So my Bjork stories are really good. They date all the way back to my earliest days in New York; I hadn't even graduated from high school yet. The Sugarcubes were still together. I was on and off with them; but Stick Around for Joy was such a good album, so we were once again on. Seriously..is Hit not one of the best songs ever recorded...?
Anyway, we loved Bjork, she'd never and looked nor sounded better. She was also the cover model on the newest issue of Project X. So she was right up there with Lady Miss Kier and Linda Evangelista in terms of fierce chicks of 1992. We freakin loved her and the mini bun hairstyle she was rocking during that time period.
That Good Friday, as in the Catholic holiday, some friends and I schlepped out to Limelight. I don't remember specifically what I wore, only that it was black and I didn't think it was one of my better outfits. I remembered being a little annoyed because this New York clubbing excursion had grown pretty large. 4 was my maximum. Me, Colleen, Linda and Jill. But anyway, it was vacation, and my friends waned a dose of legendary New York fabulousness; and who better to lead them to it...?
I do recall being preoccupied with something, I really cannot tell you the specifics beyond that. Honestly, I have no idea what I did that evening. Bjork however had been in attendance and everybody was talking about it. Details magazine were also there taking pictures. They'd surface in the magazine a few months later. For a night out there was a lot going on.
For me it had been a tame one, I was maybe 6 weeks into the whole club kid thing and had recently done my first couple club hops. My nights were all about quantity. Only hitting one club was rather boring. But whatever, Bjork was there and I think a new Deee-Lite song debuted that night. Some people from high school were there to witness all this coolness. Rumors about me clubbing with Bjork and being photographed for Details were going to run rampant and I was going to make no effort to tell people. If I recall correctly I was preoccupied because I had a crush on Keoki, and I couldn't find him. He was hanging out with Bjork.
Nonetheless I did not see Bjork that evening...we were saving it for later. The details of her night out exist in this issue of Project X. The other cool thing was that my friends all saw her. Like I said, who better to lead them to excitement. The town we grew up in was freakin dullsville.
So a few months later I made the big move to NYC...it was very shortly (as in 15 minutes) after high school graduation. My landing point was a Pratt dorm in Brooklyn. I was hell bent, I would have walked through Bushwick in a tutu and silver platforms to Limelight, and likely could have pulled it off.
Anyway, my first saturday night I go to the movies with my friend Ron and his girlfriend. We went to see Cool World with their friend from Los Angeles. Little Kenny, or was it Lil Keni. Lil Keni sounds cooler so we will go with that. Keni lived in Brooklyn too so we head back together.
We traded stories of our history. One of his was about his "Icelandic pop star friend...Bjork". Seriously, I believe this sentence was. I have this friend Bjork she's an Icelandic pop star. In 1992 she dated a DJ named Doc Martin who pretty well known on the west coast. Keni and he were friends and that was how he knew Bjork. They really were friends though, there was validity to his name dropping. They were actual friends; like she stayed at his house when she came to New York.
Fast forward to Fall 1992 and the Sugarcubes released It's It, which is to be their last album. It's the "remix" album. It was one of the few CD's that I actually made a point to go buy. Anyway they were playing Limelight the night it came out. There was also a "rave" party...though using that term was profoundly uncool. It was called "Shhh", you paid $10 and were given a key; the location was to be announced at 8 o clock that night.
That was "the" party everyone was going, but I was no fool. I wanted to go to Sugarcubes. Keni would be there and would bring me backstage. That is more or less how it went down. I spent the hour or so before the show with them back stage. They were all there. I remember finding Einer extremely sexy in person. Bjork is a total doll. Seriously she's freakin tiny in person. I was 6 foot 6 in my platforms. She came over to me right away, introduced herself and starting talking to me like we've known each other forever.
We drink with them, until it's time for the concert. Bjork is really amazing; like the way her voice fills a space and what she does with it. I love the concert, To this day I'm really stoked that I caught the Sugarcubes before they broke up. After it's over, we head back to the dressing room again. I rather specifically remember running up to Bjork and being like "Oh My God...you were AMAZING!!!" and her being all..."Thank You!" and hugging me. Totally surreal, like we were pals that night.
By now it's close to 3 am, so we all make our way over to Shhh, which was somewhere down on the Lower East Side. Since there were 6 Sugarcubes, they end up needing multiple taxis, so my friend Johnna and I end up in one with Siggy. We follow the one with Keni and Bjork. Siggy was fun, if I remember correctly he had swiped one of the bottles of Absolut from their dressing room. I remember all of them being very heavy drinkers...and really fun drinkers.
I don't hang out with Bjork too much at the party. I don't recall staying very long either. I already had my story for the night.
Fast forward to early spring 1993. Sugarcubes were now broken up and Bjork as a solo artist is all the buzz in music. It's a lazy summer afternoon and I end up meeting up with doorman extraordinaire Kenny Kenny and Astro Earl. I think we all happen upon each other trying to pick up raver boys in Washington Square Park. It turns into your quintessential New York afternoon, we hit up Dojo's for dinner. Afterwards, we stop by Patricia Field to visit Lil Keni. It's around 8 pm and they had just closed the store.
We get inside and there's Bjork sitting on the floor with a few envelopes from a film developing place. She had just come from some big music extravaganza in the desert somewhere. She was really enthralled with a performer named El Vez and had taken several photos with him. When we walk in, she comes running over to show us. Bjork was staying at Keni's that night and they were headed to The Grand later. The Grand is a space on 13th and Broadway, it was also called the Key Club later, and is best know as "Spa" which was a hotspot around the turn of the millenium.
Back then Thursday nights were hosted by Lee Chapel, the opening night was good but the party headed downhill fast. I would usually stop in. Tonight it would certainly be on the agenda. I had a friend who wasn't so underhanded with his social climbing and told him Bjork's plans for the evening and he was all over it. As luck would have we roll up to the club at the exact same time that Keni & Bjork's cab. They're also with Cheyenne; a Limelight doorgirl. It's all very civil and social and yay! we're part of Bjork's growing "entourage".
In a club environment they all flock to her. But before that happens Bjork comes over to me and asks me to help her remove the wrapper from her a lollipop she had acquired. I do, and she's flanked by trendy homos immediately. I exit the scene and a girl comes up to me and as all...."oh my god was that Bjork you were just talking to"? and I'm all..."Yeah".
About a year and half later, my roomate is in a lingerie shop called Lee Baumann on 8th st. It was the day of the MTV VMA's. Bjork is in there buying tights. The staff were all older jewish women and had absolutely no idea who she was. They had asked about her evening and wished her luck as she was nominated in some category. The last time I ever saw her in person was shortly after that. This time it was near Astor Place, she was walking was some rather tall gay dude.
Life in New York was random like that. There were certain people you'd see fairly often, and some you never saw at all. Fortunately I saw Bjork a bunch of times.
