Would you like to tell us about a lower price? If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support? In voice and, ultimately, outlook Florence has never sounded better. Deluxe edition includes 5 x bonus tracks. Skip to main content. Buy new:. Arrives: Sep 3 - 12 Details.

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Florence and the Machine's How Big How Blue How Beautiful – trailer
Thus far, Welch has spent her career behaving as though understatement was something you should go out of your way to avoid contracting: everything from vocals to visuals is pitched at a level just shy of frenzied. In fairness, there are a couple of moments where things are dialled down slightly. On her previous albums, she essayed everything from ballads to EDM fluff in a war-cry bellow, suggestive of furrowed brows and bulging veins. Here, however, Long and Lost features the hitherto-unimaginable sound of Welch singing softly: there are massed backing vocals, but they stay muted and distant, haloed in reverb. St Jude is more unassuming than you might expect a song starring the patron saint of lost causes and miraculous curer of King Abgar of Edessa to be: a delicate, harmonium-led ballad. Instead, it wobbles precariously along the line that separates the enjoyably OTT from the faintly exhausting. That it lands in the former rather than the latter category is down to something really prosaic lurking beneath the references to Greek mythology and the teeming sound. Welch, or someone in her songwriting team, is exceptionally good at writing polished, radio-ready melodies: hooks that dig in, strong enough to support the weight of everything that gets shovelled on to them. Facebook Twitter Pinterest. Pop and rock reviews.
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It was released on 29 May , by Island Records. After returning from her year-long hiatus from music, lead vocalist Florence Welch returned to configure How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful , recording material that dealt with personal conflicts and struggles. In comparison to their last two studio albums, the album is much more refined and stripped-down instrumentally, and incorporates a mixture of musical influences such as folk , blues and gospel. How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful was met with positive reviews from music critics , who commended the album for its cohesion, production and Welch's vocal delivery. Additionally, it appeared on several year-end critics' lists. The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart with 68, copies sold in its first week, becoming the band's third consecutive number-one album. The album earned the band five Grammy Award nominations, in addition to being shortlisted for the Mercury Prize. In , Florence and the Machine released their second studio album, Ceremonials , which became their second consecutive effort to peak at number one on the UK Albums Chart , as well as their first to reach the top 10 of the US Billboard , peaking at number six. The record company have put no pressure on me for the next album. They've said I can have as long as I want".