The Devil's Light

There’s a point just past the halfway mark on “Shake It Out,” the rousing first single from Florence + the Machine's second studio release, when the swelling guitars, organs, and strings, staccato percussion, and Florence Welch's air-raid siren of a voice lock up in a herculean battle over which one is going to launch itself into the stratosphere first. It’s a contest that plays out at least once on each of Ceremonials' immaculately produced 12 tracks. Such carefully calculated moments of rhapsody would dissolve into redundant treacle in less capable hands, but Welch does emotional bombast better than any of her contemporaries, and when she wails into the black abyss above, the listener can’t help but return the call. Bigger and bolder than 2009’s excellent Lungs, Ceremonials rolls in like fog over the Thames, doling out a heavy-handed mix of Brit-pop-infused neo-soul anthems and lush, movie trailer-ready ballads that fuse the bluesy, electro-despair of Adele with the ornate, gothic melodrama of Kate Bush and Floodland-era Sisters of Mercy.

Following the success of their self-titled debut, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils' sophomore release, It'll Shine When It Shines, continues on their already established path of California-style country-rock. This release contained what would ultimately prove to be their greatest hit, "Jackie Blue," which ended up peaking at number three on the pop chart. Although "Jackie Blue" is by far the least countrified track on the album, it embodies the casual, understated groove of the band that could be found on any of the Daredevils' releases. Although when examined closely the album is really three neatly separate albums by three maturing songwriters (John Dillon, Steve Cash, and the underrated Larry Lee), the thread of their relaxed atmosphere and light harmonies runs throughout the album, binding it together as a cohesive whole.