Florence + the Machine Wiki
Advertisement
Florence + the Machine Wiki
Florence + The Machine Wiki
215
pages
in: Studio albums, Albums, Dance Fever Universe, Dance Fever

Dance Fever (album)

View source

This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).

Dance Fever is the fifth studio album by Florence and the Machine. The first recording sessions for the album was originally scheduled to take place in March 2020 in New York City, however, due to COVID-19 being declared as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) recording took place in London instead.

The title and concept of Dance Fever originated in Welch's fascination with choreomania, a social phenomenon in early modern Europe that involved groups of people dancing erratically.[1][2][3]

Background[]

The majority of the album was recorded in London. The first recording sessions for the album were originally scheduled to take place in March 2020 in New York City but were scrapped after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic.[1] While recording the "anthemic" Dance Fever, Welch and her collaborators fostered a "dance, folk, '70s Iggy Pop" sound in the vein of "Lucinda Williams or Emmylou Harris and more" that is meant to be enjoyed during "the return of clubs, live music and dancing at festivals".[1] Welch also found inspiration in "the tragic heroines of pre-Raphaelite art, the gothic fiction of Carmen Maria Machado and Julia Armfield, the visceral wave of folk horror film from The Wicker Man" (1973) to the A24 films The Witch (2015) and Midsommar (2019), Francis Ford Coppola's Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) was visually a big reference for the record and the costumes, and "folkloric elements of a moral panic from the Middle Ages".[1][2][3][4]

Promotion[]

On March 9, 2022, Welch posted the album cover to her Instagram account in a post announcing the album's pre-order date. She described the album as "a fairytale in 14 songs" in the same post.[5]

In early 2022, Florence and the Machine were confirmed to be headlining a series of summer music festivals, including the Madrid's Mad Cool. On March 28, 2022, Welch announced the Dance Fever Tour to support the album. The tour began on September 2, 2022 at Place Bell in Laval, Quebec, and was scheduled to conclude on March 21, 2023 at the Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand.[6][7] A 24-track live album recorded during the band's September 17, 2022 concert at Madison Square Garden, entitled Dance Fever (Live at Madison Square Garden), was released on October 14, 2022.[8]

Singles[]

On February 21, 2022, fans of the band received a medieval-styled card in the mail that featured a photo of Florence Welch dressed in period clothing. The card had the word "King" on it, and each envelope was inscribed with the wording "Florence + the Machine - Chapter 1" along its back. That same day, digital billboards began popping up around London that featured the same picture of Welch that was printed on the card.[9][10] The band's website was also updated with fifteen cards, the first of which featuring the mailer's design.[11] The single, titled "King" was digitally released on February 23, 2022 along with its accompanying music video.[12]

The first single was soon followed by the release of "Heaven Is Here", on March 7.[13] Music videos for both songs were shot in Kyiv shortly before Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The second single "My Love" and the third single "Free" were released on March 10[1] and April 20, respectively. Welch dedicated the music video for "Free" to the people of Ukraine amidst the Russian invasion.[14]

On December 9, 2022, a live version of "Morning Elvis" in a duet with Ethel Cain, recorded at the Ball Arena on October 1, 2022 during the Denver stop of the Dance Fever Tour, was released as a promotional single.[15]

On April 6, 2023, Florence announced that a new song would be coming to the "Dance Fever Universe", Mermaids was released April 21, 2023.

Composition[]

Dance Fever is a pop rock,[16] baroque pop,[17] progressive pop,[18] alternative rock,[19] gothic pop,[20] and folk[20] album with elements of indie pop,[21] disco,[22] electronic,[23] psychedelic,[22] industrial,[22] spoken word,[24] glam rock,[20] easy listening,[25] dance-pop,[25] sunshine pop,[26] EDM,[26] folk rock,[26] gospel,[27] synth-pop,[28] experimental,[28] post-punk,[29] jangle,[29] and electropop.[30]

Critical reception[]

Dance Fever received widespread acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 84, based on 17 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim",[31] becoming the band's highest-scored album on the website to date. Writing for AllMusic, Neil Z. Yeung, gave the album four out of five stars and likened it to the band's previous releases Lungs (2009) and How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful (2015) in "emotional depth and uplifting power".[32] He concluded his review by writing that the album marked "a generous offering to the goddesses of dance and restorative energy".[32]

