Robyn "Body Talk" (Konichiwa/Cherrytree)

Had things progressed naturally, by 2010, Swedish pop singer Robyn Carlsson, professionally known as Robyn, would have been an also-ran, a one-hit wonder of the last vestiges of major-label music industry. Instead, what one finds is a young woman who stood her ground. Initially packaged as a teen-pop star in the era of Britney Spears, the teenage Robyn had two international hits in the late 1990s, “Show Me Love” and “Do You Have (What It Takes)?” These songs, while very much atypical of the era, were compelling for another reason: Robyn actually wrote her hits, both lyrics and music—a factor that is unique in the annals of teen-focused dance-pop history. Of course, like so many other disposable pop acts, label problems and a lack of faith by the multinational conglomerates that were making millions off of her virtually assured that her career as a pop star would come to an end.

Her reaction? She simply took her money and created her own label, which in 2005 resulted in Robyn, a record that not only reinstated her to the pop charts, but also impressed critics as a take-charge, talented artist. Five years later, she’s spent most of her life as a pop musician, and she has created her most compelling record to date. Over the last year, she has released two mini albums, entitled Body Talk Parts 1 &2, and now releases an album with the same name, combining songs from both albums as well as some new recordings. The approach isn’t that gratuitous; both EP’s were strong releases on their own, with nary a bum track on them; compiled together, they create a strong album.

Robyn’s always possessed a keen vocal style; it’s very much reminiscent of Kate Bush circa Hounds of Love. Her singing is strong, confident; she can juggle humor and seriousness without feeling forced. A song like “Fembot,” a feminist proclamation of strength written from the point of a view of a female robot, could easily come off as a novelty song, but Robyn pulls it off through sheer audacity and an extremely tight, catchy arrangement that recalls Gary Numan. Humor works best when presented in a straightforward manner, and when she is funny, she is not self-aware. “Don’t F**king Tell Me What To Do” is another example of this; it is a litany of things that are distracting, and even though she’s not trying to be humorous, it does strike a chord in the context of “it’s funny because it’s true.”

Body Talk also displays her knack for different arrangements; whether it’s the Kraftwerk-esque futurism of “We Dance to the Beat,” the reggae style of “Dancehall Queen” (a collaboration with noted producer Diplo), the rap duet with Snoop Dogg on “U Should Know Better,” or the pulsating disco dance of “Love Kills,” and new song “Stars 4-Ever,” which finds her exploring a Giorgio Moroder-esque style that sounds both contemporary and retro. But what impresses most is how she can make catchy songs about subjects that are less than happy; “Dancing on my Own” is about being a jilted lover and staying strong for self-preservation’s sake, while “Indestructible” is a song about self-reflection in the face of one’s failures as a lover, in the context of the longing she has for her current relationship, and “Hang With Me” is a highly rhythmic plea to a soon-to-be paramour about patience.

If one flaw exists on Body Talk, it’s that she doesn’t fully flex her stylistic muscles as she did on the two previous mini-albums—no acoustic demos, no jazz oriented numbers, no compelling ballads; a minor complaint, yes, but she knows she has nothing to prove, and while it would have been nice to hear such variety, it doesn’t take anything away from the album. If Robyn was her “comeback,” then Body Talk is the confirmation of her talents and abilities. Body Talk is quietly one of the better albums of the year, and the proof that Ms. Carlsson is one of the more talented folk in today’s pop music.