Icelandic musician Björk has reflected on the grueling nature of touring, explaining how she manages to organize her current touring schedule so that she “really has a life.”
Björk has performed with varying frequency almost every year since releasing her album in 1993 debutand The Guardian Regarding her changes in touring, this first happened after the release of her seventh record, 2011 biophilia. Rather than taking the standard approach of visiting multiple cities in a week or month, Björk takes a more considered approach in which she stays in one place for a longer period of time.
These quasi-residency arrangements allow for more space between dates and allow her longer time to immerse herself in the city where the show is taking place. A span of eight shows was held. After a total of 45 performances, the tour will finally end in France in 2023. These performances are also performed in conjunction with her Björk Orkestral production, which ran for 20 performances between 2021 and 2023.
“Nuts and bolts are more flexible,” Bjork told the publication. “Maybe as a woman, or a matriarch, or whatever, I try to let people really have their own lives. Since I was a teenager, I’ve always been mildly opposed to the macho way people organize movies and tours. “Oh, let’s work 18 hours a day now, day in and day out, until everyone pukes. “I’ve always wanted to coexist.
“You can have a personal life,” she continued. “You can have your kids. You can have your partners out there. I’m not saying I’ve succeeded,” she laughs, “but at least I’ve tried to create a world that’s more open to that kind of thing.
Björk’s latest album, excavatorto be released in late 2022, coinciding with the final stages of her Björk Orkestral tour. Although the veteran artist hasn’t toured traditionally in nearly 15 years, 2024 did shake up her schedule somewhat, with the year only consisting of DJ gigs, six of which took place in five countries.