Sophia McDonald from Clash Music rated the album nine out of ten stars, labelling it "as majestic as it is authentic". She further praised it for its "self awareness" and deemed it "beautifully honest". Summarising the album as a whole, McDonald deemed it "[a] dance party to release your demons to, they [Florence and the Machine] cast yet another lyrically beautiful and musically capitulating spell."[24]

Commercial performance[]

Dance Fever achieved wide commercial success across Europe. It debuted atop the UK Albums Chart, thus becoming the band's fourth number-one album in the country. The album achieved the feat with approximately 26,000 chart sales midweek during its release.[33] Additionally, it debuted atop the Scottish Albums Chart in the week of 20 May 2022. Dance Fever achieved commercial success in the United States and Australia as well. In the US, the album debuted at number seven on the Billboard 200 albums chart, thus becoming the band's fourth top ten record in the country. It further reached the summit of the Top Alternative Albums and Top Rock Albums charts in the country.[34] In Australia, Dance Fever debuted at number 2 on the ARIA Charts in its first week of release on May 29, 2022.[35]

Tracklisting[]

No. Title Writer(s) Producers Length
1. King Florence Welch, Jack Antonoff Welch, Antonoff 4:40
2. Free Welch, Antonoff Welch, Antonoff 3:54
3. Choreomania Welch, Antonoff Welch, Antonoff, Thomas Bartlett 3:33
4. Back in Town Welch, Antonoff Welch, Antonoff 3:55
5. Girls Against God Welch, Antonoff Welch, Antonoff 4:40
6. Dream Girl Evil Welch, Antonoff, Dave Bayley Welch 3:47
7. Prayer Factory Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 1:13
8. Cassandra Welch, Kid Harpoon Welch, Harpoon 4:17
9. Heaven Is Here Welch, Harpoon, Antonoff, Bayley Welch 1:51
10. Daffodil Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 3:34
11. My Love Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 3:51
12. Restraint Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 0:47
13. The Bomb Welch, Antonoff, Bartlett Welch, Bartlett, Rob Ackroyd 2:44
14. Morning Elvis Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 4:22
Total Lenght 43:48

Deluxe[]

No. Title Writer(s) Producers Length
1. Cassandra (Acoustic) Welch, Billy Halliday Welch, Harpoon 4:06
2. Free (Acoustic) Welch, Halliday Welch, Antonoff 4:03
3. Morning Elvis (Acoustic) Welch, Halliday Welch, Bayley 3:52
4. My Love (Acoustic) Welch, Halliday Welch, Bayley 3:29
5. Search And Destroy Welch, Halliday Iggy Pop, James Williamson 4:05
Total Lenght 18:95

Dance Fever (Complete Edition)[]

No. Title Writer(s) Producers Length
1. King Florence Welch, Jack Antonoff Welch, Antonoff 4:40
2. Free Welch, Antonoff Welch, Antonoff 3:54
3. Choreomania Welch, Antonoff Welch, Antonoff, Thomas Bartlett 3:33
4. Back in Town Welch, Antonoff Welch, Antonoff 3:55
5. Girls Against God Welch, Antonoff Welch, Antonoff 4:40
6. Dream Girl Evil Welch, Antonoff, Dave Bayley Welch 3:47
7. Prayer Factory Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 1:13
8. Cassandra Welch, Kid Harpoon Welch, Harpoon 4:17
9. Heaven Is Here Welch, Harpoon, Antonoff, Bayley Welch 1:51
10. Daffodil Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 3:34
11. My Love Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 3:51
12. Restraint Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 0:47
13. The Bomb Welch, Antonoff, Bartlett Welch, Bartlett, Rob Ackroyd 2:44
14. Mermaids Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 4:35
15. Morning Elvis Welch, Bayley Welch, Bayley 4:22
16. King (Poem Version) Welch Welch, Antonoff 3:00
17. My Love (Poem Version) Welch Welch, Bayley 2:52
18. Cassandra (Poem Version) Welch Welch, Harpoon 4:00
Total Lenght 57:35

Gallery[]

Cards[]

Personnel[]

Florence and the Machine[]

