As FLØRE has been taking over our hearts by storm, fans from across Europe seized the opportunity to travel to her hometown Iserlohn, Germany to see her live on her pre-game-show for the European Soccer Cup 2024. When she entered the stage on the evening of June 14, the crowd went wild in anticipation.
For those who don’t know FLØRE yet, buckle up, because she might just be the new favorite alt-pop artist for many. FLØRE’s music inhabits a compelling junction between the dark and mystical as well as beautiful elements of nature. While oftentimes dealing with sad and heavy topics, there is always a spark of light in her songs. Starting her musical journey as FLØRE about six years ago with the hauntingly beautiful single “Flowered Guts,” she planted the seeds that would grow into what is now her garden of “Fløwers” (the loving name of her fanbase.)
Following with EPs such as SUPERBLOOM, ROMANIAC and RISE OF THE ROMANIAC, FLØRE began blessing us with first live performances. These include playing on the German “Reeperbahn Festival” in 2021 and supporting Zoe Wees on her Europe tour in 2022. Things started to ramp up even more as FLØRE released a song called “ZOMBIE” in early 2023. More singles, suspiciously named after mythical creatures such as “ALIEN,” “WEREWOLF” and “WITCH,” followed. Speculations among fans went wild as to what this new era would look like. In December of the same year, FLØRE put an end to the theories and guesses, announcing her debut album SCARYTALE.
See FLØRE’s SCARYTALE Announcement Below
Following the release of the album, FLØRE would go on to play her first headline shows selling out the venue in Cologne and absolutely rocking Berlin earlier this year. Fast forward to Friday, June 14, her new (purple) era officially began with the release of her latest single “I think I lost my mind.” Coinciding with the release day was a full-blown, free, 90-minutes-long concert in her hometown Iserlohn, Germany, prior to the first match of the European Soccer Cup 2024.
Fans from Germany, the Netherlands and Austria assembled to support FLØRE from the first row. Many of which were already familiar faces to her. However, even casual passer-bys stopped in their tracks to experience FLØRE’s performance. In the meet and greet at the merch stand afterwards, some even proclaimed their new-found love for her music.
Backed by Lorenz on the guitar and the keys and debuting her new drummer Enya, FLØRE entered the stage. The concert opened to what has become THE anthem for her community, “HAPPY NEVER AFTER.” With tears in their eyes and heavy goosebumps, the crowd sang along in perfect harmony, setting off what would be an incredibly magical and emotional evening.
See the full set list below
- HAPPY NEVER AFTER
- WEREWOLF
- MONSTER
- ZOMBIE
- ALIEN
- DEVIL
- SKELETON
- Tsunami
- Dutchman
- Self Sabotage (unreleased)
- I’m okay, i’m just a little depressed
- WITCH
- VAMPIRE
- FRANKENSTEIN
- Don’t U Dare
- GRIM
- MERMAID
- GHOST
- I think I lost my mind
- Sick Of Being Sad
Following “HAPPY NEVER AFTER,” which felt like a warm welcome to a reunion of fans with FLØRE, she instantly riled up the crowd with some of her most energetic songs, “WEREWOLF, MONSTER” and “ZOMBIE.” Interaction between her and the crowd went strong, as with the latter song, there is a zombie-dance that FLØRE asked the fans to dance along with her, which they eagerly did.
If you consider seeing FLØRE live sometime, you might want to learn the ZOMBIE dance to surprise her
“ALIEN, DEVIL” and “SKELETON” continued to build that atmosphere. “ALIEN” is another special one on the list. Every time FLØRE plays it live, the connection between her and her fans becomes apparent. The song is about finding a true friend who makes you feel like home.
“Guess it’s true
~ ALIEN
Home is where I’m with you
I feel less of an alien, alien with you”
During this part, FLØRE often performs the sweet gesture of pointing at the audience. “DEVIL” also has a lovely dance, spelling out “D.E.V.I.L.” for the crowd to dance along and and interact with FLØRE.
