Lungs [Deluxe Edition]

Florence + The Machine | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 26, 2011)
• Original Release Date: 2011
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Deluxe Edition
• Label: Universal Republic
• ASIN: B004QDCZ3M
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (340 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,500 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

Let's talk about magic. Because music, at its best, is a kind of magic that lifts you up and takes you somewhere else. "I want my music to sound like throwing yourself out of a tree, or off a tall building, or as if you're being sucked down into the ocean and you can't breathe," says Florence Welch. "It's something overwhelming and all-encompassing that fills you up, and you're either going to explode with it, or you're just going to disappear." Florence writes her best songs when she's drunk or has a hangover, because that's when the freedom, the feral music comes, creating itself wildly from the fragments gathered in her notebooks and in her head. "You're lucid," she explains, "but you're not really there. You're floating through your own thoughts, and you can pick out what you need. I like those weird connections in the universe. I feel that life's like a consistent acid trip, those times when things keep coming back." Florence herself is a mass of contradictions: she's tough yet she's terrified, a bundle of nerves and passion, of darkness and pure joy. "I feel things quite intensely, which is why the music has to be so intense. I'm either really sad or really happy, I'm tired or completely manic. That's when I'm at my most creative, but it's also dangerous for me. I feel I could write some good songs, or break some hearts. Or tables. Or glasses." As a performer she can seem fearless, but she's also far too quick to pass judgment on herself. This is the woman, after all who got into Camberwell art college by making a huge floral sign telling herself `You are a twat.' She says she's a geek, who loses all control when in love. She's also something increasingly rare and precious in a time of karaoke pop: an artist who has found her own, authentic voice. Her soaring, epic vocals, quirky melodies and self-contained musical world have already won her the 2009 Critics Choice Award at the Brits. Some compare her to Kate Bush. You'll also find touches of Tom Waits and Nick Cave in her dark visions, and if you heard a little of Bjork too, she'd find it a compliment. But mainly, Florence is out on her own: an exhilarating place to be, she points out, but also a little scary. Live, Florence and The Machine become an entirely different beast. No two performances are ever alike, and clad in clothes often culled from local second-hand shops that day, Florence goes at it like a woman possessed. "It's just this sense of total freedom," she says. "It sounds so cheesy, but I want to touch people. Not in a weird way. I just want to help them feel what I'm feeling."

Product Description

The deluxe version of "Lungs" contains 11 bonus tracks!
In this product the second disc looks exactly like the first one. The only way to tell them apart is by the words 'Deluxe Edition Disc 1' and 'Deluxe Edition Disc 2' that is in small white print above the album title.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

137 of 143 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Louder than sirens, louder than bells September 11, 2009

By E. A Solinas HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

"Happiness hit her like a train on a track/Coming towards her stuck still no turning back/She hid around corners and she hid under beds/She killed it with kisses and from it she fled..."

Florence and the Machine is one of those little bands that seeps in under the pop radar, and becomes a sensation based on pure talent. And Florence Welch and Co. produce a solid debut, "Lungs," that blends delicate polished instrumentals and different genres -- there's little splatters of pop, punk and soul woven together, and cemented in place by Welch's lovely voice.

It kicks off with the plucked intro of "Dog Days Are Over," with Welch's sweet voice singing about "Happiness hit her like a bullet in the head/Struck from a great height by someone who should know better than that." While it starts off as soft, ethereal pop, the melody is swathed in eruptions of orchestral pop-rock -- it gets loud'n'catchy, with Welch yelling, "The doooog days are OVER-ER/the dooooog days are ALL DONE!"

She continues the high note with "Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)," a scintillatingly colorful melody that sounds like a thunderstorm in a flower garden. After that she unleashes a bunch of other great songs: the soulful "I'm Not Calling You A Liar," the urgent piano-pop of "Howl," the wandering twangy "Girl With One Eye," the bouncy wistful "Between Two Lungs," and the sweetly macabre "My Boy Builds Coffins." An especially fun one is "Kiss With A Fist," a blazing punky tune that celebrates rough'n'passionate relationships ("You hit me once, I hit you back/you gave a kick, I gave a slap/you crashed a plate over my head/and I set fire to our bed!").

But Welch and her revolving-door band really shine when the music overflows into a steady river of fiery rock'n'roll, wrapped in twisting gossamer synth and soaring rich vocals. "Howl," the hymnlike "Drumming" and the bleak "Hurricane Drunk" all fit into this category -- and these are absolutely stunning songs, if not as immediately accessible as the catchier tunes.

