Gordon Lightfoot Book, Music and More!

By now, the world is familiar with the artistry of England’s Florence Welch, the powerful vocalist-frontwoman of the popular indie-rock band that bears her name. She’s partial to laying down her massive, layered gospel voices over soaring orchestral synths and booming percussive flourishes. Less familiar is the more subdued side of the London-born singer. On her band’s fourth album, Welch strips her music back to its bare essentials. “Grace,” a touching tribute to her younger sister, is just piano and vocals. “No Choir,” as the title suggests, also eschews anything but voice and keyboards. There are tracks with lusher instrumentation, including “Hunger,” a confessional about her teenage eati...

Florence Welch possesses one of the biggest, bluest and, yes, most beautiful voices in pop music. Her band’s third album is the perfect showcase for her dramatic vocals and intimate lyrics, best illustrated on songs like the gospel-laced “Delilah,” the explosive rocker “What Kind of Man” and the title track with its stately brass fanfare.