British Summer Time Festival returned for another magical year of music in one of the UK’s most stunning royal parks. This time they brought a dazzling array of headliners to take to the infamous Great Oak stage over the duration of ten days.
Day two of the festival saw the mighty Florence and the Machine headline the event and what a treat it was. The main stage with its protruding tress was a fitting performance area for the strong female vocalist, with three hit albums to her name, to showcase her talents. Welch is almost as popular as Adele and they’ve been around for roughly the same time but Welch brings that something extra to the table.
The barefoot, flame-haired goddess kicked off with a performance of ‘What The Water Gave Me’ that saw the crowd surge forward to get closer to the action. Welch and her band found their stride many years ago and this much is evident from previous hits such as ‘Shake It Out’ and ‘You’ve Got The Love’.
Welch has never been one to be afraid of getting the crowd involved and moments before she struts effortlessly across the stage to ‘How Big, How Blue How Beautiful’, the singer instructs the crowd to live in the moment and put their phones down. The sea of thousands stood before her brings out an emotive side to Florence and the Machine. The set list is jam-packed with fan favourite hits and manages to strike the perfect balance between old and new material.
The relentless run through their discography proves that there’s no gimmicks when it comes to Florence and the Machine’s live shows. Everything is as raw and real as it sounds on record and that’s why Florence and co manage to conquer every performance they do.
The Hyde Park show was the finale to the South London band’s continuous touring since Glastonbury 2015 and what a final bang to go out on. Themes of love, hope and freedom threaded throughout created a sense of euphoria amongst the crowd and cemented Florence and the Machine’s status as fully-fledged superstars.
Lauren Wade
Music Editor