After this powerful and high-energy first part of the concert, FLØRE returned to her roots for a while. Just her and her guitar. “TSUNAMI” and “DUTCHMAN” set a more melancholic tone, as they both deal with love, heartbreak and uncertainty. “DUTCHMAN” in particular with its melodic acoustic guitar and FLØRE’s angelic voice aims straight for the heart and never fails to land its shot.
As she stood there with her acoustic guitar, the perfect opportunity arose for her to grace us with a surprise, unreleased song, “Self Sabotage.” And what a pleasant surprise it was. The song is about the tragedy of the own mind being our biggest enemy and how we keep standing in our own way towards happiness by sabotaging it ourselves. FLØRE captivated the crowd in an instant and “Self Sabotage” is already a new favorite among fans. We are eagerly awaiting its official release. Stay tuned for that.
We were particularly enthralled by the next song “I’m okay, i’m just a little depressed.” One of FLØRE’s most streamed songs and one of her saddest. It’s a song about the tragedy of becoming too comfortable in one’s own sadness. It emphasizes the importance of self-love and how everyone needs to find their own way to live with this sadness. The front-row in particular laid in each others’ arms, singing and crying together, once again demonstrating the love and care for each other in the Fløwer community.
The next five songs, however, would shake that sadness up again, with a new wave of high-octane songs we could sing our hearts out to. “WITCH” gave us the power to live out our fantasies in “VAMPIRE,” while “FRANKENSTEIN” in particular proved to be the one song on the list that was screamed out the loudest. “Don’t U Dare” was promptly hijacked by the first row, as the part of the lyrics where it says,
“On a Monday in Berlin”
~ “Don’t U Dare”
was changed to “On a Monday in Iserlohn.” “Don’t U Dare” is a song about a breakup and taking pride in not letting the person who caused that heartbreak see the hurt they’re responsible for. It is the perfect prequel to the following song, “GRIM,” which is a beautifully vengeful song about getting rid of just that negativity and injustice. Once again, FLØRE’s beloved moon guitar was an integral part to the gig.
Seeing Enya on the drums for the first time in this constellation was a pure joy as well. Her energy and her visibly feeling the music added so much to the experience. Fans immediately pointed out the chemistry between her and Lorenz on the guitar and the keys, as a favorite element of the show, as the two kept singing along to each other behind FLØRE’s back. We are excited to see them play together again going forward.
Towards the end, two of FLØRE’s notoriously sad songs had their time to shine. A huge sigh went through the crowd, in anticipation of the ultimate tear-jerker that is “MERMAID.” Once again, fans supported each other and FLØRE through the tears as the hauntingly beautiful spectacle that is “MERMAID,” ensued. The song retells the story of growing up in a place that doesn’t feel like home, wishing to belong in a world we don’t understand and how all the tears and the sadness will one day have been worth it, because we’ll see that everything was meant to be. FLØRE then doubled down on the emotions by following up with “GHOST,” a song about losing a loved one, bringing the crowd together once again in this universal experience through her music.
The show was so packed with emotions that we were shocked when FLØRE announced that the next song would be the second to last one already. “I think I lost my mind” was a clear highlight of the concert as it was the release day of the song and we were among the first to experience it live. At the time of this performance, the song had been out for only about 18 hours, which was more than long enough for fans to learn the lyrics by heart. FLØRE’s latest song officially started her new era, which we don’t know much about yet, apart from it’s predominant color, purple. “I think I lost my mind” illustrates how becoming famous can change one’s life completely. It rides a fine line between the fame that comes from being successful in the music industry and the hard work artists need to put in in order to get there, even if it goes against who they are. Hence, the danger of losing their mind from pretending.
FLØRE then ended her performance with the beloved fan-favorite “Sick Of Being Sad.” The song was the perfect choice to wrap up the entire experience, as it is sonically very powerful and reflects both the sad songs we heard this evening, as well as the more upbeat ones, sending us off with a hopeful outlook after an absolutely magical concert.
It was an honor and an absolute joy having been able to meet FLØRE in her hometown and partaking in this lovely reunion of fans. Seeing her perform live is such a special experience and we will eagerly follow along on her journey going forward.
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