  • Florence Welch – vocals (all tracks), string arrangement (tracks 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 11), percussion (2, 6, 9, 10), piano (2, 6), acoustic guitar (9), foot stamping (9, 12)
  • Isabella Summers – background vocals
  • Robert Ackroyd – electric guitar (13)
  • Tom Monger – harp
  • Cyrus Bayandor
  • Aku Orraca-Tetteh – background vocals (3, 4, 6)
  • Dionne Douglas
  • Hazel Mills – background vocals
  • Sam Doyle

Additional musicians[]

  • Jack Antonoff – acoustic guitar (1–3, 5, 8), [bass (1–6, 8), drums (1–6, 8, 13), Mellotron (1–4), percussion (1–3, 8), piano (1–4, 6), programming (1–3, 6, 9, 14), bells (2, 3), electric guitar (2, 3, 5), organ (2. 5, 8), 12-string acoustic guitar (3, 8), slide guitar (5, 13), synthesizer (5, 6, 8), tubular bells (8, 9), Wurlitzer organ (8)
  • Evan Smith – saxophones (1, 3, 5), synthesizer (1)
  • Tom Moth – harp, string arrangement (1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 11)
  • Bobby Hawk – violin (1–4)
  • Eric Byers – cello (2–4)
  • Dave Bayley – electric guitar (2, 6, 7, 10–12, 14), strings (2, 11, 14), programming (5, 7, 9–12, 14), bells (6), percussion (6, 7, 11, 14), piano (6, 10, 11), synthesizer (6, 9, 10), bass (7, 10, 11, 14), organ (7, 12), acoustic guitar (10), drums (10, 11, 14), Mellotron (10, 14), keyboards (11)
  • Thomas Bartlett – percussion (3), piano (3, 13), synthesizer (3, 4, 6, 13); accordion, drums, keyboards (13)
  • Maggie Rogers – background vocals (5, 6)
  • Leo Abrahams – acoustic guitar (6), electric guitar (6, 10, 14)
  • Steve Pearce – bass (6)
  • Ian Thomas – drums (6)
  • Mark Brown – saxophone (6)
  • Sally Herbert – string arrangement (6)
  • Paul Burton – trombone (6)
  • Joe Auckland – trumpet (6)
  • Mikey Freedom Hart – acoustic guitar (7, 14); celesta, viola (7); falsetto, pedal steel guitar (14)
  • Kid Harpoon – bass, drums, electric guitar, piano (8, 9); percussion (8)
  • Chris Worsey – cello (11)
  • Ian Burdge – cello (11)
  • Everton Nelson – violin (11)
  • Gillon Cameron – violin (11)
  • Julia Singleton – violin (11)
  • Kate Robinson – violin (11)
  • Lucy Wilkins – violin (11)
  • Marianne Haynes – violin (11)
  • Natalia Bonner – violin (11)
  • Nicky Sweeney – violin (11)
  • Richard George – violin (11)
  • Rick Koster – violin (11)

Technical[]

  • Chris Gehringer – mastering
  • Will Quinnell – mastering (2–14)
  • Serban Ghenea – mixing (1–4, 6, 8, 10, 11)
  • Jack Antonoff – mixing (5, 7, 9, 12, 13)
  • Laura Sisk – mixing (5, 7, 9, 12, 13), engineering (1–6, 8, 9, 13), additional engineering (11, 14)
  • David Wrench – mixing (14)
  • Evan Smith – engineering (1–3, 5)
  • Jon Gautier – engineering (1–4)
  • Billy Halliday – engineering (5–14)
  • David Hart – engineering (7)
  • Jeremy Hatcher – engineering (8, 9)
  • Pat Dillett – engineering (13)
  • Mikey Freedom Hart – engineering (14)
  • Bryce Bordone – mixing assistance (1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11)
  • Dave Snyder – engineering assistance (1–6, 8, 9, 13, 14)
  • Duncan Fuller – engineering assistance (1–6, 8, 10)
  • John Rooney – engineering assistance (1–5, 8, 9, 11, 13, 14)
  • Lauren Marquez – engineering assistance (1–6, 8, 9, 11, 13, 14)
  • Matt Hall – engineering assistance (1–6, 8, 9, 13, 14)
  • Megan Searl – engineering assistance (1–5)
  • Ben Loveland – engineering assistance (6, 8, 10, 11, 14)
  • Amy Sergeant – engineering assistance (7, 13)
  • James Pinfield-Wells – engineering assistance (7, 13)
  • Claude Vause – engineering assistance (12)

