Florence Welch has the body of a New York Liberty ball player, fitted to the esthetics of a fairy Goth queen, to the wardrobe of Stevie Nicks to the voice of Bono, to the humor of a Cockney Dance hall comedienne and an audience of mostly 20 something career women who can't choose between "50 Shades Of Grey" and "Jane Eyre" plus their boyfriends plus boys who like big music. At Radio City Music Hall on Tuesday night, some of this worked and some of it didn't.
A long way from "Kiss With A Fist", Florence and her backing machine, including two drums and a harp, entered to the wedding (or is it funeral) bells of "Only If For A Night" and dressed in a flowing white gown, she resembled nothing less than a billowy ghost. The site was off putting, her mix and match 'tude and swanning hand gestures coalesced to a bizarre stage act where she sprinted up and down the stage like a ghost escaping from Hogwarts, were too weird to be much fun.
Filmed for Fuse-TV, the performance was the document of what the Ceremonials tour would go down in history as. This is it, folks. And what it is, is a disappointment.
And that's strange because both Lungs and Ceremonials are chock filled with great songs and Florence has a sweeping, heavy voice, a moving instrument that distils depth on her, frankly, silly lyrics. I love songs like "What The Water gave Me" and "Spectrum" and "Heartlines" so much that I have never really considered her subject matter. In the end, here it is:
1. Liquids
2. Horses
Or, if you prefer, female sexuality and need. The urge is towards an Emily Bronteish elements on fire branding and because the concept is so Jungian, so primeval, it seems as though there is great depth to them. Add to that a big, big, big sound. And a bigger voice. And at radio City, it felt important.
But it wasn't. Florence performed nearly exactly what we thought she would, exactly how we knew she would. Those of us who follow her interviews, were not surprised by her stories of drinking and partying. And they weren't even vaguely salacious any way. The set list neither ebbs or flows. After "Only if For A Night", a blanket of self-satisfaction came over the set. I'd be waiting for "Leave My Body", but she doesn't do much with it. The following song, "Lover to Lover" is not a favorite, but for the first time Florence tests her voice, and she holds a note and ululates and goes further, higher, to the breaking point. It was the first moment of the entire night (around 50 minutes in) where Florence seemed to be testing herself.
It was followed by the penult and ult imate songs of the set proper. "I had one of my greatest hangovers in new York" Florence claimed, before a first rate "Shake It Out". Of course, "Shake It Out" is such an anthem, sing along, power surge, it would be difficult to get it wrong… although, come to think of it, her recent blah Unplugged version wasn't all that hot. Either way, it is very good. "Dog Days Are Over", with its stop gap and jump along audience participation, isn't as good as the recorded version, but it is good enough,
All the way through the evening Welch is very personable, a good MC who even dedicates a song to a woman whose mother has just died. Welch is almost arrogant and every inch a rock but she comes across as eccentric and silly and overdone. She can't dance, she can't even move very well, and she can only command the stage through her voice. I don't think it was an off night but I do think she was being very careful and it inhibited her performance.
A child of Winehouse, she has the best voice since Winehouse, maybe next time she can sell us on it.
Grade: B