Live Review: Florence & the Machine at Chicago’s Aragon Ballroom

Don’t call Florence Welch just another young female singer-songwriter. Don’t call her part of a trend, and certainly don’t call her material “chick music.” See her live, and then call her what she really is: a force of nature, a consummate performer, and someone we’re all going to be hearing about for a long time.

But before we could see Florence & the Machine, there first was Hanni El Khatib. He played an interesting but perhaps wrong-for-the-occasion set, which seemed to be less his fault and more the fault of the booking agent. The fuzzed-out acoustics didn’t do El Khatib any favors, and neither did the constant feedback issuing from his mic (although his deadpanning “That’s annoying, huh?” did win him some fans). His gritty, drum-driven rock (at moments bearing similarities to Jet and The Black Keys) was musically interesting, but it wasn’t exactly what the crowd came hungry for. It would be nice to see El Khatib again sometime in a more appropriate setting.

After the stage was cleared, a translucent veil dropped over the stage, behind which lights and movement could be seen as the crew finished setting up and musicians took their places. Every swish of the fabric induced screaming amongst the mostly female crowd. By the time the curtain finally fell, anything was possible.(florence and the machine)