NPR Feature: Florence And The Machine
Wednesday, November 17th, 2010I first discovered Florence And The Machine after reading a great feature article from NPR in April 2010 titled, “Florence And The Machine: From Delicate To Fierce.” The feature talks about British lead singer Florence Welch becoming one of the newest music sensations. The feature does not list who the author is, but the author seemed to only use a little bit of research. This research included information on Florence + The Machines past albums, critic reviews and an actual interview with lead singer Florence Welch.
The feature is organized very well, but is lacking in the lead sentence. It doesn’t particularly grab the reader’s attention right away, but the body of the feature makes up for that minor flaw. The article describes how Florence Welch got discovered, and goes on to mostly talk about the influences on Welch’s style and the particular vocal sound that makes Florence And The Machines stand out among other new music artists. I think it’s unusual that this feature uses subheadings to separate topics, but it seems effective. It grabbed my attention, and I was able to follow along with the article better.
There are a lot of good-quality quotes from Florence Welch in this article. Such as when Welch talks about her musical style by saying, “It’s primal tribal bashing of percussion, mixed with the choral side of backing vocals.” Although the author included some good quotes, I think trying to get some quotes from Welch about her transition from London to America, as well as her thoughts on making it big in the American music industry would be beneficial to the feature.
One of the best parts about the feature is the author’s creative description of Florence And The Machines music. For example the author says, “The song’s evocative words channel the emotionally destructive nature of love.” These fluid sentences make the reader want to listen to the music. As for the final kicker, it is decent. The author ends off with a quote from Welch on how she feels about playing at concerts. It kind of leaves the reader hanging, but it also makes the reader want to know more about Florence And The Machines.