Entertainment

Florence + the Machine's Vid Shows Off A New Trend

by Rachel Semigran

Feb. 10, 2015

After Kristen Wiig's performance with Maddie Ziegler at the Grammys on Sunday, the world got an even bigger taste of the modern dance meets pop trend that's happening right now. From moody artists like Sia to pop mega stars like Taylor Swift, the music industry is embracing non-booty shaking, non-pop and lock, non-standard boy band moves for a more avant-garde form of expression. The results have, so far, been quite stunning and diverse. Florence + The Machine are the latest musicians to use this kind of artistry in their music videos. "How Big How Blue How Beautiful" was just released and it features lead singer Florence Welch in a forested pavilion dancing intimately with a partner in center "stage."

The song itself is short and ethereal, something you would probably expect to be playing in an Anthropologie or used in a trailer for a movie premiering at Sundance. The overgrown trees and blinding sunlight are just secondary touches to the emotional performance that arrives and explodes so quickly that you find yourself watching it over and over. Florence's dance partner looks exactly like the English songbird and the more you play the video, the more they seem to fold into each other. The title, the video and the song itself are everything you'd expect from Florence + the Machine — they just take you out of wherever you are.

Take a look at the video and the growing trend of pop and modern dance collaborations.