It took a while for Florence Welch, lead singer, songwriter and founder of Florence and the Machine, to make her way to the States from the U.K. And if you are a fan who has reveled in her soulful vocal, melancholy lyrics and full band, with harp, accompaniment for the past couple of years, you’ve noticed the delay. But all of those hard feelings were forgotten as of Tuesday night, when Welch and her band made their official New York debut with a thunderous show at Bowery Ballroom that left people cheering, yelling and generally freaking out. The night started on a calmer note with Holly Miranda opening. Miranda and her bandmate both played electric guitars, and Miranda provided a somber, slightly husky voice, alternately sung through a regular mic and one equipped with a hazy filter. Her normal band was busy, so after a couple of songs, the three members of Nada Surf came on stage as back up. Miranda’s sound benefited from the thickening of a backing band, but it did not hide the fact that her songs felt formless. They lacked a definitive melody and direction, something made clearer by comparison when Miranda and Matthew Caws sang Nada Surf’s “Killian’s Red.”
After Miranda ended, it took a good 45-plus minutes of setting up before Florence and the Machine came on. And the set-up time didn’t pay off, as Welch’s voice was initially met with no volume on the mic. She gestured sternly to the sound guys to crank it up, and things seemed fine by the second song. Welch is all theatrics in her live show. She came on stage with heavy dark eye makeup, bright red hair and a cream-colored, flouncy dress befitting of a 1970s disco wedding. She banged a drum, threw out her arms and whipped her head when she really felt a song. But Welch was not just a performance act because her singing, not the spectacle, ran the show. Her voice jumped from sultry belts to high-pitched runs, with quiet moments on “I’m Not Calling You a Liar” being just as powerful as the vocal explosions on “Cosmic Love.” Welch never dropped her vocal quality or her high emotional level during the show, doling out the drama until the end of her 13-song set. She looked like she could’ve gone on longer, but it was probably best to keep some of that emotion on reserve for her next New York show, whenever that is. Come back soon, Flo.
