Florence Black
Blending heavy-rock swagger with melody, the Welsh trio’s brew is no-nonsence rock’n’roll.
Rock’n’roll has been a cultural pillar of the Welsh valleys for more than 50 years. Take that away and you might as well ban curry sauce on chips while you’re at it. Having emerged from the industrially scarred Aberfan landscape, riff-crunchers Florence Black are an unrestrained force of skullpounding groove that has bypassed the traditional Welsh male voice choir hymns laid down by their forefathers.
Drummer Perry Davie, vocalist/ guitarist Tristan Thomas and bassist Jordan Evans have been friends since they could crawl, and formed the band in 2012. Having learned from their peers, including local drumming legend Ray Phillips (Budgie), all their hard work has led them to their acclaimed third release The Final EP, which elevates their beefy metallic grunge rock with hints of their Fleetwood Mac-appreciating side.
“I think we’re much heavier now, but we always like to spice things up with melodies because that’s the music we’ve always loved,” says Thomas. “We’ve definitely grown, and the biggest thing we’ve learned from writing this EP is you’ve always got to improve on what you’ve done before. Gunshot proves it. Man, that track really hit hard for us.”
Gunshot is just that. That track alone could crush coal into diamond, opening with the most muscular intros this side of the River Severn. Top that off with an uncompromising Benji Webb [Skindred] cameo and you’ve got yourself an irresistible dynamic that blends heavyrock swagger with the melodic instinct of Temple Of The Dog.
Over the six short years they’ve been together, their reputation of putting on the best three-piece show around has earned them a proud place within the Welsh scene. But playing the New Crown in Merthyr is one thing; supporting Stone Sour at the Bataclan is another. For that gig last November they were hand-picked by Corey Taylor.
“We tweeted him in back 2016, just like, ‘Hey, would you mind listening to our new music?’ And he quoted it back saying: ‘Badass!’, Thomas enthuses. “Then a year later their management emailed us: ‘Our support band have dropped out of the Bataclan show. Do you want to play instead?’ I think we all lost our heads at that. I think it’s been the best show so far. It went so fast. We’re doing another show with Stone Sour in Switzerland, which we’re pumped for. It hasn’t even sunk in from last time, it’s unreal.”
With recent festival spots at Merthyr Rising and Amplified under their belt, the trio aren’t letting the horizon escape their sights. Is it too soon to be speaking of a debut album?
“Hopefully we’ll be able to get an album on the go after all this. We do feel like it’s time. I don’t think we have a plan yet… except to write a bloody great big masterpiece.” HD