Florence and the Machine
How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
Island Records
Florence Welch has the kind of visceral, hands-to-the-sky voice that can be either intoxicating or off-putting. On her debut, 2009’s Lungs, there was a raw charm in hearing her find her voice, like a fawn standing up on its legs for the first time. On Ceremonials, her 2011 follow-up, she quivered, whispered and screamed like a banshee as she reigned in her noble beast, using the power of gang vocals, tribal drumming and religious references.
With How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, Welch mellows out, sort of. The album begins with the classic rock inspired “Ship To Wreck”. She sings, “I can’t help but pull the Earth around me to make my bed” in classic Welch fashion, using both terrestrial and celestial metaphors. The Motown-influenced “Delilah” swings with call-and-answer vocal melodies and snare-heavy beat. But the finer moments are the quieter ones. “Various Storms and Saints” and “Long & Lost” are spacious, relaxed ballads where Welch’s voice is given a suitable canvas to shine. HBHBHB may not be her most profound effort to date, but it is a welcome one.
Rating: ★★★1/2 (out of five stars)
