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Take a look below for all the latest news, features, interviews, photos and more
Florence Welch joins Taylor Swift for 'Florida!!!' on the Eras Tour
Tens of thousands of fans who were at Wembley Stadium on 20th August for Taylor Swift’s record-breaking 8th Eras Tour show in London were treated to a couple of special surprises…appearances from Raye, Jack Antonoff, and none other than Florence Welch herself…
Fans were audibly shocked when the opening lines of ‘Florida!!!’ began echoing throughout the stadium. “What? WHAT?!” exclaimed excited fans in one video; this was the first time Taylor had played this song live. Then, as the end of the first chorus concluded, Florence Welch of Florence + the Machine emerged from beneath the stage, rising as if resurrected for this special moment.
“The national treasure” (as Taylor herself said) paraded and twirled ethereally for her appearance alongside Swift, serving some incredible vocals as she did. The performance was complete with moving stage parts and choreography.
Were you there to witness it? Let us know in the comments what your thoughts were / are! Watch the full video below:
Florence + the Machine to perform 'Lungs' at BBC Proms
Photo by Lillie Eiger
Exciting news has broken for all Florence + the Machine fans.
Florence + the Machine will be performing at the BBC Proms 2024, at the Royal Albert Hall. Their performance will be accompanied by an orchestra, including with medieval instruments, conducted by Jules Buckley.
The band are set to perform the entirety of their debut multi-platinum-selling album ‘Lungs’.
Speaking to Vogue, Florence states she’s most excited to rework lesser-known songs like ‘My Boy Builds Coffins’ and ‘Girl With One Eye’ - “it’s actually the ones you’d think wouldn’t work orchestrally that I’m interested to figure out”. It will mark her only gig for this year, and despite being on a hiatus, she couldn’t let the opportunity pass: “When [the invitation] came in, they were like, ‘We know you’re off, but would you…?’ and I was like, ‘Yes!’”
The BBC Proms is one of the world’s most renowned classical music festivals, and amongst the highlights in the Royal Albert Hall’s annual calendar.
Photo by Something For Kate via Flickr
Florence + the Machine last performed at the Royal Albert Hall in 2012 for the Teenage Cancer Trust, also alongside an orchestral ensemble that is widely regarded as one of their best live performances to date.
Tickets on sale from 18th May 2024 at 09:00 BST. The band will be performing on 11th September 2024 from 20:00 BST.
Taylor Swift and Florence + the Machine release Florida!!!
Florida!!!, taken from Taylor Swift’s new album ‘The Tortured Poets Department’, has been released today!
Talking of the track to iHeartRadio, Taylor describes how Florida is often to where convicted criminals flee to start a new life. She described how heartbreak conjures a similar feeling in her, and extended this to create Florida!!!.
The track features beautiful harmonies, dramatic drums and percussion, and an epic climax. Florence Welch performs on piano, drum, vocals and percussion on the track. Listen here:
Florence + the Machine collaborate with Taylor Swift on new album
Exciting news for fans of both Taylor Swift and Florence + the Machine!
Florence and the Machine are set to feature on a track from Taylor Swift’s new album ‘The Tortured Poet’s Department’.
It is Florence’s first feature on a track since she featured on Lady Gaga’s ‘Joanne' track, ‘Hey Girl’. It’s also the first feature on a track as the band, rather than a solo artist.
The song, titled ‘Florida!!!’, will be released on 19th April 2024. More information to follow.
Florence + the Machine set to release new song for 'The New Look'
Florence + the Machine have recorded a new song, titled ‘White Cliffs of Dover’, for the upcoming ‘The New Look’ Apple TV+ series. The show looks at the life of Christian Dior and associated contemporaries.
Produced by Jack Antonoff and also featuring the likes of Lana Del Rey, Nick Cave, Perfume Genius and Bleachers, the soundtrack is due to be released on 31st January 2024.
Florence + the Machine's new song 'Mermaids' out now
Florence + the Machine release new track ‘Mermaids’ complete with an epic brass beat, and live discussion on STATIONHEAD on 22nd April 2023.
Florence + the Machine have released a new track to add to the Dance Fever Universe!
The new song, titled ‘Mermaids’, sees Florence struggle with what it means to be sober, and the ‘cheerful oblivion’ that drinking used to offer her. Florence has been very candid in recent years about the dangerous allure that alcohol has previously had upon her, and ‘Mermaids’ reflects the ongoing relationship she has with
The track was produced by Dave Bayley (who also produced songs such as ‘My Love’ and ‘Daffodil’). Take a listen below.
