Florence + The Machine: How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful Review


Florence Welch continues to be one of the most interesting voices on the edges of arena pop/rock in her third album, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful. Interesting doesn't always mean fantastic, but she's getting there. One of the biggest problems Welch has had over her first two albums is a big head. That confidence has served her well; a timid approach would not work for the indulgent and energetic emotion that is her sound, but it's hard to improve when you believe yourself to be already great.

Looking at the album artwork is an immediate indicator that much of that mindset has been scrubbed. Instead of uncomfortably ornate and seductive outfits and poses, we have Florence hunched, wolflike, glaring at the camera in a black and white photo with thin letters above her. I half expect the Carpenters to be in the background.

Immediately the album opens with 'Ship to Wreck', a smooth, watery guitar led song that focuses on self doubt. Rolling soundscapes, tamborines, horns, hand claps and tight hooks remain intact from her previous album, Ceremonials, but gone are the harps, chants, and screams. This may still have a twinkling quality to it, but we've moved from one primal to another--this Florence is done dancing around a fire and is on the hunt.

Florence has always had a great voice, and in my opinion relied on it too much. Almost every song in her second album was geared to allow her to belt out as many notes as loudly as possible. It's proof of major growth that she doesn't feel the need to try so hard to convince us that she deserves attention. The result is a better balance of music and vocals; it doesn't hurt that the recording is crystal clear, but Welch has brought her A-game to hitting the notes.

Not everything here is perfect. The biggest problem is what has been removed to get to this point. Her second album had a lot more tribal undertones that really gave them edge, but I think she needed to remove as much as she could to focus on one aspect of her music, getting it just right. Now that she has, I'd love to see more offerings sonically similar to What the Water Gave Me, Shake it Out, or No Light No Light. But I'm more than glad to lose a couple of those in favor of better constructed songs like Queen of Peace, What Kind of Man, Ship to Wreck, the grand exit piece Mother, or the straight upgrade to Lover to Lover, Delilah.

Florence has truly proven now that she has the right stuff to make an incredible album. All she needs is to push those boundaries out again. Maybe her biggest issue is that she doesn't quite have the marriage of theme and execution that brought Woodkid's The Golden Age such highs. On the other hand, she is smart enough to be more consistently musical and interesting than Yoann Lemoine was for that record. Regardless, this is a very enjoyable album that marks a strong step forward for Welch, and I am very excited to see what comes next.


7.5/10


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