Florence + The Machine, Auckland NZ, 2019

Florence + The Machine

30th January 2019
Spark Arena, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review by Bridget Herlihy. Photography by Matt Henry Mendonca.

On a balmy Auckland evening in the middle of a much publicised heatwave, thousands of eager punters converged on Spark Arena for the second of two Auckland shows by the much-beloved Florence + the Machine.  Having headlined the tenth anniversary of Laneway Festival just two days earlier, it appeared that many members of the crowd were taking advantage of the opportunity to relish seeing the Queen of Peace twice in the space of two days. And why wouldn’t you given the chance?

Those who remained outside to enjoy the cooling breeze unfortunately missed out on a superb performance by Yellow Days.  Aka George van der Broeck, Yellow Days is such an apt moniker for an artist that produces a sound bursting with soul; a sound that is absolutely perfect for long, hot and mellow summer days. Der Broeck, at a mere 19 years old, has been described as an old soul living in a young body, and has become renowned for using his music to address stigma surrounding subject matter such and mental health. Yet there is nothing sombre about Yellow Days’ music, rather, it is uplifting and a real pleasure to experience. The all-too-brief set included material from Harmless Melodies and Is Everything Okay In Your World, including the beautiful Your Hand Holding Mine and Waste Your Time. Needless to say Yellow Days certainly wasn’t wasting anyone’s time, delivering a thoroughly enjoyable performance that well and truly warmed the crowd.

With the temperature rising as the arena reached capacity, the crowd roared to life as the lady of the hour appeared on stage.  Dressed in a simple yet stunning frock reminiscent of a Victorian nightgown, the stunning Florence Welch cut a ghostly, ethereal figure. The opening bars to June sent a collective shiver down the spine, the first of many, and her exquisite and other-worldly voice admittedly brought a tear to this reviewer’s eye. This was one of the few moments of the nearly two-hour show that the songstress remained still, as second track Hunger saw her begin traversing the stage with great urgency; twirling, dancing and at times running with the energy, passion and grace of a gazelle.  She was a sight to behold, and seemingly effortlessly continued to hold the audience in the palm of her proverbial hand for the remainder of the night.

Although the set included a number of tracks from 2018’s High As Hope, it also spanned the band’s career, featuring tracks from each of their four albums, including crowd favourites Between Two Lungs, Dog Days Are Over and If Only For A Night, much to the crowd’s delight. Welch insisted that it was going to be a very active show, and encouraged everyone in the arena to get up out of their seats and dance freely without fear of looking weird. And dance they did, and with good reason, for this was the final night of the High as Hope world tour. It appears that Welch and her machine have a great deal of fondness for the Antipodes, as she took pause several times during the evening to thank the crowd for their continued support, noting that New Zealand and Australia were the first countries to embrace the band, as well as Laneway providing them with their first festival headline experience ten years ago.  And it is apparent that New Zealand’s adoration and infatuation with the band has continued to flourish over the last decade.

Welch sweetly admitted that she gets very nervous speaking in front of a lot of people, admitting she can twirl with reckless abandon, but that is an altered state. Yet for someone who does not like public speaking, she delivered a powerful message of maintaining hope and aiding change with obvious sincerity. Welch doesn’t just perform, she provides an experience by encouraging the audience to be present, to acknowledge a level of cosmic love for one another, while facilitating a sense of unity. Midway through the show she encouraged everyone to turn to the people around them and hold hands. And sure enough, friends and strangers alike dutifully followed her instructions, and the sight of thousands of clasped hands being held up to the air was spectacular. Yet she did more than simply proclaim her message of hope from the stage, during a superb rendition of Delilah from How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, she jumped down and made her way through the crowd (closely followed by security), not only showing her appreciation for their ongoing support, but also becoming one with the audience.

A brief break and they were back for a three song encore, kicked off with a new track, an upbeat number called Moderation, followed by the powerful Big God. Ending the night on a high, crowd pleaser Shake It Out had everyone out of their seats. The thousands of bodies jumping in unison really was a sight to behold. It appears that Florence and the Machine came to deliver a message of hope, freedom and love, and they delivered in abundance. The adoration beaming from the audience almost certainly guarantees that they will continue to visit our fair shores for many years to come.

Were you there at Spark Arena for this beautiful indie chamber pop gig? Or have you seen Florence + The Machine perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!

Setlist:

1. June
2. Hunger
3. Between two lungs
4. If only for a night
5. Queen of peace
6. South London forever
7. Patricia
8. Dog days are over
9. 100 years
10. Ship to wreck
11. Sky full of song
12. Cosmic love
13. Delilah
14. What kind of man
15. Moderation [encore]
16. Big God [encore]
17. Shake it out [encore]

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