| "What the Water Gave Me" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Promotional single byFlorence and the Machine | |
| from the albumCeremonials | |
| Released | 23 August 2011 (2011-08-23) |
| Recorded | 2011 |
| Genre | |
| Length |
|
| Label | Island |
| Songwriters | |
| Producer | Paul Epworth |
| Music video | |
| "What the Water Gave Me" onYouTube | |
"What the Water Gave Me" is a song by Englishindie rock bandFlorence and the Machine from their second studio album,Ceremonials (2011). The song was written by lead singerFlorence Welch andFrancis "Eg" White, and produced byPaul Epworth. It was released on 23 August 2011 as the firstpromotional single fromCeremonials. After the band performed the song inBerkeley, California, on 12 June 2011, the studio version premiered on Florence and the Machine's official website. Welch decided to name the song "What the Water Gave Me" after seeing the 1938Frida Kahlo paintingof the same name. During an interview, she confirmed that the song was inspired by English writerVirginia Woolf.
"What the Water Gave Me" is apop,pop rock andsoul song performed in tempo of 124 beats per minute. It incorporates several instruments into its composition, most notablyharps andguitar. The accompanyingmusic video for the song was filmed atAbbey Road Studios and it showed the band recording and singing the song. Upon its release, the song made its way into several chart most notably at number 24 on theUK Singles Chart. It also became the second song by Florence and the Machine which charted on the USBillboard Hot 100.
"What the Water Gave Me" was written byFlorence Welch andFrancis "Eg" White and produced byPaul Epworth.[1] It was recorded in London atAbbey Road Studios.[1][2][3] The song was debuted byFlorence and the Machine during a live show inBerkeley, California on 12 June 2011.[4] After that, the band added the song to theset list of their tour,Lungs Tour and on 23 August 2011 the album version of the song premiered on Florence and the Machine's official website.[5][6]
Welch elaborated on the title and meaning of the song: "It's a song for the water, because in music and art what I'm really interested in are the things that are overwhelming. The ocean seems to me to be nature's great overwhelmer. When I was writing this song I was thinking a lot about all those people who've lost their lives in vain attempts to save their loved ones from drowning. It's about water in all forms and all bodies. It's about a lot of things;Virginia Woolf creeps into it, and of courseFrida Kahlo, whosepainfully beautiful painting gave me the title".[7] During an interview withNME, Welch revealed how she looked in Frida Kahlo painting by saying, "At lot of the time when I'm writing, things will just appear. I was writing the song and this book onsymbolism was lying around, and it had the painting in it. It's nice to mix the ordinary with extraordinary".[8] She further stated that the song talked about "children who are swept out to sea, and their parents go in after them and try to rescue them".[9]
According to the sheet music published on the website Musicnotes.com byUniversal Music Publishing Group, "What the Water Gave Me" is apop,[10]pop rock[11] andsoul[12] song set in acommon time and performed in tempo of 124 beats per minute.[13] It is written in the key ofC minor and Welch's vocal range in the song runs from the musical note ofA♭3 toE♭5.[13]
"What the Water Gave Me" is five and half minutes long and contains ethereal vocals and harps.[2][3][14] A gospel organ and choir along with "trilling" guitars provide instrumentation in "What the Water Gave Me".[14][15] According to Bill Lamb ofAbout.com, "the song breaks down into a neara cappella chorus three minutes into the song in gorgeous fashion, but it is only a foreshadowing of what is to come".[14] A writer for theLos Angeles Times wrote that the song consisted of "soaring gospel-rooted harmonies and tribal chants on top of ethereal harp strings and intense lyrics".[6] Another writer forNME stated that the song starts as a gothic track from the 1980s and compared it with songs byThe Cure andSiouxsie and the Banshees.[9]
In the end of the song, Welch tries a "new, softly-softly vocal style" which is similar toLiz Fraser andHarriet Wheeler fromThe Sundays.[9] Commenting the sound of the song, Jillian Mapes ofBillboard said that"'What the Water Gave Me' crescendos with a tribal intensity, balancing chants against an airy, whimsical harp".[16]Spin's William Goodman called the song "a surge of gospel-tinged pop with harp, piano, and throbbing bass driving under Welch's powerful vocals"[3] Writing for the website HitFix, Katie Hasty said: "the harp line is just about the lightest part of the song, as the bass is overdriven and choirs, major crash cymbals and Welch's quiet-loud-quiet dynamics make for sad, bombastic, rattling – yet euphoric – poetry".[17]
The main theme of the song isVirginia Woolf's death; her walking into the water with her pockets filled with stones is the theme of the song.[14] A writer forThe Guardian wrote that in the song, "Welch [is] mixing images of suicide with declarations of undying love over fluttering harp and robust guitar".[18] The song references to the sun, stones andAtlas and according toNME it's an ode to the ominous inhabitants of Flora and Fauna-ville.[9]
