I’ve been fortunate to see Florence + The Machine five times, and every time it’s been one of the best two-hour experiences of my year. This time was no different. Returning to the country for the first time in more than four years, Florence Welch and co greeted the Sydney crowd like old friends and sent the Qudos Bank Arena into raptures from the first to last moments of an enthralling set.
Opening the night was King Princess. Now two albums deep, the American act was the epitome of sad-rock for 45 minutes. Playing a set spread evenly throughout their discography, King Princess thanked their Australian fans for being the first market to truly embrace their music, while also noting the truly supportive nature the local queer community has had for the entirety of their career. Pre-empting the crowd with the question ‘who here likes pussy?’, the set highlights were “Pussy is God” and “Tahlia”, while closers “1950” and “Let Us Die” displayed the range of musical prowess King Princess has become known for. You really couldn’t have asked for much more in a main support.
Florence + The Machine has been an artist who has played many a pivotal roles throughout prolonged periods of my life. From absolutely thrashing Between Two Lungs whilst listening to my off-brand 256mb MP3 player on the school bus, or learning to drive listening to Ceremonials, the vocals and stories of Florence are imbedded in my brain like my most favourite memories. And based off her Sydney set, I’m sure everyone in else in attendance at the sold out show now feels exactly the same.
Opening with the forceful, daunting but great “Heaven is Here”, the front end of the set was naturally weighted towards new album Dance Fever, with “King”, the uplifting “Free” and “Daffodil” all getting a run. Maybe it’s my changing tastes or the fact I spent the better part of last year overseas not really listening to new music, but it took me a little bit to get excited over the Dance Fever material that featured in the set. And honestly, maybe the newer, younger fans would say the same about Florence’s oldest tracks. We’ve all come to love different eras of Florence’s music. I guess it’s the genius of it all. Managing to release consistently great music over a 15 year period is no mean feat; managing to connect across generations is the next level.
The more upbeat early stages of the night came from “Ship to Wreck” (as an aside, I was in Melbourne for a weekend not long after “Ship to Wreck” was released as a single and my cabbie blasted this album while yelling from his lungs ‘Toorak’ to the tune of “Ship to Wreck” as we drove through suburban Melbourne after watching the Sydney Swans get the chocolates. One of the great memories), while the epitome of all Florence songs, “Dog Days Are Over”, really set things in motion for the night. Begging the crowd to put all phones away and live in the moment of the song, this will always be one of my favourite songs, live or recorded.
As the middle third of the set kicked off, the weight of the night was shared between “Girls Against God”, “Dream Girl Evil”, “Big God” and “June”. The sincere and insightful “Hunger” showed a more tortured side to Florence, while “What Kind Of Man” really lifted the tempo of a night that had for the most part leaned into Florence’s darker side. Supported by her trademark band, they were all effortlessly cool throughout the whole night, as Florence burnt enough calories during her two-hour cardio session of a set, as she bounced, spun, twirled and dived across the stage and into the crowd. Seriously, for someone who has performed sans shoes every night for five albums and 15 years, the leg strength and lung capacity of Florence Welch must surely be second to none.
Naturally, the biggest applause of the night was reserved for songs like “You’ve Got The Love”, “Cosmic Love” and the always punchy and delightful “Kiss With a Fist (I was genuinely stoked to hear this track – and if “Kiss With a Fist” isn’t on your ‘cleaning the house’ playlist, please reassess everything). Closing the main set with “My Love” after enticing the crowd to dance once more time, the band returned for an encore of “Never Let Me Go” (pre-empted by an emotional Florence noting this was one of the first times this song had been performed in the past 10 years), “Shake It Out (a personal favourite), and “Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)”, featuring Florence’s best attempts to offer crowd members to the gods as sacrifices.
My girlfriend and I joked while walking to the show that it felt like we were on a pilgrimage with 20,000 other people on the way to our lord and saviour. And, honestly, this near two hour set was as close to a higher being I might ever get. There’s something magical about Florence + The Machine, and the music that comes with them. It’s wholesome, enlightening, holistic and completely spellbinding. Each and every time I’ve seen Florence I’ve never been disappointed. I know this time was no different. I’m sure everyone else in attendance thought the same.
FIVE STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Florence + The Machine continue their Australian tour this week. Click HERE for more details.
