Florence And The Machine - Kiss With A Fist (Moshi Moshi)
UK release date: 9 June 2008
One of the many slightly kooky young women being chased around London by record company A&R men for the last year or so, Florence Welch is actually as far removed from Kate Nash, Lily Allen, Adele and all the rest as it's possible to be.
Already notorious for risking electrocution at SXSW by diving into a swimming pool while singing this song, Welch has definite star quality. The good news is that she's backed up by some cracking songs as well. Kiss With A Fist is a dirty slice of rockabilly blues, with Dev Hynes providing some scintillating guitar work as Welch wails and howls about an abusive relationship.
Those lyrics are likely to prove pretty contentious - is Welch condoning domestic violence with lines like "a kiss with a fist is better than none"? Or is it a character sketch of a woman cowed into submission by her violent lover? Whatever the meaning, this is an exhilarating debut single.
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