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Florence + The Machine
English indie rock band
Florence and the Machine are an English indie rock band formed in London in 2007 by lead vocalist Florence Welch, keyboardist Isabella Summers, guitarist Rob Ackroyd, drummer Christopher Lloyd Hayden and harpist Tom Monger. The band's music features dramatic, eccentric productions and Welch's powerful vocals.
Their sound has been described as a combination of various genres, including alternative rock, baroque pop and soul.
The name of Florence and the Machine is attributed to Florence Welch's teenage collaboration with Isabella "Machine" Summers. Welch and Summers performed together for a time under the name Florence Robot/Isa Machine. According to Welch, "The name Florence and the Machine started off as a private joke that got out of hand. I made music with my friend, who we called Isabella Machine to which I was Florence Robot. When I was about an hour away from my first gig, I still didn't have a name, so I thought 'Okay, I'll be Florence Robot Is A Machine', before realising that name was so long it'd drive me mad." In addition to Summers (keyboards), the current band members include musicians Robert Ackroyd (guitar), Chris Hayden (drums, percussion and...
Florence Welch has been compared to Kate Bush, Siouxsie Sioux of Siouxsie and the Banshees, PJ Harvey, Tori Amos and Björk. During an interview, Welch cited Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane as her influence and "hero". Florence and the Machine's style has been described as "dark, robust and romantic". Their music is a mix of "classic soul and midnight-on-the-moors English art rock". Welch stated that her lyrics related to Renaissance artists: "We're dealing with all of the same things they did—love and death, time and pain, heaven and hell." Commenting on her success, she said: "I'm lucky that there seems to be a massive revival in female performers. My icons were always women like Kate Bush, Stevie Nicks and Siouxsie Sioux. Who wouldn't...
Florence Leontine Mary Welch and Isabella ''The Machine'' Summers, started making music together around 2005 and performed locally in Camden, London as Florence Robot & Isa Machine, to great aplomb and by 2006 they were so popular they started attracting attention from the industry.
Also known as: Florence, Florence & The Machine, Florence & the Machine, Florence + Machine, Florence + The Machine
From Discogs (free to use). Their entry
Liner notes
Florence + The Machine, the records, oldest first
Lungs
2009 album
on the air
A Lot of Love. A Lot of Blood.
2009 ep
Ceremonials
2011 album
on the air
How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
2015 album
on the air
High as Hope
2018 album
Dance Fever
2022 album
wanted
Everybody Scream
2025 album
Records from MusicBrainz; covers from the Cover Art Archive.
"Free" is a song by English indie rock band Florence and the Machine. It was released on 20 April 2022 as the fourth single from the band's fifth studio album, Dance Fever (2022) through the record label Polydor Records.
"Free" was written and produced by Florence Welch and Jack Antonoff. "Free" lyrically discusses the singer's problems with anxiety and psychological trauma.
Background and release
During an interview with Apple Music, Welch described the process of conception of the song: "Ironically, 'Free' was actually the last song I wrote before the first lockdown[...] It's a song about my anxiety and how I process it and this feeling that it's just something that's been with me my whole life, and even as my life stabilizes ... when I'm playing or I'm making music or I'm in the flow of creativity [the anxiety] goes away, so it's kind of this push-and-pull throughout the song of the anxiety, and then taking it out of the way and dancing and feeling free." The song premiered on BBC Radio 1's Future Sounds on 21 April 2022.
Composition
"Free" is a pop song which contains an "urgent" sound that is primarily driven by synths-and-guitar. Music critic Neil Z. Yeung of AllMusic musically described its sound as "Antonoff's band Bleachers taking on an early-aughts Bloc Party or Strokes number". Lyrically, the song describes a protagonist who is feeling "overwhelmed" by the outside world and describes Welch's experience of finding freedom in her music. It was musically compared to the band's earlier singles "Dog Days Are Over" (2008) and "Shake it Out" (2011).
Critical reception
Upon its release, the song was lauded for its "anthemic" character and "exhilarating" feeling by Emma Sanchez from Variance magazine.
Music video
The music video filmed for the song was directed by American director Autumn de Wilde and was released on 20 April 2022 on the band's official YouTube channel. It was filmed on 18 November 2021 in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. The choreography for the clip was invented by Ryan Heffington, who also dances in the video.
"Moderation" is a song by British band Florence and the Machine, released as a single on 24 January 2019 through Virgin EMI Records. The digital release includes the B-side "Haunted House".
It is the band's first new material since their fourth studio album High as Hope (2018).
Critical reception
"Moderation" was called a "huge, cinematic stomper with gospel handclaps and a gigantic Florence Welch vocal performance at its center" by Stereogum, while "Haunted House" was described as "restrained" in contrast to "Moderation", as well as "softer and more tender". Jon Blistein of Rolling Stone called the songs "brazen", further writing that "Moderation" is a rumbling piano-driven tune" about Welch confronting a "tepid lover", and "Haunted House" is about Welch "tackling the voices that keep her up late at night over a sparse arrangement that swells into a jittery blend of piano, drums and backing vocals". Consequence of Sound called "Moderation" a "rousing number", while "Haunted House" was labelled "spooky and sad". Billboard said...