We will also be hosting a very special streaming event on Stationhead on Saturday 22nd April at 6pm BST / 1pm EST so be sure to tune in!
Florence + the Machine to reschedule UK and Ireland Tour
Florence + the Machine will be rescheduling their UK and Ireland 2022 Dance Fever Tour, after Florence Welch fractured her foot at her first O2 Arena (London) show on 18th November 2022.
Fans in attendance of the O2 show expressed anticipation after watching Florence trip up following her interaction with fans at the barrier during ‘What Kind of Man’. Florence later took a brief break from the show to get her foot checked by medics backstage after noticing a significant amount of blood on stage, and being unable to bear weight on her foot.
To the initial relief of fans, Florence reappeared stating she had not broken anything and continued with the show, prancing around on stage and completing the show by doing a full lap of the arena.
The following day, Florence released the following statement on Instagram:
“Im so sorry to say that after an X ray it seems I was dancing on a broken foot last night. 🩰
It is not in my nature to postpone a show, and certainly not a UK tour, but I’m in pain and as dancers know, dancing on an injury is not a good idea. And have been told not to perform to avoid further damage. 🩸
Please hang on to your tickets. We are working our hardest to reschedule these dates for next year and we will let you know as soon as possible.
I’m heartbroken as the Dance Fever tour has been my favourite show we have ever put on.
The communion with you. Your beautiful faces shining. 🩸
I love you so much, and I’m so sorry to anyone who is disappointed. My heart is aching. I can’t wait to be back on my feet and back in your arms. X x”
The injury marks the second time that Florence has fractured her foot, the first being following her Coachella appearance in 2015.
Wishing her a speedy recovery back to the stage!
Florence + the Machine nominated for a Grammy
Florence + the Machine have been nominated for one Grammy Award in the 2023 diet. They’ll be up against the Arctic Monkeys, Big Thief, Wet Leg, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs in the ‘Best Alternative Music Performance’ category. Florence + the Machine have ‘King’ in that category, and marks their 4th album that has received a Grammy nomination.
Florence + the Machine are yet to win a Grammy - long overdue! Stay tuned for the result.
The Grammy ceremony airs 5th February 2023 in LA.
'Dance Fever - Live at Madison Square Garden’ released
Florence + the Machine release a live version of Dance Fever, including old classics too.
You can listen to the Dance Fever Tour right from your arm chair (or the bus, or your bed, or anywhere else!)
Florence and the Machine have released a live album, recorded at New York's Madison Square Garden. It includes extended versions of Cassandra, The End of Love, and old favourites like Cosmic Love, Shake It Out, and Never Let Me Go.
It’s available to listen to on Spotify, and also will be available for physical purchase as select stores, including the official Florence and the Machine Store. The physical release will be available on 14th April 2023.
Florence + the Machine's ground-trembling triumph at Tempelhof Sounds Festival - the Fan Club account
The Florence + the Machine Fan Club were given access to report on Florence + the Machine’s tempestuous Tempelhof Sounds appearance, and we detail all from the fan club perspective.
When you think of a Florence + the Machine festival headline slot, what sort of atmosphere comes to mind? At Tempelhof Sounds Festival, take that image and amplify it by one hundred. Tempelhof marked the first major festival in Germany to open its gates, set on the runway of the eerie abandons of a former major airport serving Berlin. What better location than to watch the music soar through and above the crowd that had been longing for the return of live music for three years? It was clear that Tempelhof stood for the music, putting this front and centre from the moment the first act stepped onto the stage, and the audience it attracted reflected that priority in its energy.