Refrences[]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 https://www.nme.com/news/music/florence-the-machine-new-single-my-love-listen-3179624
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://pitchfork.com/news/florence-and-the-machine-announce-new-album-dance-fever-share-video-watch/
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://www.thefader.com/2022/03/10/florence-and-the-machine-dance-fever-release-date
  4. ↑ https://www.contactmusic.com/florence-welch/news/florence-welch-reveals-new-machine-album-is-inspired-by-dracula-and-other-horror-monsters_6341753
  5. ↑ https://readdork.com/news/florence-and-the-machine-dance-fever-announce/
  6. ↑ https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/florence-and-the-machine-dance-fever-tour-1328707/
  7. ↑ https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/florence-the-machine-north-american-leg-2022-dance-fever-tour-1235050232/
  8. ↑ https://www.nme.com/news/music/florence-the-machine-share-new-live-album-from-madison-square-garden-3328806
  9. ↑ https://www.nylon.com/entertainment/florence-the-machine-king-chapter-1-release-date
  10. ↑ https://diymag.com/2022/02/22/florence-and-the-machine-new-music-king
  11. ↑ https://www.nme.com/news/music/florence-the-machine-announce-their-return-somethings-coming-3167065
  12. ↑ https://readdork.com/news/florence-and-the-machine-king-new-single-video/
  13. ↑ https://pitchfork.com/news/watch-florence-and-the-machine-video-for-new-song-heaven-is-here/
  14. ↑ https://www.fox5ny.com/news/florence-the-machine-dedicates-new-music-video-filmed-in-kyiv-to-ukrainians
  15. ↑ https://www.thefader.com/2022/12/09/ethel-cain-florence-the-machine-morning-elvis
  16. ↑ https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/florence-and-the-machine-review-dance-fever-b2077345.html
  17. ↑ https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/florence-and-the-machine/dance-fever-album-review
  18. ↑ https://theartsdesk.com/new-music/album-florence-machine-dance-fever
  19. ↑ https://diymag.com/2022/05/14/florence-the-machine-dance-fever-album-review
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/florence-gets-dance-fever-stones-open-archive-weeks-best-albums/
  21. ↑ https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/reviews/albums/florence-and-the-machine-dance-fever-album-review
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 https://www.nme.com/reviews/album/florence-the-machine-dance-fever-3223402
  23. ↑ https://gigwise.com/reviews/3418954/album-review--florence---the-machine---dance-fever
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 https://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/florence-the-machine-dance-fever/
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 https://spillmagazine.com/spill-album-review-florence-the-machine-dance-fever/
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 https://louderthanwar.com/florence-the-machine-dance-fever-review-album-of-the-week/
  27. ↑ https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/music/florence-the-machine-dance-fever-review-b999478.html
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 https://exclaim.ca/music/article/florence_and_the_machine_dance_fever_album_review
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 https://spectrumculture.com/2022/05/23/florence-the-machine-dance-fever-review/
  30. ↑ https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/album-reviews/florence-and-the-machine-dance-fever-a-walk-on-the-weird-side-1.4873287
  31. ↑ https://www.metacritic.com/music/dance-fever/florence-+-the-machine
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20220518211639/https://www.allmusic.com/album/dance-fever-mw0003683935
  33. ↑ https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/florence-plus-the-machine-earn-fourth-uk-number-1-album-with-dance-fever__36396/
  34. ↑ https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/florence-machine-dance-fever-midweek-uk-chart-1235071682/
  35. ↑ https://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Florence+%2B+the+Machine&titel=Dance+Fever&cat=a

Navigation[]

Tour • Merch • Photoshoot • Producers
Discography
Releases Dance Fever
Tracklist King • Free • Choreomania • Back in Town • Girls Against God • Dream Girl Evil • Prayer Factory • Cassandra • Heaven Is Here • Daffodil • My Love • Restraint • The Bomb • Morning Elvis
Deluxe Cassandra (acoustic) • Free (acoustic) • Morning Elvis (acoustic) • My Love (acoustic) • Search And Destroy
Complete Edition The Bomb • Mermaids • Morning Elvis • King (Poem Version) • My Love (Poem Version) • Cassandra (Poem Version)
Non-Album Morning Elvis with Ethel Cain • Just a Girl
Other Eras
Lungs • Ceremonials • How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful • High As Hope • Dance Fever
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
Advertisement