The first track on the album is called 'Ship to Wreck' it enters with a boho/indie vibrant and lively mood. The first lyrics grab your attention straight away with;
"Don't touch the sleeping pills, they mess with my head. Dredging the great white sharks, swimming in my bed."
This obviously shows how Florence hallucinates on her sleeping pills or has deep & dark nightmares which 'mess' with her head. After that she goes on to sing the contagious and soulful chorus of;
"Did I drink too much? Am I losing touch? Did I build this ship to wreck? To wreck, to wreck, to wreck. Did I build this ship to wreck?"
This is a great song to open up the album as it sets your standards as to what to expect of the album as a whole. As strong of a song that Ship to Wreck is, you still get the flimsy and distinctive Florence Welch edge to the song too.
The second track on the album is also a very soulful and strong song too. The second track is called 'What Kind of Man'. The introduction has a very slow and eery essence about it, however after the first verse is over; the tempo gradually begins to increase... Then once the title line of;
"What kind of man loves like this?"
The rock beat really starts to kick in, due to the aggression being expressed throughout the lyrics of;
"To let me dangle at cruel angle, oh my feet don't touch the floor."
You begin to understand the indignation throughout Welch's vocals as his perception of love, is making her die for him. Or perhaps he has killed her?
This track is insanely repetitive with its signature chorus lines, leading to it being one of the best tracks on the album from my perspective.
The third track on the album is the representation of the album as a whole due to the song title being 'How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful'. This is one of the more simplistic songs on the album, but it is insanely satisfying due to the constant whirlwinds of moods forever changing in this 5 minute and 34 seconds masterpiece of pure genius.
'Various Storms & Saints' is one of Florence's notorious dark songs, however it lets you see the other side of her; the gentle side. Not the firey & projectile side. Therefore this song is the exhilarating paradox of the album!
"But you took your toll on me, so I gave myself away."
This song covers many different emotions within the lyrics, and I liked it how the whole song is one big twist. It was traditional, dark and firey Florence mixed with a new gentle and introverted Florence; which you don't see often. Another song similar to this track is called 'Long & Lost' - so if you enjoyed this song, I would definitely recommend that you give 'Long & Lost' a listen too.
'Third Eye' is also one of my more favourable songs off this faultless album too. With its repetitive beats and contagious, meaningful lyrics; how could you not like it?!
"Cause there's a hole where your heart lies, and I can see it with my third eye. And oh my touch, it magnifies you pull away - you don't know how."
Another phenomenal song which I would definitely suggest that you listen to would be 'St Jude'. St Jude is the second to last track on the album & it curtiously closes off the album with its gentle echoes and its well-known Florence, flimsy vocals.
"And I'm learning, so I'm leaving, and even though I'm grieving. I'm trying to find the meaning - let loss reveal it."
In conclusion I think that this album is beautifully simplistically complexed. Florence + The Machine are notoriously known for their powerful, soulful dark songs. However this album has a twist, and includes almost powerless songs due to the effortless vocals with strong, hidden meanings instead. I've always been a fan of their work, but this album is flawlessly exceptional and I would say that it is definitely up there with their 2009 debut album 'Lungs'. I would 100% recommend that you give it a listen if you are into dark meanings sugarcoated by effortlessly contagious songs accompanied by flimsy vocals. Fantastic.
10/10
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