Fans gather early in the morning, adorned in glitter and flower crowns, to secure the prime barrier position. Photo: Yvonne Lehnert
‘Barrier Ghosts’ waiting patiently for the show to begin. Photo: Tessa Camilla (@tessacamilla)
Take, for example, the moment that the audience, waiting with bated breath, caught the first glimpse of Rob Ackroyd, Tom Monger, Dionne Douglas, Sam Doyle, Cyrus Bayandor and Aku Orraca-Tetteh ascending to the stage. Palpable electricity flowed through the sea of "barrier ghosts" - their faces glittering and ornament flower crowns worn in nervous anticipation of Florence Welch to float behind her band onto the stage. The wait for them had been for over 6 hours for most, enduring the intensity of the summer sun through the varied line-up of preceding acts including Two Door Cinema Club and the Libertines. A roar cut through the hot, still Berlin evening at the moment Florence tiptoed across the stage. Dressed in flowing lace, the pounding drums of 'Heaven Is Here' set the tone for the journey on which thousands were about to embark. The crowd chanted the spell-like 'Dance Fever' offering back to the band; the sermon in full swing. Hands flew into the air, pounding the sky to 'I AM KING' as Florence’s face illuminated at the realisation that ‘Dance Fever’ had already touched the souls of fans globally, singing the song word-for-word back to her. Florence + the Machine are indeed King, returning to perform at their best; each person understood how privileged they were to be experiencing this moment with their own eyes, ears and spirits, and they gave everything in return. Stomping, jumping, shouting through tiredness, tears and sweat, offering all their energy towards the stage.
Then came Dog Days to the satisfaction of the horizon-stretching crowd, with its classic ritual of its collective in-the-moment experience. Thousands roared as Florence asked who was experiencing what she termed the "cult" of Florence + the Machine for the first time. Thousands were inducted into the cult, jumping with abandon to the song's climax under the spell of Florence. The sheer power of the performance sent literal shockwaves through the tarmac, even causing a minor earthquake which shook surrounding apartments during the minute of feet thumping the floor in harmony.
Photo: Lea Herpich
The atmosphere remained charged, but with gentle love in the place of frantic euphoria as 'June''s "hold on to each other" tugged at the emotions of many who had struggled through the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fans held hands, embracing and swaying as each reflected on the personal bonds that Florence + the Machine have created between people who would not have met without their music - Canadians, Russians, Germans, Britons, Irish, French and more, all swaying shoulder-to-shoulder. Then again, nothing creates bonds quite like the shared experience of Florence clambering onto the barrier to unleash sonic rage through 'Dream Girl Evil'. Where Florence has supported millions through her songs, fans become Florence's physical support for a moment and the symbiosis of artist and audience becomes ever more evident. This symbiosis, as Florence highlighted later in the set, is something she and her band had missed dearly over the last three years. It's that symbiosis that Florence had witnessed in its full glory most evidently here, tonight, in Berlin. "You have been the most incredible audience, thank you" Florence exclaimed, visibly overwhelmed by the uniquely vibrant reception that the band had received from the German crowd from the very first song.
The crowd raises phone torches to simulate stars during ‘Cosmic Love’. Photo: Antony Zacharias (@antonyzacsnaps)
The show continued under "the moon, still bright against the worrying sky"; Florence sang, stretching towards the luminous moon hung perfectly above the sea of her worshippers. The lights of phone torches completed the sky full of song during 'Cosmic Love' as the sky itself began to grow darker. As the show drew to a close, Florence beckoned all to leave all their energy on the tarmac. Her audience obeyed, dancing to exhaustion in the vein of the dancing plague which themes their latest album 'Dance Fever'. The final offerings were made during 'Rabbit Heart' which closed the set, with fans clambering onto shoulders chanting "RAISE IT UP" into the black abyss above their heads. The ground-shaking energy was felt from further afield, attracting an audience of congregating passers-by in Tempelhof Feld to the festival’s perimeter who listened to the crowd’s roaring and Florence’s soaring voice in awe.
And although the band left the stage, the strong connections, friendships and sheer energy that are the life forces of the Florence + the Machine fan base endure in ever-more beautiful ways. Reflectively, no-one moved for minutes after the band had left the stage, all spell-struck by the sermon in which they had just participated. As the charm’s hold lessened and the crowd dispersed in search of food to refuel after their musical voyage, the electricity was still visible on all faces that we passed. Fans gathered to share tales of the personal and collective moments from the show, exchanging photos, hugs and contacts. As we write this article, we realise that it is incredibly difficult to transfer the sheer vibrance that this performance offered into words, and are indebted to Tempelhof Sounds for providing such a special space for Florence + the Machine's literally ground-shaking magic to be shared. That evening will forever be written into history, on this site and beyond, as one of the most exhilarating shows by the band, but also the most beautiful display of human love that the band facilitates, that continues to pervade through the darkest of times.
Fans congregate after the performance, united by Florence + the Machine, having endured over 11 hours of waiting in the intense German sun. Photo: Agnes