3 Things Every Producer Should Steal From Björk

If there's one thing that we've all become great at in 2024 its overcomplicating things - especially in the music production world of youtube.

But costumes and music videos aside, Bjork doesn't seem to do that.

In this video we will look at three lessons we can learn from how Bjork made Homogenic back in 1997 that will help producers of any level develop their skills without overcomplicating the process, and maybe even have fun too.

[BataraKado]

"if you dont know what to record then dont record anything." - steve albini. r.i.p

[sampyannotti]

I'm sure having Mark Bell around didn't hurt

[elsf]

The "... But do we have more wisdom?" Got an immediate subscribe lol

[Invisibletoday]

I had the pleasure of meeting Björk and got to work with her on her biophillia app when I was in high school that was the best week of my life

[SchwingyPOV]

Now I can finally sound like a professional 90s producer, as I've always dreamed of being. Thx.

[zachary]

My favorite approach to limitations is to be generous with the “delete” key. If it sounds/feels wrong, then just get rid of it and move on.

That approach makes every moment exciting and every idea feel fresh

[fredmcveigh]

I didn't realise how involved she was with the production of the track.

[scarletdawnmusic]

I'll start by saying your videos are cool! I think your first two points are great and very important.

Now, I'm sorry for being the first negative comment here but I feel some sort of way about Björk. I've written papers and essay on her compositions and production haha. Here's my wall of text:

Björk is the worst example you can use to "keep it simple." I know you're choosing Homogenic as the focal point, but even with the limited palette of sounds (beats and voice), I'd hardly call that album "keeping it simple." It was a massive culmination of collaboration, her ear for composition and orchestration, and experimentation. I mean, Pluto alone is enough to show that. Heck, even Hunter! That 909 drum rolls were all done by hand.x

Also, all that gear you pointed out was anything but minimal. If we're looking at it with 2024 lenses, for sure they're limited. But by 90s standards? That was a top of the line studio!

I feel like a better example could've been to talk about Medulla and how she took a single concept (the human voice) and explored it to basically its extreme; with the production just being voices, even if it was sequenced.

[jnnx]

The genius behind Homogenic is MARK BELL (R.I.P) ACT LIKE U KNO!

[Bro-Fi-ikrf]

Keep going, surprised at the amount of subs for the quality of content. Keep going! Love Bjork, love limitations, I couldn’t agree more about everything you covered… nice to have a reminder of this stuff.

[weaponxx]

I actually started lo-fi recording with hardware, it was really useful to me starting that way as a home producer. I have used Ableton in the past but usually only for multitrack arranging/recording and the only DAW kinda thing I use now is Caustic 3 on my phone because it is comparatively limited. Good video.

[SongwriterPorshia]

This thumbnail was nice and so clickable 🥰 just started the. Vid but editing is on point ☝️ excellent job 🙏🏾 much growth to you in your future

[TheZombie]

That was a good video! You deserve more subs

[tapeexperiments]

So, heres what i got:
1) Reject all traditional music.
2) Get Obsessed with guitar Pedals.
3) The Possibilities of limitations are endless.

Am I close??

[dasbkilla]

Her style is limitless, love her music

[heejinscementbrownies]

thank you for this video. its exactly what i needed. i feel that getting into production on modern day DAWs and computers can be extremely overwhelming to the point where you just cant even find a place to start so you dont. youre 100% right about the limitations thing - it can be liberating. one thing i know is that my best work on ANY creative front wasnt made because overcomplicated things for myself. love this perspective and love bjork lol

[mirakir_a]

duude, your video was awesome!! I felt engaged the whole time. Very well crafted, Im subbing to see more !

[nadesmond]

My brain heard drums that sound like lava oozing out of the ground...my mouth went pok pok bolup boluk kurukuruk pah palap ppa kurr kuru cloug...
soo, close enough 😂

[brianrainsfordmarshall]

Subscribed the moment I heard the "MIDI Chord Pack" drop.

[scottlarock]

Nice video. Love Bjork.

Limitations: I started using Soundpaint a few months ago. It comes with a nice piano and some other free sounds and I have bought some other instruments to run through the player.
There is a lot of control and there are a lot of effects available in the player.
I have found that I can get a lot of work done inside sound paint without even stepping the other VSTs in my DAW.
This created a very efficient workflow, and as I am an overthinker by nature, it helped prevent me from spinning out on deciding what other plugins to use and negotiating their different interfaces.
Maybe you have a similar plug-in that offers a lot of depth and options and learning to use it to its full extent can help keep you focused.
Or not. :)