Marking the beginning of the Trinity Fringe Festival was an appearance by 2009 Mercury Prize Nominee, Florence and the Machine. Playing to a packed-out chapel, frontwoman Florence Welch and her Machine – consisting of just a harpist and acoustic guitarist on this occasion – kicked things off in style. Welcomed enthusiastically by the crowd of students sitting in the pews, Florence accepted the Spirit of the Fringe award, said a brief thank you, and got going with the music.
Beginning with the latest single, “You’ve Got the Love”, the band both looked and sounded great. With the harp on one side and the guitar on the other, Florence stood at the centre of the altar/stage, dressed all in black besides her vibrant dyed-red hair, with the chapel’s huge stained glass windows providing the backdrop. The stripped-down, acoustic rendition of the song fitted the atmosphere perfectly, and was greeted by a reverential silence from the crowd, which, combined with the impressive acoustics of the chapel and the natural strength of her voice, made the mic Florence sang into seem entirely unnecessary.
“You’ve Got the Love” was followed by “Cosmic Love”, which was equally impressive and well received by the audience. However once the applause for this second song died down, and it felt like things were just warming up, Florence said another quick thank you before hastily leaving the stage. Though presumably left wanting, and probably expecting, more, the audience gave another enthusiastic round of applause as Florence half-walked, half-skipped, down the aisle (off to who-knows-where before her gig in the Olympia later that night).
Despite the quality of the artist’s performance, overall it was difficult not to feel slightly disappointed by the event – due solely to its extreme brevity. While a full set would have understandably been too much to ask, two or three songs more, and maybe a short address to the audience, would have been most welcome. That said, the appearance of an act of such high calibre and renown at the Fringe Fest was extremely impressive, and considering it was entirely free (besides the time spent queuing in order to be guaranteed a ticket – hours in the case of many) it was genuinely extraordinary.
