Thom Björk

Not every collaboration between great artists leads to a great musical product. The one between Bjork and Thom Yorke sure did. Both of them are among the rare that managed to blend avant-garde and pop music into a unique, masterful artistic legacy. The song “I’ve Seen It All” was written by Bjork, with lyrics by the Icelandic poet Sjón and the Danish film director Lars von Trier. It was released in 2000 as the first promotional single for the Danish musical drama film “Dancer in the Dark,” directed by von Trier. The version performed in the film is a duet between actor Peter Stormare and Björk, but the single which is also found on the soundtrack album “Selmasongs” is the one with Thom Yorke as the male vocalist. The song was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Bjork described the piece as Selma's (the main character in the movie) manifesto. She said: “It's a beautiful and eerie track, the pair's vocals careening over a techno beat, but just under a lovely set of strings. It's a minor masterpiece."

There are three music videos for this single, the main version being an excerpt from “Dancer in the Dark” in which Björk, Peter Stormare, and others sing the song on a train. The second version was directed by Floria Sigismondi and was an interactive "webeo" (a web animation) for an MTV promotion, in which Björk appeared with her face painted and the viewer could change the scenes and special effects by clicking on the video. A third version was filmed in Paris, but it was canceled due to distributional problems with the single in France. Later the idea for this video was used for the song "Hidden Place" from her 2001 album “Vespertine.”

There is a very interesting fact concerning the careers of Bjork and Thom Yorke, besides the abovementioned praise of both being the leading force in mixing avant-garde and pop music: with the exception of “Hail to the Thief” (2003) and “Medulla” (2004), Radiohead and Björk have released each of their respective albums in the same year. Some online writers have suggested that some of the releases even have the same feeling and themes presented in them. For example, “The King of Limbs” and “Biophilia” (2011) both deal with nature and living things, while their most commercial/pop-influenced releases, “The Bends” and “Post.” also came out in the same year (1995.) Coincidence or not, this beautiful, rich, and memorable song you’re listening to in the background proves that their inspiration comes from the same space-time continuum.