when she sings the songs in the videos you can feel exactly what she does at that moment. When I first watched it I wanted to learn more about this young and obviously very talented singer. My most favoret song in the video is Hyper-ballad, because it seams as if she is dreaming and her real life is right there in front of you. All Bjork's songs have a meaning, and all her videos are very abstracted but at the same time very real. I gave the video 5 stars because she won my heart over with her video Bjork Volumen.
Rating:
Summary: Little more vocals please
Review: Everything about this is great but the band is a little louder than Bjork's vocals at times. Nonetheless, this is a great concert. Bjork is in great form. The musicians are extremely talented: the percussionist (awesome), accordianist (very nice), pianist and electronic mixers. The songs are arranged exquisitely and the timing is nothing short of miraculous. Some songs really come alive like Violently Happy, Isobel, Big Time Sensuality, Possible Maybe. The stage is designed really well, the lights are awesome and set the moods well. More of the electronic stuff is towards the end. Bjork also does an awful lot of dancing which is really entertaining. Camera work is very good.
Rating:
Summary: Bjork's Live at Shepherd's Bush is ultimately intimate.
Review: Having been fortunate enough to have seen Bjork at the start of her '95 tour, I was pleased to discover its evolution in "Live At Shepherd's Bush Empire," a 1997 film of that tour. What one can expect to see in the live performance: an intimate, nonstop experience in experimental pop. The staging is postmodern and playful. The music engaging from the start, beginning with "Headphones," a sweet, inviting song about how music can soothe the soul. She then blasts the viewer with "Army of Me," one of her best songs, displaying her ability to combine electronic with organic elements. The show contains duets of a sort wih her purcussionist on a remixed version of"One Day,"(once was danceable jazz is now beat heavy.) Other duets with her band include "You've Been Flirting Again" & "Anchor Song" with her accordionist, another remixed version of an old song, "Big Time Sensuality" with her music programers/mixers, and a cacophonous duet with her other mixer (who may appear familiar to viewers of Bjork's other live video,"Vessel") on "Enjoy." "I Go Humble", a non-album track, is a sure-fire treat for any Bjork fan. The standard Bjork songs are also there, "Venus As a Boy," "Human Behavior," "Isobel," etc. By the time "Violently Happy" rolls around your bound to find yourself raving in your living room. The reason I give only four stars to this fanastic show is that the encore performances are missing from the final product. If you are a fan of experimental, electronic-pop, then this is for you. Nay-sayers of electronic music should also check this out and winess a soul music of a sorts, brought to you by the performer known as Bjork.
Rating:
Summary: Bjork's Live at Shepherd's Bush is ultimately intimate.
Review: Having been fortunate enough to have seen Bjork at the start of her '95 tour, I was pleased to discover its evolution in "Live At Shepherd's Bush Empire," a 1997 film of that tour. What one can expect to see in the live performance: an intimate, nonstop experience in experimental pop. The staging is postmodern and playful. The music engaging from the start, beginning with "Headphones," a sweet, inviting song about how music can soothe the soul. She then blasts the viewer with "Army of Me," one of her best songs, displaying her ability to combine electronic with organic elements. The show contains duets of a sort wih her purcussionist on a remixed version of"One Day,"(once was danceable jazz is now beat heavy.) Other duets with her band include "You've Been Flirting Again" & "Anchor Song" with her accordionist, another remixed version of an old song, "Big Time Sensuality" with her music programers/mixers, and a cacophonous duet with her other mixer (who may appear familiar to viewers of Bjork's other live video,"Vessel") on "Enjoy." "I Go Humble", a non-album track, is a sure-fire treat for any Bjork fan. The standard Bjork songs are also there, "Venus As a Boy," "Human Behavior," "Isobel," etc. By the time "Violently Happy" rolls around your bound to find yourself raving in your living room. The reason I give only four stars to this fanastic show is that the encore performances are missing from the final product. If you are a fan of experimental, electronic-pop, then this is for you. Nay-sayers of electronic music should also check this out and winess a soul music of a sorts, brought to you by the performer known as Bjork.
Rating:
Summary: why buy the dvd?
Review: I have owned and replayed the "Live at Shepherds Bush Empire" VHS video for years. For this reason, I have waited long and patiently for the DVD version. Perhaps you have too, so I won't comment on the brilliance of the concert. However, everything I had hoped for in the DVD release is missing. First, there are no additional features. No multiple angles, no commentary. I thought perhaps, at least, they might include some bonus tracks - but no. Worse, however, is that there was no attempt to remaster the sound to take advantage of the DVD. That's right, 2 channel stereo only! To be honest, the sound seems fuller, with more bass, on my VHS copy. Therefore, if you've never seen this, buy it. But if you have the tape, the only reason to go to DVD is to instantly access your favorite songs. Other than that, the DVD is a disappointment.
Rating:
Summary: Look into mind of visionary.
Review: I have to give this performance video a 5, because it simply deserves it. My copy is wearing down from constant play and I will soon have to obtain a new one. This is the best concert video I have ever seen. She is so good at giving each of her songs an individual story and look which distinguishes them from each other. My favorite performances are those of: Headphones, One Day, Human Behavior, and the wild closing rendition of Violently Happy. Some scenes are very perplexing. Like at the end of Enjoy when it appears her mixer, Leila Arab, has either screwed up or gotten mad as someone who has destroyed the mix, and she yells at the audience telling them to make some noise. By the way, the song playing over the end credits is, "Glora", a flute duet Bjork wrote in her earlier years. Its available on the Big Time Sensuality Maxi-Single. Its also a good idea to get her Volumen video collection at the same time as this and watch them consecutively. It gives a greater weight to many of the songs.
Rating:
Summary: Wish I Was There
Review: I'll start by getting the only negative thing I found in the video out of the way (and it's got nothing to do with Bjork). Maybe it's just my copy, but I noticed the first time I watched it that the people who recorded the sound didn't do a great job. The bass isn't mixed right and at times it distorts the rest of the song. It's only really bothersome in the beginning of Hyperballad. Anyhoo, Isobel and Big Time Sensuality and Violently Happy are my favorites in the video. They are filled with so much energy it jumps out of your TV and it makes you jump out of your seat, as are the rest of the songs. Bjork gives a great performance. You'll never hear mixes quite like the ones on the video unless ya get it.
Rating:
Summary: Simply wonderful...
Review: Taped during her highly-evolved "Post" tour; highlights include "Headphones, "Hyper-ballad," & "I Go Humble."
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