Glasshealer Covers Björk

Ballsy musical territory, covering Björk. The Icelandic avant-pop vanguard operates with such unique articulation and nuanced production that creating a worthy remake remains a steep musical mountain to climb.

Count Bon Iver and Radiohead among those who’ve pulled it off, with “Who is It” and “Unravel,” respectively. Now, add to that list homegrown alt-electro act Glasshealer, here issuing an impressive cover of Björk’s “Unison.” The 2001 track, undercut with a perpetual harp arpeggio, stands out for culminating in an explosive vocal turn.

“Bjork’s an artist that I and the rest of Glasshealer have loved for a long time,” reveals multi-instrumentalist Jared Marxuach. “Her discography is pretty large and diverse, so in the beginning I mostly listened to Debut and Post over and over again. ‘Unison’ came on Spotify in the car one night and since then Vespertine has become one of my favorite albums of all time. The glitchy percussion, lush strings and harp, and Bjork’s flawlessly riveting vocal performance rearranged something in my brain.”

The local quartet, who turned the heads of Chronicle critics with early 2020 debut EP Cranberry Stream, included “Unison” in past live sets. In the studio, they reimagined the work with effected drum production, close vocal harmonies, and a heavy detour at the end.

“I think an important aspect of Glasshealer’s sound is that we are both a rock band and an electronic band,” reasons Marxuach. “This was definitely something we wanted to highlight when we were arranging the cover. We wanted to show off the more delicate side of Hayden [Steckel]’s voice, to which the song lent itself. From there, we also wanted to highlight the sonic elements that we thought were critical to the song, like the harp and a couple of synth lines, among others.

“It was important for us to preserve the arc of the song and the emotional delivery that Bjork gave to her original version. We jammed on it for months and while rehearsing, we had the goal of giving the ending a more powerful and noisy finish, reinterpreting her subtle and elegant performance.”

Put “Unison” on your Spotify playlist: