What Kind of Man (Florence and the Machine song)

Last updated

"What Kind of Man"
Florence and the Machine - What Kind of Man.png
12-inch single cover
Single by Florence and the Machine
from the album How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
B-side "As Far as I Could Get"
Released12 February 2015 (2015-02-12)
Studio The Pool (London)
Genre
Length3:36
Label Island
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Markus Dravs
Florence and the Machine singles chronology
"Lover to Lover"
(2012)		"What Kind of Man"
(2015)		"Ship to Wreck"
(2015)
Music video
"What Kind of Man" on YouTube

"What Kind of Man" is a song by English indie rock band Florence and the Machine from their third studio album, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful (2015). It was written by Florence Welch, Kid Harpoon and John Hill, produced by Markus Dravs and co-produced by Hill. The song was released on 12 February 2015 as the album's lead single. "What Kind of Man" received Grammy Award nominations for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song.

Contents

Composition

According to lead vocalist Florence Welch, the song represents a new guitar-driven sonic direction for the band. "It's got very loud guitars and that was very fun to record actually", she said in an interview. "Trying to get exactly the right tone of guitar—I never realised how complicated that is. It took us forever.... Every day there'd be a different guitar sound. We ended up layering with three different guitar sounds, one on top of the other, in order to create this one song." [3]

The song builds slowly and breaks into a heavy beat with tambourine and bass drum, and then becomes a textured pop song with heavy brass arrangements. [4] The song lyrically focuses on an indecisive man who wronged Welch. [4] [5]

Critical reception

"What Kind of Man" received acclaim from music critics. Al Horner of NME wrote, "Musically, it's big. Wagnerian backing vocals and horn blasts turn 'What Kind Of Man' into a spectacle worthy of [Welch's] new festival headliner status". [6] Dee Lockett of Vulture dubbed it a "fiery rocker". [5] Andrew Unterberger of Spin opined that the song "starts off a letdown, but quickly proves to be ['Ship to Wreck''s] roaring equal, with the unexpected arrival of a thick guitar chop and regal horn salute that gives Florence the instrumental support she deserves as she excoriates an uncommitted significant other". [7]

Commercial performance

"What Kind of Man" debuted at number 57 on the UK Singles Chart, [8] peaking at number 37 the following week. [9] In the United States, the song reached number eight on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart, tying with the band's 2008 single "Dog Days Are Over" and subsequent single "Ship to Wreck" as their highest-peaking single on that chart. [10] As of July 2018, the song had sold 177,000 copies and had been streamed 11.2 million times in the United Kingdom. [11]

Music video

The music video for "What Kind of Man", directed by Vincent Haycock and choreographed by Ryan Heffington, premiered on 12 February 2015. [12] Filmed in Los Angeles and Mérida, Mexico, [13] [14] the video is a short film that includes dialogue about the unifying power of tragedy in a relationship between a couple as they drive down a country road. Scenes of the couple driving at various points in their relationship are interspersed with examples of the woman and her relationships with different men, often taking on a smothering quality. The woman later is the centre of religious rituals that involve her being lifted by several men, including her love interest played by Richie Stephens, speaking in tongues, baptism and exorcism.

Track listings

  1. "What Kind of Man" (Nicolas Jaar Remix) – 12:21
A. "What Kind of Man"
B. "As Far as I Could Get"

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful . [17]

Recording

Personnel

Florence and the Machine

Additional personnel

  • Markus Dravs – production, percussion, synths
  • John Hill – co-production, synths, brass writing, brass arrangements
  • Robin Baynton – engineering
  • Jonathan Sagis – engineering assistance
  • Joe Kearns – additional engineering
  • Iain Berryman – additional engineering
  • Leo Abrahams – electric guitar
  • Janelle Martin – backing vocals
  • Nim Miller – backing vocals
  • Baby N'Sola – backing vocals
  • Kid Harpoon – brass writing, brass arrangements
  • Nigel Black – French horn
  • Pip Eastop – French horn
  • Sam Jacobs – French horn
  • Elise Campbell – French horn
  • John Barclay – trumpet
  • Andy Crowley – trumpet
  • Philip Cobb – trumpet
  • Tom Rees-Roberts – trumpet
  • Andy Wood – Euphonium
  • Ed Tarrant – Euphonium
  • Richard Edwards – tenor trombone
  • Oren Marshall – tuba
  • Mat Bartram – brass recording
  • Ronan Phelan – brass recording assistance
  • Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing
  • Geoff Swan – mixing assistance
  • Ted Jensen – mastering

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for "What Kind of Man"
RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [37] Platinum70,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI) [38] Silver200,000‡
United States (RIAA) [39] Gold500,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for "What Kind of Man"
RegionDateFormatLabelRef(s)
Canada12 February 2015 Digital download Island [40]
United States [41]
Various11 March 2015Digital download – Nicolas Jaar Remix [15] [42] [43]
Canada15 March 2015 [44]
United States [45]
United Kingdom13 April 2015 12-inch single [lower-alpha 1] [46]
United States18 April 2015 Republic [16]

Notes

  1. ↑ Limited-edition release for Record Store Day

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References

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  2. ↑ Clayton-Lea, Tony (29 May 2016). "Florence + The Machine: How Big How Blue How Beautiful Album". The Irish Times . Retrieved 7 May 2016.
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  5. 1 2 Lockett, Dee (12 February 2015). "Florence and the Machine's New Song Is Pretty Fierce". Vulture . Retrieved 14 February 2015.
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  7. ↑ Unterberger, Andrew (4 June 2015). "Review: Florence + the Machine Go Big, Then Go Home on 'How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful'". Spin . Retrieved 27 May 2016.
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  9. 1 2 "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
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  11. ↑ Bloodworth, Adam (2 July 2018). "Florence and the Machine's Official Top 10 biggest UK singles revealed". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
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  13. ↑ Velez, Cat (19 February 2015). ""She isn't afraid of anything" – Vincent Haycock on directing Florence Welch". Promonews. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  14. ↑ Vásquez, Mariel Bejarano (24 March 2015). "'St. Jude': nuevo adelanto del próximo disco de Florence + The Machine" (in Spanish). Radiónica . Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  15. 1 2 "What Kind Of Man (Nicolas Jaar Remix): Florence + The Machine: MP3 Downloads". Amazon . United Kingdom. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  16. 1 2 "Florence + The Machine – What Kind of Man". Record Store Day . Retrieved 27 May 2016.
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  39. ↑ "American single certifications – Florence + The Machine – What Kind of Man". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved 10 August 2023.
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  43. ↑ "What Kind Of Man (Nicolas Jaar Remix): Florence + The Machine: Téléchargements MP3". Amazon (in French). France. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
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