Florence + the Machine’s Wanted to Make Something ‘Monstrous’ in ‘Heaven Is Here’
After four years, Florence + the Machine is back with new music that packs a punch. The controversial “King” arrived at the end of February. Now the alternative band has released an even more powerful single called “Heaven Is Here.”
Florence + the Machine’s ‘Heaven Is Here’ is ‘monstrous’
“Heaven Is Here” is unlike anything fans have ever heard from Florence + the Machine. Rolling Stone writes that it’s a “furious knockout blow.” That’s sort of what the group was going for, though. In a statement, Florence + the Machine wrote that they wanted to make something “monstrous.”
Frontwoman Florence Welch said “Heaven Is Here” was the first song she wrote in lockdown after not being able to get to the studio for a long time. For an artist, that’s pretty rough. So, it’s no surprise that Welch had a lot of angst entering the studio after so long.
“I wanted to make something monstrous,” she said. “And this clamor of joy, fury, and grief was the first thing that came out. With dance studios also shut it was my dream to one day create choreography with it. So it’s one of the first pieces of music I have made specifically with contemporary dance in mind.”
Dancers in the music video for Florence + the Machine’s ‘Heaven Is Here’ are ‘currently sheltering’ in Ukraine
Florence + the Machine’s music video for “Heaven Is Here” is just as powerful as the one for “King.” Autumn de Wilde, director of 2020’s Emma, helmed both videos. Welch wasn’t in a mauve hooded cloak, and there are no necks snapped in “Heaven Is Here,” but Welch’s backup singers/dancers surround her once again, and they appear to be in the same apartment as the former video.
In Welch’s statement, she also revealed that two of the dancers in the video are from Ukraine and are “currently sheltering” due to the conflicts with Russia.
“Two of the dancers in this video are currently sheltering,” Welch wrote. “To my brave and beautiful sisters Maryne and Anastasiia I love you. I wish I could put my arms around you. Strength.”
‘King’ is just as powerful
“Heaven Is Here” packs just as much of a punch as the group’s previous single, “King.” They seem to be a continuation of each other too.
While “King” decries the double standard most female artists face in the music industry, having to decide between having a family and continuing their careers, “Heaven Is Here” speaks about the music.
In “King,” Welch sings: “We argue in the kitchen about whether to have children/ About the world ending and the scale of my ambition/ And how much is art really worth/ The very thing you’re best at is the thing that hurts the most.
“But you need your rotten heart, your dazzling pain like diamond rings/ You need to go to war to find material to sing/ I am no mother, I am no bride, I am King.”
In “Heaven Is Here,” she sings: “And every song I wrote/ Became an escape rope/ Tied around my neck/ To pull me up to heaven.”
Whether or not Welch meant to connect the two songs somehow, they’re making a significant impact in music right now. It’ll be interesting to hear what else Florence + the Machine have up their sleeve.
