Florence and the Machine’s new album, “High as Hope” came out on the 29th. Ahead of its release, the band put forward “Big God,” a single full of stunning vocals and dramatic emotions. The piano riff that begins the single sets a dark, smooth foundation for Florence Welch’s alternatively visceral and ethereal vocal performance. Her skill has always been in her ability to push her voice into deeply emotive performances; “Big God” is no exception. While she still floats through lyrics like, “though I know I should know better” her solidity in “you’ll always be my favorite ghost” forces the lyrics into a sharp contrast. The vocal treatment of the song is one of its highlights, as are the emotions it conveys. “Big God” examines the enormous feelings of loneliness and loss that can come from something as small as an unanswered text. The echoing backup vocal, along with the solid, cavernous piano, add a musical dimension to the void Welch describes. The ignored message leaves a larger space than a response would have filled.

“Big God” unleashes the emotions trapped in a tiny social situation, bringing Florence and the Machine’s dramatic focus to an unlikely though completely appropriate case study. The choice is an intelligent and socially conscious one. While dealing with themes of changing styles of interpersonal relation and social media, the band also gives a voice to a distinctly female phenomenon. While being ghosted is not gender exclusive, the portrayal of female distress and disconnection in this context has a keen social critique. Female hysteria is a well-known historical trope. The band seems to be gesturing to this phenomenon, yet they also represent female emotionality as a source of power. At the end of the song, Welch calls for upheaval. The raw power in her voice adds to the sentiment and leaves a message of strength and empowerment through the direction of strong emotions.

“Big God” clearly has a lot to say about emotional experience. However, like many of Florence and the Machine’s songs, it spends most of its time with the symbolic. Much time is spent describing the void, yet there is very little about what filling it would concretely look like. As much as the band describes an empowered situation at the end of the song, clarity is lacking about what real difference that makes. To discuss the song merely as the result of an unanswered text would minimize its true value, but it is important to consider what really results from such intense emotions--we don’t know. As an answer we get images of a city sliding into the sea and coming off of high cliffs.

As much as there are lacking details, “Big God” emotionally captures an intense situation in a way that is both artistic and deeply visceral. By digging deeply into a small situation, Florence and the Machine give a stunning performance full of drama and deep significance.