Dog Days are Over – Florence and the Machine
Florence and the Machine (aka Florence Welch) raced around the blogs last year with her track “Kiss With a Fist” a full-throated Northern Soul throwback that hit you with as much force as the disturbing title suggests. It combined the beauty and elegance of a soul track with the grungy stomp of garage rock. The result was an enthusiastic romp through the travails of domestic violence.
Anyways, as much as I loved that track, I never really followed up on it. Turns out that was a mistake. I noticed a few days ago that she had an EP out and picked it up on eMusic. And was blown away. The opening track “Dog Days Are Over” is, if anything, even more emphatic than “Kiss With a Fist” was. Except here, you’re treated to two minutes of a more leisurely pace before the sparks really start to fly. But in that last minute you really get a chance to hear her voice shine.
The third track is “You’ve Got the Love” – perhaps the most straightforward song here, but which still manages to convey a voice that’s either on the brink of collapse or has been so far backed into a corner that it’s about to lash out with a force you can hardly imagine.
The fourth track is a cover of the Cold War Kids’ “Hospital Beds” which doesn’t do a whole lot for me, but at least is a substantial improvement on the original – which did even less. Finally, there’s an atmospheric remix of “Dog Days Are Over” which doesn’t match up to the original tracks, but offers an intriguing second perspective. It definitely suggests that in a very short career she’s already managed to produce some works that can tap into a wide range of genres without losing her rough-and-tumble attitude.
My excitement is piqued even more upon discovering that this is all just a preface to the full album, called Lungs, due out in July. The first three tracks (i.e. – the essential songs) will all be included, and I’m excited to hear the rest.