Florence Welch, of Florence and the Machine.
by Stephen Moore
Thursday, March 15, 2012
7:57 PM
A heart-winning performance from Camberwell’s captivating pop queen at Alexandra Palace.
The last night of Florence Welch’s residency at the Pally crowned an incredible triple-header for the transfixing twentysomething.
Just as with her music, the night was all about escapism, drama and beauty, the Art Deco-inspired set only outdone by Flo’s own bejewelled and gold-fringed shoulder pads and a cape billowing over a dazzling black catsuit.
Straddling a netherworld between space age and voodoo, she hits her stride on the swelling drama of Cosmic Love, signed off with a beautiful rain of plucked harp.
A grand, choir-backed Shake It Out verges on the spiritual before string section, harp and acoustic guitar add sweeping breadth to a (drum-free) Drumming Song, Florence belting out warbling notes with delicious abandon.
From vocal shamanics to ballet twirls, Florence is poised and professional, her mask only slipping as she giddily introduces Heartlines, dedicating it “to my family and to you, London”.
The whole pulsing, captivating set can be heard on iPlayer at http://bbc.in/wEPsPY Be quick!
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