It’s a mad, mad world for a woman. A noisy one, too. Here a “shut up and sit down,” there the procreationist directive to “hurry up and have children,” everywhere a cacophony of voices reminding the “Second Sex” of the limited number of things the female body is for. To which Florence Welch, the frontwoman of Florence + the Machine, channeling female frustration the world over, replies, “Everybody Scream!”
So opens A Righteous Scream: Florence + the Machine Makes Musical Sense of Our Moment, by Anne K. Ream and R. Clifton Spargo. In their latest piece for New City, Anne and Clifton – our Center for Story & Witness Co-Founders – reflect on the social impact of one of rock’s most feminist bands, consider singer-songwriter Florence Welch’s unique capacity for turning her personal pain into politically powerful songs, and make the case that art that channels not just rage, but resilience is what the world needs now.