"What the Water Gave Me" was praised by music critics, several of whom labelled the song "epic". Fan reaction towards the song was also very positive.[19] Simon Vozick-Levinson ofRolling Stone magazine gave it a rating of three-and-a-half stars, writing that the song "opens softly, with Welch cooing slightly spooky pastoral poetry ("Time, it took us to where the water was")".[20] However he further wrote, "soon enough, she's out-and-out howling about learning to let go after a failed relationship, ancient Greek giants and possibly drowning herself. Her veiled incantations feel like the stuff of myth, even if it's not entirely clear how the images relate to one another".[20] Another writer of the same publication felt the song was "overwhelming in its bombast, yet delicate in its sonic detail".[21]
Bill Lamb of the websiteAbout.com gave the song five out of five stars and complimented the powerful concept, the "explosion" of musical joy in the closing minutes, Welch's engaging, ethereal vocals and the haunting words. He added that "for the final two minutes of the song restraint is abandoned and Florence and the Machine unleash something that sounds simply like revelatory joy".[14] He finished his review by writing, "If there is justice in the US pop music world, 'What the Water Gave Me' will be the next 'Rolling in the Deep.' It is a recording that shows us just how emotionally powerful and engaging a pop song can be".[14] Writing for the websiteHitFix, Katie Hasty concluded: "For a song that goes for 5+ minutes, about a legendary writer that drowns herself, titled for a famous painted work and performed by Florence + The Machine, the word 'epic' is perfectly acceptable".[17]
James Montgmery ofMTV News praised the song calling it "epically massive" and added that it "seems destined to rule the festival circuit for the foreseeable future".[15] A writer forThe Guardian concluded that the song "has enough melody to stop it from collapsing under the weight of its own drama. This delicate balance gives the song its edge".[18]Entertainment Weekly's Kyle Anderson praised the song calling it "lovely, passionate, and intense" and concluded that it was very different from the songs onLungs.[5] He ended his review by saying that Welch, "put her new-found ability to summon string sections to excellent use".[5] A writer ofNME concluded, "The track builds into the kind of re-affirming epic that anyone would be proud of. A great way to follow up 'Lungs'. We think it's a winner".[9] Rebecca Ford ofThe Hollywood Reporter simply called the song "hypnotizing".[2] Jillian Mapes fromBillboard said that "The word 'epic' is almost too weak" to describe the song. TheMiami New Times' S. Pajot called the song "perfect soundtrack for lovesick self-sacrifice" before adding that it was very "sleepy".[22] On theTriple J Hottest 100 list, "What the Water Gave Me" was ranked at number 42.[23]
The song debuted at number 91 on theBillboard Hot 100 which was the band's second appearance on the chart after "Dog Days Are Over" from the albumLungs.[24] On theAustralian Singles Chart, "What the Water Gave Me" debuted at number 35 on 11 September 2011 and it fell to number 43 the next week.[25] In New Zealand, the song debuted at number 15 on 28 August 2011 and it fell to number 35 the next week.[26] It performed better on theUK Singles Chart where it peaked at number 24 on 3 September 2011[27] and in Ireland where it peaked at number 13.[28]
A video for the song premiered on YouTube on 23 August 2011. Welch also shared the news about it on her official Twitter.[29] The video shows footage of the band working with producer Paul Epworth during recording sessions atAbbey Road Studios, interspersed with shots of Welch performing the song.[7][30] A writer of the magazineRolling Stone praised the video saying that it founds the band "pushing their secular gospel sound to an explosive extreme".[21] Leah Collins writing forDose concluded that the video contained severalkaleidoscopic performances and added that "the glimpses of the studio" proves that it was "more raucous" because of the table-dancing.[29] Jillian Mapes ofBillboard said that "Florence gets giddy in the studio and ethereal on stage" for the video.[16] Emily Cronin of the BritishElle stated, "the video packs all the witchy vocals and diaphanous gowns we could have hoped for into five and a half minutes, with a choir and one jaunty fedora thrown in".[31] She further described the video as "taster".[31]
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[25] | 35 |
| Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders)[34] | 2 |
| Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[35] | 42 |
| CanadaHot 100 (Billboard)[36] | 72 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[28] | 13 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[26] | 15 |
| Scotland Singles (OCC)[37] | 24 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[27] | 24 |
| USBillboard Hot 100[24] | 91 |
| USAlternative Airplay (Billboard)[38] | 29 |
| USHot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[39] | 34 |
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[40] | Gold | 35,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[41] | Gold | 500,000‡ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Region | Date | Format | Label | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 23 August 2011 | Digital download | Island | [32] |
| United States | 24 August 2011 | [33] |
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