Fresh off of her successful previous album, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, Florence Welch returns with another powerful album. Starting off quietly, "June" eases us into the album with a slow buildup of strings and a background chorus. The flow at the end of "June" leads us directly into the lead single from the album, "Hunger". "Hunger" is sure to be a stadium hit with a catchy chorus as Florence's voice weaves through the intricate details of her hungers. The song is straight-forward but also has a lot for listeners to interpret however they want to.
After "Hunger", the band brings us into a more unique portion of the album. "South London Flower" starts off as a rambling poem for Welch, but the band backing her voice seamlessly turns the poem into music. The drum beats mesh the rhythm of her voice with the rhythm of the string instrumentals. The light poem drops us off on an extremely dark track. "Big God" creeps up on the listener, with isolated vocals from Welch. Accompanying the song, there is a music video with dark symbolism relating to witchcraft. Definitely check out the video to try and understand what the song is trying to say. "Sky Full of Song" brings us back to Florence's lighter poetry. The lyrics progress onward as she discusses her relationship to music. The ballad is beautiful and has a simplistic form to keep our ears happy.
"Grace" continues to bring out the emotional impact on the album. Florence's vocals are delicate and are often used to create a sad atmosphere. "Grace" is a quiet display of the utility of her vocals, playing off of a jazzy piano melody. After "Grace", "Patricia" takes us back to the roots of Florence + The Machine. It blends the soul and pop that the band has used as their signature sound. The song unfortunately sounds extremely light for the powerful messages on the new album. "100 Years" returns to Welch's apologetic songwriting that is heard throughout the earlier tracks. The syncopated rhythms and clapping sounds are interesting and fun to try and snap along to.
To close the album, the intensity of Welch's isolated vocals return. "The End Of Love" is a spiritual ballad, "washing away" the lead singer's past. Her voice floats along the track with grace and strength. "No Choir" finishes the album with a final sign-off from Welch, who loses herself in her own lyrics. It is a peaceful close to an intensely faithful album.
Overall, High As Hope reveals Florence's flaws. Often, she is either confessing or apologizing on the tracks. This creates a strong message for almost every track on the album. This causes the tracks that are not confessions to hold less weight, but the lead singles still overpower the lighter fluff.
Score: 7/10
Favorite Tracks: "Hunger", "Big God", "Sky Full Of Song", "The End Of Love"
Least Favorite Tracks: "Patricia"
After "Hunger", the band brings us into a more unique portion of the album. "South London Flower" starts off as a rambling poem for Welch, but the band backing her voice seamlessly turns the poem into music. The drum beats mesh the rhythm of her voice with the rhythm of the string instrumentals. The light poem drops us off on an extremely dark track. "Big God" creeps up on the listener, with isolated vocals from Welch. Accompanying the song, there is a music video with dark symbolism relating to witchcraft. Definitely check out the video to try and understand what the song is trying to say. "Sky Full of Song" brings us back to Florence's lighter poetry. The lyrics progress onward as she discusses her relationship to music. The ballad is beautiful and has a simplistic form to keep our ears happy.
"Grace" continues to bring out the emotional impact on the album. Florence's vocals are delicate and are often used to create a sad atmosphere. "Grace" is a quiet display of the utility of her vocals, playing off of a jazzy piano melody. After "Grace", "Patricia" takes us back to the roots of Florence + The Machine. It blends the soul and pop that the band has used as their signature sound. The song unfortunately sounds extremely light for the powerful messages on the new album. "100 Years" returns to Welch's apologetic songwriting that is heard throughout the earlier tracks. The syncopated rhythms and clapping sounds are interesting and fun to try and snap along to.
To close the album, the intensity of Welch's isolated vocals return. "The End Of Love" is a spiritual ballad, "washing away" the lead singer's past. Her voice floats along the track with grace and strength. "No Choir" finishes the album with a final sign-off from Welch, who loses herself in her own lyrics. It is a peaceful close to an intensely faithful album.
Overall, High As Hope reveals Florence's flaws. Often, she is either confessing or apologizing on the tracks. This creates a strong message for almost every track on the album. This causes the tracks that are not confessions to hold less weight, but the lead singles still overpower the lighter fluff.
Score: 7/10
Favorite Tracks: "Hunger", "Big God", "Sky Full Of Song", "The End Of Love"
Least Favorite Tracks: "Patricia"
Image credit: By Jason Persse - Flickr: Florence and the Machine, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19348724
