The first time I ever heard Florence + the Machine's music was when I was a DJ at WASU during college. Their then-recent album, Ceremonials, also their sophomore album, hadn't even been out for six months. I was in the station early one morning doing my regular 2-hour shift, and one of the songs that I'd heard while in the DJ booth was "Shake It Out".
Now, at the time, I was still fresh out of high school and still pretty much just into rock and metal. While it was Foster the People's "Pumped Up Kicks" that really made me broaden my horizons, I cannot give "Shake It Out" enough credit for also being a song that was so important in my life and shaping who I am as well as the music I've come to listen to since high school. I loved the way the song swelled and built upon itself, from the booming percussion to the grand, orchestral-sounding music. The cherry on top, however, was Florence Welch's mind-blowing voice. It truly was love at first listen.
Flash forward almost four years later. Florence + the Machine have released their third studio album, they've done a huge run of music festivals in the United States and in Europe, and I'm living in Nashville. I'd always wanted a chance to see them live, and while I was heartbroken that I could not have seen her at Bonnaroo this past summer, I was ecstatic to see that she would be coming through Nashville.
The artist who was supposed to be opening the show ended up being a no-show, so when the doors opened, the audience basically listened to music over the PA system for two hours straight.
Some time after 9:00 PM, the band takes the stage; The Machine comes on first followed by Welch. The band opens with "What the Water Gave Me", one of my favorite cuts off Ceremonials, before upping the intensity with "Ship to Wreck". Welch pranced around the stage as she sang, her fiery red hair flowing behind her, as if she were being possessed by Mick Jagger.
Backing the group was a giant wall of large reflecting sequins (I guess?) and several sets of backlights. At one point during the show, a round LED screen emerged from behind the wall to provide greater visuals; at one point later on in the set, the screen showed a moon going through the phases.
Florence + the Machine played many cuts from all three of their albums, such as their cover of The Source's "You've Got the Love", "Third Eye", "How Big How Blue How Beautiful", and yes, even "Shake It Out". The whole time, Welch's powerful voice cut through the grand wall of sound her band provided. While her voice was commanding during the songs, she was very soft-spoken in between numbers, talking about the inspirations behind writing her songs, which included a very amusing story of how she wrote "Cosmic Love", the first song she ever wrote.
The climax of the show was when the band played their biggest hit, "Dog Days Are Over". During a break in the song, Welch asked the crowd to embrace and hug each other, to which the crowd happily obliged. She then asked everyone to take off an article of clothing and wave it above their heads while jumping up and down for "as high and as long as possible" once the chorus came back in... to which the crowd obliged.
After a short break, Florence + the Machine came back out to finish the show with "What Kind Of Man" and "Drumming Song".
Overall, the concert was stellar. The full setlist, which can be found here, was nothing but killer. The Machine sounded bigger than ever. Florence's voice was bold and commanding and better than ever. Perfect way to spend a cool, cloudy night next to the Cumberland River in Nashville. If you have plans to go see her on any other tour date this fall, you're in for a hell of a show.
Flash forward almost four years later. Florence + the Machine have released their third studio album, they've done a huge run of music festivals in the United States and in Europe, and I'm living in Nashville. I'd always wanted a chance to see them live, and while I was heartbroken that I could not have seen her at Bonnaroo this past summer, I was ecstatic to see that she would be coming through Nashville.
The artist who was supposed to be opening the show ended up being a no-show, so when the doors opened, the audience basically listened to music over the PA system for two hours straight.
Some time after 9:00 PM, the band takes the stage; The Machine comes on first followed by Welch. The band opens with "What the Water Gave Me", one of my favorite cuts off Ceremonials, before upping the intensity with "Ship to Wreck". Welch pranced around the stage as she sang, her fiery red hair flowing behind her, as if she were being possessed by Mick Jagger.
Backing the group was a giant wall of large reflecting sequins (I guess?) and several sets of backlights. At one point during the show, a round LED screen emerged from behind the wall to provide greater visuals; at one point later on in the set, the screen showed a moon going through the phases.
Florence + the Machine played many cuts from all three of their albums, such as their cover of The Source's "You've Got the Love", "Third Eye", "How Big How Blue How Beautiful", and yes, even "Shake It Out". The whole time, Welch's powerful voice cut through the grand wall of sound her band provided. While her voice was commanding during the songs, she was very soft-spoken in between numbers, talking about the inspirations behind writing her songs, which included a very amusing story of how she wrote "Cosmic Love", the first song she ever wrote.
The climax of the show was when the band played their biggest hit, "Dog Days Are Over". During a break in the song, Welch asked the crowd to embrace and hug each other, to which the crowd happily obliged. She then asked everyone to take off an article of clothing and wave it above their heads while jumping up and down for "as high and as long as possible" once the chorus came back in... to which the crowd obliged.
After a short break, Florence + the Machine came back out to finish the show with "What Kind Of Man" and "Drumming Song".
Overall, the concert was stellar. The full setlist, which can be found here, was nothing but killer. The Machine sounded bigger than ever. Florence's voice was bold and commanding and better than ever. Perfect way to spend a cool, cloudy night next to the Cumberland River in Nashville. If you have plans to go see her on any other tour date this fall, you're in for a hell of a show.