Florence Welch had me from the first few notes of “Ceremonials.” Mostly, it’s because I’m a sucker for great operatic pop; after all, I’m also a huge fan of The Who, Bruce Springsteen, and U2. The more I learned about her, however, the more she resembled my mother as a young woman: brilliant; passionate; otherworldly; and courageous enough to live her life with her heart on her sleeve in a world that runs on irony. She even performs in her bare feet! Her music makes my mother’s absence easier to bear.
Flo is a tremendous singer, particularly in her lower register. She is a good, but not great, writer. As a performer, she has improved by leaps and bounds over the years; if you watch tape of her from 2010, she’s probably singing off-key, but she fixed that problem years ago, and today, she’s nothing short of amazing on stage. Her energy is off the charts, and the overall effect can be euphoric.
By contrast, the first time I listened to Lana Del Rey’s “Honeymoon,” I thought it was music to commit suicide by. The characters in the songs are so filled with ennui, they can barely summon the energy to take drugs and go to parties. The package is so downbeat, I can’t imagine hearing it live. It just wouldn’t work.
On the second listening, however, it became clear that the characters in the songs were personas, and that the songs themselves were memorable and well-crafted. On the third listening, I started to become aware that most, if not all, of the songs were inspired by Hollywood movies, and that the plots were both dark and vivid. In that respect, the record is extremely, and admirably, ambitious.
Both Flo and Lana wrote and performed songs for “The Great Gatsby.” I can remember reading comments at the time in which their respective fans were talking trash to each other about the quality of their work. The great thing about music, however, is that you don’t have to choose: you can enjoy them both, even if they are extremely different. And I do.