WORTH A LOOK?: ****

Florence And The Machine’s 6th studio album Everybody Scream is released on Halloween (31 October 2025) almost 14 years to the day after their 2nd, Ceremonials.

• Read on for reasons including how this highlights the unfair celebration of less talented men

Halloween seems like a very apt time for the band to target and 2nd single from the album One Of The Greats starts with a bluesy electric guitar that reminds these ears of something that a 60s US rock band like the Jim Morrison-fronted The Doors might have produced.

The lyrics fit with the end of October vibe with Florence describing how writing songs is like being exhumed: ‘Crawled up from under the earth, Broken nails and coughing dirt. Spitting out my songs so you could sing along And with each bedraggled breath, I knew I came back from the dead, To show you how it’s done, to show you what it takes. To conquer and to crucify, to become One Of The Greats.’

Later the lyrics shift to describe how Florence feels she ‘kept a scream inside my chest, killed everyone I’d ever kissed’ for inspiration, is aware of criticism (sample lyric: ‘So like a woman to profit from her madness) and her advancing age as she is ‘Burned down at 36’.

Even later she turns the spotlight on the unfair celebration of less talented men in a similar position: ‘It must be nice to be a man and make boring music just because you can’.

Lady Gaga is a rock star in a similar position and it’s interesting that she too has chosen to target this time of year with current single The Dead Dance but to far less devastating musical and lyrical effect.

All bodes well then for Florence’s new album which she describes as her most personal to date, explores the idea of celebratory screaming and includes tracks with titles like Witch Dance, Sympathy Magic and Kraken.

We can’t wait to see her perform with her band at a UK and European tour early next year including gigs at London’s The 02.

• Main pictures via Facebook courtesy Florence And The Machine Tickets
• Have you seen a Florence show before and what did you think of this song? Let us know what you thought in the comments below
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