Florence Welch wears a cape for ''protection'' on stage.

The Florence + the Machine star knows her outlandish outfits ''dictated'' the tone of her gigs and she deliberately chose her concert attire because she was nervous of how successful she had become.

She explained: ''We did some gigs in-between 'Ceremonials' era and this album and we had these gowns.

''As I was putting them on, it just felt so... it wasn't right.

''I felt I had to fill the sound of 'Ceremonials' because it was so big. If you're wearing a gown and a cape, it dictates the presence... and actually that was a protection, a way of dealing with how big everything had got. And that was fun, but it's hard to keep up.''

The 'Shake It Off' singer struggled when her last tour ended as she no longer felt sure of her identity or tastes.

She explained to NME magazine: ''When you come off tour, it's hard to know what you like.

''You're this big but then that's not here, in this house. I was trying to figure it out, like, 'Do I like partying? I'll just do that loads. Do I wanna have a relationship? That's not working either. What is it? What am I looking for?

''I had to contend with my own feelings for the first time. I couldn't just be swept away and do a gig. Gigs have this magic thing of absolving.

''As long as you did a good gig, no matter what's happened, no matter what's going on in your personal life, it's such an exorcism for me that it just resets everything.''