Electric show: Catch Florence live at a festival

WHO ARE THEY?

South Londoner Florence Welch and her two male backing musicians, The Machine, whose stripped-down songs sound like The White Stripes fronted by Ella Fitzgerald.

WHY THE FUSS?

Girl singers from London aren't exactly scarce at the moment  -  see Amy, Lily, Kate and Adele  -  but 21-year-old Welch has her own bluesy take on the female phenomenon. Her first single, Kiss With A Fist, out now on Moshi Moshi, mixes her tough but expressive vocals with a barrage of guitars. Music weekly NME is already hailing her as the summer's hottest new live act.

WHAT'S THE SPIN?

Florence, according to her label, makes 'the kind of music that Lily or Kate would make if they had grown up in a cage full of snakes in the basement of a Louisiana funeral home'.

AND THE REALITY?

Only marginally less dramatic. Florence does, indeed, lean towards a dark Americana  -  her single features a cover of the Cold War Kids' Hospital Beds  -  but she is also trying to make her music 'more uplifting'.

WHAT'S THE STORY?

Welch remembers singing along to the Grease soundtrack as a child and was also a member of her school choir. She began to take music seriously after she dropped out of art college and began playing solo. Initially, she was backed by an array of different guitarists  -  her 'Machine' was once Dev Hynes of Lightspeed Champion  -  but the line-up is now more settled.

AND THEN?

Her piercing vocals and eccentric live performances began to create quite a stir. Florence often leaps offstage into the crowd and, at the South By South West festival in Texas, even ended one show by diving into a nearby swimming pool. Her voice also attracted the attention of former Pulp guitarist Steve Mackey, who produced her single, and American art-rockers MGMT, who offered her the chance to support them on a recent European tour.

ANY FESTIVAL DATES?

Florence is playing Glastonbury, Dorset's Camp Bestival, Huntingdon's Secret Garden Party and London's Underage Festival.