Florence and the Machine has a pretty unique sound -- there's a lot of punky rock'n'roll, a spattering of pop's catchiness, and some jazzy overtones woven into a few of the songs. As debut albums go, this is a pretty spectacular one, with a distinctive flavour that sounds like little else in modern music -- the closest comparison that comes to mind would be if Joanna Newsom formed a punk-rock band and went for pop stardom.

In particular, Welch has a very pretty voice -- it's a little wavery and girlish, but she sculpts it into a flickering, roaring presence in the louder songs. And she has a knack for dark, evocative lyrics ("Louder than sirens, louder than bells/sweeter than heaven and hotter than hell!") with a quirky edge ("He's made [a coffin] for himself/One for me too/One of these days he'll make one for you"). There are a few lines that need some smoothing out, but not badly enough to distract.

And the instrumentation from The Machine is a gorgeous accompaniment -- lots of rich, swirling instrumentals and straight-ahead rock'n'roll, usually depending on Robert Ackroyd's strong electric guitar and Christopher Lloyd Hayden's solid drumming. Isabella Summers wraps the album in gossamer-soft synth, and Tom Monger adds to the ethereal edge with a harp -- it also helps give it a more classical sound, rather than straight rock-pop.

Florence and the Machine's debut "Lungs" really shows why this band has been getting so much attention across the pond -- it's passionate, eclectic and a lovely piece of work. And it sounds like they'll only get better.

50 of 55 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Becuase of projects like Florence + the machine the music industry has still hope of surviving October 18, 2009

By NUEVE

There are no words to describe how AMAZING this album is. From the beginning all its way through the end the music you find here is an unforgettable experience. Before I jump into conclusions with some of the songs let me tell you that this girl is so talented on her own terms. The production of the album is stunning and the arrangements of the instruments flow in such an incredible way and natural form that you might believe that perfection is what you hear. A piano here, an Arp there (such a beautiful inclusion to this record), an electric and acoustic guitar every now and then make the songs come up with their own personality.

"Dogs days are over", "I'm not calling you a liar" and "Drumming song" fight againts the traditional way of a song structure... there's a point where you don't know what you're listening and yet, you can't stop tapping your foot on the floor at the rythm of the music. Great songs for sure. "Rabbit heart (raise it up)" (of course!!!), "Kiss with a fist" and "You've got the love" are meant to be the commercial ones??? on the record... not that they're less impressive because of this 'cause once you hear the first one you fall in love with it right away. To point out one of tem in particular, I find "My boy builds coffins" a masterpiece. For some reason everything falls right in place here.

"Lungs" is by far one the best records of this year and for sure will be one of the best in the first decade of the 2000's. Because of projects like Florence + the machine and Bat for lashes (I must say), we know that if this kind of music is coming up from such young girls, we can expect a bright future for music itself. It is ok that we have ALL kinds of music: the bubblegum one (with all the annoying scene in the US), abstract one (a la Radiohead) and commercial-respected one (R.E.M., U2, Muse or even Placebo). But if we didn't have the independent one and all the UK scene going on, the whole music universe would be so predictable.

65 of 73 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Album of 2009 (so far) July 7, 2009

By J. C. Petts

Format:MP3 Music|Amazon Verified Purchase

Truly a stunning album. One of the most amazing pieces of music I have heard for many years.

Florence Welch has a voice that she uses to amazing effect. It reminds me alternately of some other outstanding female vocalists, such as Grace Slick, Sonja Kristina (Curved Air), Sinead O'Connor, Dido but somehow seems to transcend all of them.

There is an intimacy and warmth she projects, combined with a great power, yet at times projects and air of frailty and vulnerability.

The music itself is pop of the highest quality, and the at-times sparse mixes move seamlessly between driving rhythms and allusive, haunting and captivating airiness.

The way that instruments such as harp are highlighted and allowed to interact with, and emphasize Florence's voice is wonderful.

The lyrics repay careful listening, being very much out of the ordinary.

Standout track of this album is Rabbit Heart (Lift It Up), but any of these songs would, to my mind, be outstanding among the very best music ever recorded.

I entitled this review "The Best Album of 2009 (So Far)", but I would not be at all surprised if I didn't hear a better album than this for several years. Truly, truly a gem.