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Florence and the Machine, Manchester Arena

  • Published in Live

Photos: Lee Hammond

Corporate, vacuous, soulless, all words that can be used to describe Manchester Arena. Housing a cool 21,000 when at full capacity, it's difficult to imagine any artist being able to make such a room feel intimate, yet that's exactly how the venue feels almost from the first moment Florence Welch takes her first barefooted step on to the stage.

Before even that however, alt folk three-piece The Staves prove to be in fine form. The huge spotlights of the arena are focused on the trio as they surround a single microphone; their respective vocals mergign in to one single texturous harmony; the nuances and subtleties of each composition somehow audible across the cavernous venue floor. In a testament to the band and their production, it's these vocals that are the stars of the band's set, and the understated instrumentation that accompanies them is worked so as not to overshadow the vocal track. It's fragile, and at times twee, but their set is impressive nevertheless.

Opening with 'What The Water Gave Me', Florence immediately sets about whipping the crowd in to a frenzy of ecstatic emotion. There are tears almost from get go, as the surge of sentiment she inspires in her fans becomes too much, whilst those who teeter on the brink of tears collapse in to floods with the early inclusion of 'Ship to Wreck'.

The sheer energy upheld by Welch throughout her set is something to truly behold, and it's only in the quieter, more introspective sections that she allows herself rare and fleeting moments of composure. Unsurprisingly, 'Rabbit Heart' is met with a huge response from her crowd, and, as if channelling their energies, Florence runs from the stage to the rear, finishing the track from one of the several stairways that ring the arena.

About two thirds of the way through, clearly drained of her energy, which up until this point seemed bottomless, the set takes a quieter, more refined approach. A trio of tracks in the form of 'Long & Lost', 'Mother' and 'Queen of Peace' allow Welch to remain almost stationary, instead exercising her vocal range impressively whilst giving her legs some much-needed respite. Unsurprisingly, it's a short-lived section, and the tempo is brought right back up with an impassioned and drawn-out rendition of 'Dog Days Are Over'.

Encores are part of the deal with live music these days, and even a band who play a decidedly mediocre show will disappear only to come back on five minutes later. Tonight there is of course an encore, but it's one that the band have deservedly earned, and though it's only two tracks long, the anthemic finale of 'Drumming Song' is in short, excellent. Many people turned their noses up when the band confirmed they'd be headlining Glastonbury, but if this is the kind of calibre Florence & the Machine are at barely three albums in to their career, then we can expect them atop the bill of many more festivals to come.  

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Chvrches, Manchester Academy

  • Published in Live

Photo Credit: Lee Hammond

Atmosphere can make or break a gig. There are shows when it's palpable; anticipation and emotion entwining in to something almost tangible. Then there are shows like tonight, shows in which a disparate crowd form a mass of uncertainty, irrespective of universally high expectations. There are those here for whom going to gigs is a regular occurrence, there are those for whom the small-by-comparison Academy is a far cry from their past experiences of commercial arena shows and then there are those for whom this is quite clearly their first taste of live music. All are here in equal numbers and through no fault of their own make for an uneasy and somewhat timid audience.

Of course, all this is viewed from the Academy's balcony, and so any atmosphere there was may have been lost on its journey upwards. Having never managed to land tickets that have allowed us the pleasure of being up here however, it made little sense to turn them down, and what we may have lost in atmospherics was certainly made up for in both sight and sound. Each gorgeous synth loop and saccharine vocal hook is delivered and executed perfectly, the only sound issues appear when Chvrches heavier elements ('Science/Visions' for example) see the bass crackle above all else, though this rarely detracts from a band who are, quite clearly, in razor sharp form.

There's very little on-stage patter from Lauren Mayberry and co, and as such the band plough from track to track with a steadfast determination and incredible precision. Only when we're informed that the “tambourine section”of the show has come to an end do you get the first taste of Mayberry's dry wit. “You're humouring me” she adds with a wry smile.

The first of two new tracks this evening is the recently revealed 'Get Away'. A welcome inclusion, the track gets a solid reception despite its relative recentness, and marks an improvement in the atmosphere, especially when followed up two songs later with 'Recover' the most well received track thus far.

A review of any Chvrches gig wouldn't be complete without a mention of the fit-inducing light show that accompanies their performances. Lasers and smoke machines make a hallucinatory experience for the digital age; this isn't a kaleidoscopic mushroom fancy however, more a sensory staccato assault with the figure of Mayberry ever silhouetted against the neon pinks and blues.

Closing out the main set with the inevitable 'The Mother We Share' sees the atmosphere once again ramp up, though it's still not befitting of the band's effort, nor execution. Last time we saw Chvrches it was impossible to escape this song, but not having it rammed down our throats almost hourly by national radio has allowed it to once again grow on us, and there's definitely a reason why it's the band's biggest single. An expected three track encore sees yet another new song in the form of 'Dead Air' sandwiched between album closer 'You Caught the Light' and fan-favourite 'By the Throat' which ends the proceedings in a suitably emphatic manner.

Minor bass quibbles aside, you couldn't ask for a more perfect set from a band who really have little more than a solitary album in their repertoire. Note perfect, genuinely funny on the occasions they talk, and with an ability to write huge sounding pop songs with blistering choruses and sugary synths that, one would have thought, would make it impossible not to dance. Unfortunately however tonight is marred by a lack of atmosphere, something absolutely out of Chvrches' hands. We can only hope that, come March and the new album, the inevitable supporting tour will see a much more engaged Manchester crowd that lives up to the exemplary sets the band perform.  

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