A Baker's Dozen for 2010 #9 - Body Talk Pt. 1

Are women dressed like futuristic robots that sexy? It seemed like all major dance-pop fembots thought so in 2010. Out of all of them, the tongue and cheek space age delivery of Robyn was the only one that showed a fun side that fit with the progressive clicks and hisses. Out of her 352 (or 4) releases just this year, the Body Talk Pt. 1 actually works the best as an album.

It's more of a long EP, which works perfectly for dance pop. Lady Gaga made the template with The Fame Monster last year, and Robyn nailed it. With only 8 songs (plus a throw-away remix) there's zero fat. Just great dance tracks that play to the heart as much as the feet.

Plus, the sequencing is perfect. All the songs are on the final Body Talk release, along with the other solid songs from BT2&3. But they are in a weird order that just doesn't work for me. It could be because I played the first one so much long before the final installment came out. I think more than that, there's just more songs that are similar enough that water down the good cuts on the long version. Plus, not having "Don't Fucking Tell Me What To Do" as the opener is travesty. That song was meant to bat leadoff for a pop song murderer's row.

I also prefer the stripped back version of Dancing On My Own. It's a little more deep and a little less top 40. Also, the acoustic "Hang With Me" really lets you hear what a wondrous instrument Robyn has.

Of the first 6 dance tracks, "None Of Dim" sounds like a true revolutionary call to the dance floor. A lot of this album is about release, but this one is about escape. Put it on, and runaway with the beat. Don't worry about getting lost. Robyn will be your guide.