"What Kind of Man" is a song by English
indie rock band
Florence and the Machine
Florence and the Machine (stylised as Florence + the Machine) are an English indie rock band that formed in London in 2007, consisting of lead vocalist Florence Welch, keyboardist Isabella Summers, guitarist Rob Ackroyd, harpist Tom Monger, and ...
from their third studio album, ''
How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful'' (2015). It was written by
Florence Welch,
Kid Harpoon and
John Hill John Hill may refer to:
Business
* John Henry Hill (1791–1882), American businessman, educator and missionary
* John Hill (planter) (1824–1910), Scottish-born American industrialist and planter
* John Hill (businessman) (1847–1926), Austral ...
, 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
The Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guide it is designed for s ...
and
Best Rock Song.
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."
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.
The song lyrically focuses on an indecisive man who wronged Welch.
Critical reception
"What Kind of Man" received acclaim from music critics. Al Horner of ''
NME'' wrote, "Musically, it's ''big''.
Wagnerian
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
backing vocals and horn blasts turn 'What Kind Of Man' into a spectacle worthy of
elch'snew festival headliner status". Dee Lockett of
Vulture dubbed it a "fiery rocker".
Andrew Unterberger of ''
Spin
Spin or spinning most often refers to:
* Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning
* Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis
* Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...
'' opined that the song "starts off a letdown, but quickly proves to be
Ship to Wreck's">Ship_to_Wreck.html" ;"title="Ship to Wreck">Ship to Wreck'sroaring 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".
Commercial performance
"What Kind of Man" debuted at number 57 on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 37 the following week.
In the United States, the song reached number eight on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Alternative Songs chart, tying with the band's 2008 single "
Dog Days Are Over" and subsequent single "
Ship to Wreck
"Ship to Wreck" 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 released on 9 April 2015 as the album's second single. The track premiered on Huw St ...
" as their highest-peaking single on that chart. As of July 2018, the song had sold 177,000 copies and had been streamed 11.2 million times in the United Kingdom.
Music video
The music video for "What Kind of Man", directed by Vincent Haycock and choreographed by
Ryan Heffington
Ryan Heffington (born June 7, 1973) is an American dancer and choreographer based in Los Angeles. He was nominated for two Grammy Awards for choreographing the music videos for Arcade Fire's "We Exist" (2013) and Sia's "Chandelier" (2014), winning ...
, premiered on 12 February 2015. Filmed in Los Angeles and
Mérida, Mexico, 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
*Digital download – Nicolas Jaar Remix
#"What Kind of Man" (
Nicolas Jaar
Nicolas Jaar (; ; es, Nicolás; born January 10, 1990) is a Chilean-American composer and recording artist based in New York. Among his notable works are the albums ''Space Is Only Noise'' (2011), ''Sirens'' (2016), and '' Cenizas'' (2020). H ...
Remix) – 12:21
*Limited-edition 12-inch single (
Record Store Day exclusive)
: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''.
Recording
* Engineered at The Pool (London)
* Mixed at The Mixsuite (UK)
* Mastered at
Sterling Sound
George Marino (April 15, 1947 – June 4, 2012) was an American mastering engineer known for working on albums by rock bands starting in the late 1960s.
Biography
Marino was born on April 15, 1947, in the New York City borough The Bronx. He at ...
(New York City)
Personnel
Florence and the Machine
*
Florence Welch – vocals, backing vocals
* Chris Hayden – drums, percussion
* Mark Saunders – bass
* Rob Ackroyd – electric guitar
Additional personnel
*
Markus Dravs – production, percussion, synths
*
John Hill John Hill may refer to:
Business
* John Henry Hill (1791–1882), American businessman, educator and missionary
* John Hill (planter) (1824–1910), Scottish-born American industrialist and planter
* John Hill (businessman) (1847–1926), Austral ...
– co-production, synths, brass writing, brass arrangements
* Robin Baynton – engineering
* Jonathan Sagis – engineering assistance
*
Joe Kearns
Joe or JOE may refer to:
Arts
Film and television
* ''Joe'' (1970 film), starring Peter Boyle
* ''Joe'' (2013 film), starring Nicolas Cage
* ''Joe'' (TV series), a British TV series airing from 1966 to 1971
* ''Joe'', a 2002 Canadian animated ...
– additional engineering
* Iain Berryman – additional engineering
*
Leo Abrahams – electric guitar
* Janelle Martin – backing vocals
* Nim Miller – backing vocals
*
Baby N'Sola
Miss Baby Sol is a Zairean-English singer and songwriter. She was born in Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) and resides in London.
Musical career
In 2011, Miss Baby Sol released her debut EP, which included three singles, "Always" ...
– backing vocals
*
Kid Harpoon – brass writing, brass arrangements
* Nigel Black – French horn
*
Pip Eastop
Pip Eastop (born 1958) is a virtuoso horn player from London, England. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music from 1974 to 1976, leaving to take up the position of Principal Horn with the Antwerp Philharmonic Orchestra (now known as the Royal F ...
– 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
Mark "Spike" Stent (born 3 August 1965) is an English record producer and mixing engineer who has worked with many international artists including Madonna, Marshmello, U2, Beyoncé, Björk, Depeche Mode, Echo & The Bunnymen, Grimes, Ed Sheeran ...
– mixing
* Geoff Swan – mixing assistance
*
Ted Jensen – mastering
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
Notes
References
{{Authority control
2015 singles
2015 songs
British garage rock songs
Florence and the Machine songs
Island Records singles
Music videos shot in Mexico
Song recordings produced by John Hill (record producer)
Song recordings produced by Markus Dravs
Songs written by Florence Welch
Songs written by John Hill (record producer)
Songs written by Kid Harpoon