Jenny Hval (b. 1980) has in recent years made a name for herself as a write… Read Full Bio ↴Jenny Hval (b. 1980) has in recent years made a name for herself as a writer, journalist, recording artist and sound artist both in Norway and abroad. Her first two albums were released as Rockettothesky. When her third record Viscera was released in 2011, Italian Vogue described her as: “an artist of significant competence, both musically and intellectually.” Multidisciplinary and transgressive are words often employed to describe her art, but Jenny Hval’s polyphonic artistry is in fact seamlessly interwoven between musical, literary, visual and performative modes of expression. Despite her young age, she has already infused, carved and modulated an artistic voice that is altogether present, accessible and obscurely complex at the same time.

Jenny Hval studied Creative Writing at the University of Melbourne, and Literature at the University of Oslo. She has released the albums To Sing You Apple Trees (Trust Me Records, 2006) and Medea (Trust Me Records 2008) under the alias Rockettothesky. Her third album Viscera (Rune Grammofon 2011) was released under her own name. 2012 saw the release of the debut album of Hval’s band project, Nude On Sand, in which she collaborates with Håvard Volden. Jenny Hval made her debut as a writer with the book Perlebryggeriet (‘The Pearl Brewery’) with Kolon Forlag in 2009. Alongside this she has contributed to magazines and newspapers like Vinduet, ENO, Bergens Tidende and Klassekampen. In 2010 Hval contributed to the artwork War Song by the American artists Valerie Tevere and Angel Nevarez that was performed during the Ultima Festival in Oslo that year. In 2011 she created the sound installation ENTER/ Flesh for the bigger installation ENTER Sonic Tank at Tou Scene in Stavanger. In collaboration with the writer Inger Bråtveit she also created the work Kvit Søppel (‘White Trash’) in 2011.

She is currently working on her second book and her fourth studio album.

Untamed Region
Jenny Hval Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I'm in a big house, having big dreams
and next time I wake up
there's blood on the bed.
Didn't know it was time yet.
Or is it not mine?

I feel old in this hotel
as if surprised to find I still don't have it in me and yet so young. Hollow.

Unsure if I'm young or old.
I dip my finger in it,
smells like a long winter
and I feel the need to touch everything, everything in this room like a dog.
I'm marking everything that belongs to no-one, bringing it close to me, or life, or something.

I have big dreams and blood powers
my own artistry. My combined failures.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Jenny Hval's "Untamed Region" is an evocative and enigmatic piece that explores the themes of disconnectedness and uncertainty in one's identity. The first verse sets the stage for an unsettling narrative of the singer waking up in a big house with blood on the bed. The confusion is palpable as the singer raises the question, is it not mine? There's an ambiguity in this moment that seems to suggest a loss of agency or control over a situation, which is supported by the second verse's reflection of feeling old in a hotel room. The singer's age is uncertain, and the feeling of "still not having it in me" contributes to a sense of hollowness and detachment. The image of dipping a finger in the blood and smelling it like a long winter creates a vivid sensory experience and a sense of wanting to hold onto the moment. The physical act of "marking everything that belongs to no-one" is a gesture of claiming ownership and control, an attempt to bring life or something close to oneself. The final line of "my own artistry. My combined failures" is a powerful statement of self-reflection and acceptance of one's flaws and creative endeavors.

Line by Line Meaning

I'm in a big house, having big dreams
I am full of aspirations and living in a grand residence.

and next time I wake up
In the following moment when I arise from slumber.

there's blood on the bed.
I discover blood on the sheets where I am resting.

Didn't know it was time yet.
I am unaware if it is the appropriate moment.

Or is it not mine?
I am unsure if the blood belongs to me or another entity.

I feel old in this hotel
I experience a sense of age within the confines of this lodging.

as if surprised to find I still don't have it in me and yet so young.
I am astonished to see that I lack certain qualities within me despite my youth.

Hollow.
Empty, devoid of substance or feeling.

Unsure if I'm young or old.
I do not know if I am in a state of youthfulness or not.

I dip my finger in it,
I submerge my finger within the substance of the blood.

smells like a long winter
The odor reminiscent of an elongated period of time in winter.

and I feel the need to touch everything, everything in this room like a dog.
Similar to a dog marking its territory, I possess the urge to feel and intimately connect with every object in the chamber.

I'm marking everything that belongs to no-one, bringing it close to me, or life, or something.
I am declaring objects and possessions within the room without ownership while simultaneously bringing them closer to me and possibly to life itself.

I have big dreams and blood powers
My mind contains immense aspirations and internal abilities like that of blood.

my own artistry.
My unique skill and approach to artistic expression.

My combined failures.
My past unsuccessful attempts and experiences which have contributed to shaping me into who I am now.

Contributed by Audrey K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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