WASHINGTON, DC - Earlier this year, Florence + the Machine debuted the “Everybody Scream” tour in support of their titular 2025 album. The theatrical extravaganza, which Pitchfork named one of the most anticipated tours of the year, was replete with an ethereal folk-horror aesthetic, a becloaked “Witch Choir” quartet of dancers, and Florence Welch’s award-winning vocals. At each stop, first in Europe before continuing in the United States, “Everybody Scream” was backed by a Cohesion PA.
Longtime Florence + the Machine FOH Engineer Brad Madix selected Cohesion as the audio system for “Everybody Scream” after having picked it for the band’s previous two tours. “It’s always worked very, very well for us in the touring environment,” he said prior to a show in Washington, DC this spring. “We’re not trying to reproduce the record exactly, but in a way that’s as hi-fi as we can make it so that all the details come through. The system’s been great for us.”
“I need a system that’s flexible, reliable, and consistent,” said System Engineer Elad Kleiner. “With Cohesion, we can modify it quickly, it’s quick to fly, and it fits in one truck, which no other manufacturer can do. I’ve always been a big fan of Cohesion products; the design philosophy is very solution-oriented and production-oriented. I’d recommend it 100%, easy.”
The PA, deployed in the U.S. by Clair Global and by Britannia Row Productions in Europe, comprised sixteen Cohesion CO12 left-right on the main hangs and the sides, with a dozen Cohesion CO10 left-right as rear hangs. While the side hangs (and the bottom of the main arrays) utilized 120° horizontal dispersion horn inserts, the rear hangs and most of the mains used 80° horn inserts.
“One of the reasons we selected 80° horns in parts of the PA and 120° at the bottom was to keep as much sound off the runway as we could,” explained Madix. “Cohesion gives us that flexibility without having a massive change in the tonality of the PA. We get a nice, full mix.”
For subwoofers, six Cohesion CP218 II+ were flown left-right in cardioid configuration, and another three CP218 per side were placed on the ground vertically and run in ULF (Ultra Low Frequency) Mode. Madix described the ground subs as an “auxiliary push” and “more of a low-frequency extension than part of the mix.”
Three Cohesion CP6+ fill speakers per side were placed atop the ground subs, and an additional two CP6+ were placed along the thrust to provide coverage for rail-riding fans, many of whom rushed to the front as soon as doors opened clad in their own fey and folksy garb.
Two further arrays of six CO12 (one array of six CO10 in Europe) were flown on either side of the downstage edge of the thrust. Kleiner said of these arrays, “We have an interesting show design where the video screen can shade the acoustic summation points left and right, which can result in poor frequency response toward the far end of the arena, already a challenging coverage area. We added delays to compensate, though I don’t think of them as delays. I’d say it’s more like a second PA to improve consistency in those seats.”
The tour implemented innovative amplifier technologies from Cohesion, which Kleiner illustrated as “reliable and powerful, improving in ways I didn’t anticipate; the DSP is significantly faster, latency is lower, and overall distortion is reduced. One of the key strengths of the CO12 is its horn design, which has been further enhanced with the new [technologies] to deliver powerful high-frequency content with exceptional clarity and low distortion. Even at seventy meters from the stage, Florence’s voice never gets lost—it remains present and defined throughout, like she’s singing directly to you.”
Several amplifiers were housed in Cohesion’s novel flown amplifier rack product, which provided a solution to preserve sightlines while improving cable management. Kleiner described this “elegant solution” as a way of condensing “more amps into a smaller footprint so they’re easy to fly. We’re getting to the point where flying amps aren’t a hassle anymore and can actually be a benefit. We can do it quicker, and we need less space on a truck.”
The production design included massive LED screens, wondrous lighting, ample fog befitting the witching-hour aesthetics, and a long thrust that jutted well downstage into the floor, giving ardent fans a chance to see and hear their idol up-close.
“Everyone’s here to see Florence, so vocal clarity is the number-one priority,” said Madix. “She has a very powerful voice, but we have parts of the show where she’s whispering or singing well out in front of the PA. We’re usually around 96–97 [dBA], and parts are pretty far below that or occasionally a bit higher—and we definitely have the experience where the audience is louder than we are.”
Kleiner, who was the SE and audio crew chief on the past three Florence + the Machine tours, including “Everybody Scream,” said his priority is ensuring the show is consistent night to night and from seat to seat at every venue: “We’re trying to achieve as even a distribution and frequency response as possible across the entire audience plane,” he said while gesturing to opposite corners of the 400 level of Capital One Arena. “We’re not trying to get just a show; we wanted to get this show day after day.
Each night, Welch and her bandmates left screaming crowds awestruck across a nearly two-hour journey through her discography, with chart-toppers from her auspicious debut Lungs to last year’s Everybody Scream, which debuted at #1 on the UK Albums Chart and which The Telegraph named the Best Album of 2025.
“Florence really put herself out there,” said Madix. “She was in the middle of the crowd, touching people, singing to them. There was a moment at a recent show when Florence walked the barricade and greeted an eleven-year-old girl. The grin on the girl’s face was amazing, a real high point, and it summarized the relationship Florence has with the crowd.”
Kleiner climbed to the upper bowls of the arenas each night to listen to the system, and there he surveyed the crowd: “I could see that it’s 97 meters from the PA, and everyone was still dancing. That meant we did our job right. We can help people forget their problems for a few hours and have a great time.”
“We wanted it to sound like you’re here in an arena with 15–20,000 people all coming together and having this unique, live experience,” said Madix. “Very few acts I’ve seen were like this. It was magical.”
After concluding the U.S. run of “Everybody Scream” in California, Florence + the Machine returned to Europe for several more shows and festival appearances to close out the summer.
About Cohesion
Cohesion is a sound reinforcement enterprise that designs and manufactures premier audio technology products as part of a broadening ecosystem. Fully supported by the expertise of a dedicated team at its headquarters in Lititz, Pennsylvania, Cohesion’s product line includes the world-renowned CO Series line arrays, the high-performing and versatile CF Series point source loudspeakers, an acclaimed line of powerful subwoofers, and crystal-clear monitors, with more products that expand the full catalog in development.
Cohesion was originally launched as a private brand available solely through Clair Global’s rental division, but based on its overwhelming success and subsequent market demand, Cohesion is now also available to exclusive installations worldwide and continues to be trusted by some of the world’s most successful touring artists.
For more information, visit Cohesion online at cohesionaudio.com or call +1 (717) 625-3800. Join Cohesion’s social channels @cohesionaudioofficial on Instagram and LinkedIn and @officialcohesionaudio on Facebook.