8. Florence + The Machine – Lungs
Andy : 5 :: Dave : 13
Florence Welch, namesake and lead singer of British indie rock outfit Florence + The Machine, has little time for pretense on her debut album, Lungs. It’s hardly enough for her to sing about her feelings; in order to feel properly heard, she seems to need to do it in the most grandiose fashion imaginable – and the results are as extravagant as one would expect from someone with a proclivity for show.
The Machine – who aren’t so much Ms. Welch’s band as they are the current collective of musicians with whom she is working – provide the framework for the powerhouse that is her voice. Whether upbeat, slowed-down or even over-the-top bombastic, Welch’s pipes are on display throughout the album – and with good reason. There’s no time for emoting here. If there’s something to be sung, it’s done with vigor. As such, Lungs is a potent album that doesn’t ask for attention, it demands it – evidenced most clearly by its consideration for the 2009 Mercury Prize.
Already having generated five singles in the UK from Lungs – the group is set to re-enter the studio to start work on their follow-up early in 2010. After the emotional, musical tour de force that is Lungs, I hope that the band still has something left to give to the process. I’m certain they will.
Florence + The Machine – Drumming Song (mp3)
Florence + The Machine – Cosmic Love (mp3)
(Both songs from Lungs
Despite the collaborative nature of Tympanogram, the two of us don’t always agree on what the other person enjoys. Every so often we both come to an artist independent of one another that we both enjoy; Florence + The Machine is exactly that.
