| a lot of love. a lot of blood. a lot of FLORENCE + THE MACHINE. |
| Written by Shahlin Graves |
| Sunday, 08 November 2009 23:03 |
 In August 1986, somewhere in a galaxy far, far away... through some unfathomable mischance, a realm of higher intelligence and more deserving, were terribly cheated. The rest of the universe lucked out and in another twenty-three years, Planet Earth will hopefully live to still be thanking kismet for the godsend that is Florence Mary Leontine Welch. But don't be fooled by her sweet mouthful of a moniker, Welch's debut album 'Lungs' is a howling allegory with a sharper bite, than any ordinary spitfire's bark. Surviving ill-fits as a frontwoman for bands 'Toxic Cockroaches' and 'Ashok', Welch finally fashioned herself as Florence Robot Is A Machine. By twenty, Welch began to garner attention from performances in intimate London venues. Continuing to corroborate the far-reaching ripples that one Florence could inspire, an inebriated Welch serenaded her current manager with an Etta James song in the bathroom of a night-club. One of these days somewhere out there in the cosmos, some-one will write a nursery rhyme inspired by the mythos of Florence, a self-fulfilling prophecy. At the epi-center of this almighty cosmic fluke, storms a call to arms to carve out a new heart; unblinkingly honest, despite being fabricated from the tallest of tall tales. Fairies, 'Diamonds and Toads' aside, The Florence Effect means no more hiding from monsters underneath your bed. Things that go bump in the night, beware... The Florence Effect thanks you kindly for your childhood contributions, but is now ready to face the real scallywags of the adult world. Could one Florence fluttering her wings, be the first ripple of an ensuing, glorious chaos? Feel the force come February, when FLORENCE + THE MACHINE arrives to hold court at the first gathering of St. Jerome's Laneway music festival in Auckland.  COUP DE MAIN: If you could be a character from a nursery rhyme, who would you be and why? FLORENCE WELCH: I want to be Alice In Wonderland. But I don't think that's a nursery rhyme. There was a story I heard when I was a kid, about a girl who whenever she spoke; diamonds and pearls fell from her lips [ 'Diamonds and Toads' by Charles Perrault ]. I'd like to be her too. CDM: You seem entirely comfortable in your own skin. Is it frustrating seeing other twenty-something women conforming to superficial stereotypes?... and being desperately unhappy because of it? FLORENCE: I don't know. I've realised my thought process is kind of different to other peoples. But I don't know if that's a good thing. In your twenties, I think you're still trying to find your identity. You're not a teenager anymore, but you're not really an adult. All your ideas of your own morality go a bit squiff, and I think you have to start all over. So it's no wonder people conform. It's the safest option. CDM: As a baby when you had trouble sleeping, your parents played you The Smiths, R.E.M., The Soft Machine and The Go-Go's... What do you do now, when sleep evades you? FLORENCE: I still get really bad night terrors. But I just have a bowl of cereal (that's the key), turn the light on (to keep away the monsters)... and I'm fine. CDM: Describe yourself in a haiku... FLORENCE: OH GOD, WHAT ARE YOU SERIOUS I'M NOT SURE I HAVE THE STRENGTH TO FIGURE THAT OUT..X  CDM: Word on the street is that you swoon over skater boys. Got any skateboarding abilities of your own? FLORENCE: I wish! I wanted so badly to be a skateboarder when I was thirteen. But my Dad got me a plastic skateboard in the shape of a fish. So it never really took off. CDM: Love is blind? Why is it so hard for a person in love to come to terms with the fact that they're being lied to? FLORENCE: Because everyone wants to believe in something divine, and beyond human nature. Love is a madness that changes your perspective. CDM: Are you religious? What are your thoughts on the commercialisation of religion? FLORENCE: I'm not. But I believe in spirits. I don't really know, but the alpha course freaks me out. It's turning Christianity into a cult. CDM: Explain your sentiments behind the line; "No more dreaming like a girl so in love with the wrong world", in 'Blinding'... FLORENCE: I think I always want to see magic in the mundane. And sometimes I think I'm not really attached to the real world. Which is unhelpful in a practical sense. CDM: If you had to re-name your musical identity but had to keep the same initials (F.A.T.M.), what would you change your name to? FLORENCE: FUCK. ALL. THE. MONSTERS. CDM: Dressing up to go on stage, must be fun. What's been your favourite crazy outfit? FLORENCE: The curtain for Reading Festival was good. And a lime green jumpsuit given to me by Andrew from MGMT.  CDM: What was it like opening for Blur? FLORENCE: Absolutely terrifying. Because it was us, then the Klaxons, then Blur, in this massive venue. And we had never done a venue that big, but Alex James came backstage and said how much he liked it. So that was nice. CDM: How have you responded to 'Kiss With A Fist' being interpreted literally and thus criticised for condoning domestic violence/abuse? It seems more to be about giving back, as much as you get? FLORENCE: That's exactly what I think. There are no victims in that song. It's a push and pull situation. When people said it was about domestic violence, I thought it was ridiculous. The song is so tongue-in-cheek. CDM: What was your time spent at art-school like? How did it affect your creativity? FLORENCE: I really enjoyed it. It was great just to have a space to be creative; time allocated to just making art. It was wonderful. CDM: Having had vocal lessons yourself, do you think it's important for singers to be properly trained? FLORENCE: It's good to have the basics; breath control, how to take care of your voice, etc. But you don't have to stick to it. CDM: Were your dance-routines in the music video for 'Drumming Song' choreographed? Or did you freestyle the solo scenes? FLORENCE: The dance-y bits were choreographed. But those freestyle bits I did on my own. I love dancing, but I've never had training. So it was weird when I was flailing around with professionals. CDM: What are the top five things remaining on your To-Do list before death? FLORENCE: PLAY THE PYRAMID STAGE AT GLASTONBURY. GO TO MOROCCO. PLAY WITH SPIRITUALIZED. GET MARRIED. HAVE A KID. X  |
