Album of the week
FLORENCE + THE MACHINE
“Ceremonials”
4 STARS
Florence Welch is a well-oiled vocal machine for “Ceremonials,” the follow-up to her much praised 2009 debut, “Lungs.” Yet where that earlier record was stylistically scattered because of its multiple producers, the dozen tunes of “Ceremonials” have a single-minded consistency provided by knob turner Paul Epworth. This new disc is big and bombastic, capitalizing on Welch’s flexible, gravity-defying vocals, which rise above the jam of kettledrum percussions, jamming guitars, atmospheric harps and synthesizer accents.
When Welch wails full force, she carries the lyrics with the same dynamic blue-eyed soul power of Annie Lennox. On the soft side — when she provides her own backup via layered, chanted overdubs — she touches on the same ethereal, dreamy vibe as Enya.
Those qualities are highlighted on the album opener, “Only If for a Night.” It’s a friendly ghost story in which Florence hears the words of a deceased relative “as clear as day.” There is an urgency and emotional punch in her delivery that says she believes.
One of the best songs, “Never Let Me Go,” has a lusty vocal quality, yet the hymn-like lyrics seem to speak about a higher love.
Creating a power pop record with intelligent poetic lyrics is a tricky balancing act, but Florence has mastered that on this stunning sophomore effort.
Single of the week
LOU REED & METALLICA
“Brandenburg Gate”
3 STARS
In one of the oddest of odd-couple collaborations, Metallica has teamed with New York rock laureate Lou Reed for “Lulu,” a metal opera based on the writings of German playwright Frank Wedekind.
Lou-tallica is musically punishing and lyrically perplexing, yet the overall effect of the song “Brandenburg Gate” is greater than its parts.
The song opens sweetly, with a strummed acoustic guitar riff and the staccato monotone of Reed singing: “I would cut my legs and tits off/when I think of Boris Karloff and Kinski/in the dark of the moon.”
The song then shatters in an explosion of headbanging drums and drone guitar. On this tune about “a small-town girl, trying to give the world a whirl,” Reed sounds evil and Metallica stumbles down the stairway to hell.
You won’t hear it on the radio, but it’s a walk on the wild side destined to become a cult classic.