IT’S not that Florence Welsh has a machine, rather she is the machine. It’s the recording name of Florence and a collaboration of other artists who provide backing music.

Musically, the band’s sound is generally referred to as soulinspired indie and they’ve received praise across the British music industry.

The band’s recently-released debut album Lungs was at the number two position for its first five weeks in the charts, behind Michael Jackson. Florence opens with Kiss With A Fist, the most high-tempo moment of the set, with an angry drum beat and reverb-laden guitar matching the lyrical anger.

Bird Song follows, with more haunting, compelling vocals that burst into a stomping song with a sparse tribal beat as Florence shakes her long hair energetically. The music is infectious and knocks the audience sideways.

The band steamroll through their set including songs like Howl and the epic Dog Days Are Over, a piano-led number that sounds like a fable.

Florence and the Machine take it to the forefront, producing an energetic sound that offsets the emotion of the lyrics. Her songs evoke moods of passion, anger and violence with sublimely dark, gothic images.

Overall, Florence and her Machine are utterly relentless.

Sophie Stratford