Florence and the Machine ready new album

Florence and the Machine guitarist Rob Ackroyd has confirmed that the band are already working on the follow-up to their critically-acclaimed 2009 debut album Lungs.

Ackroyd claimed that writing work on the band's second album is nearing completion, following which they will begin recording later this year.

"Work on the second album has begun with producer Paul Epworth and there is talk of booking out Abbey Road [studios] for a month in April or May to record. Which is nice," Ackroyd told Gibson.

The guitarist admitted that although he and lead singer Florence Welch sometimes differ in their musical tastes, they never encounter problems when working together on the band's sound.

"Florence's and my taste in music often overlap in harmonious fashion; we're both big fans of hip-hop and American indie," Ackroyd explained. "But she's also a big fan of unadulterated pop music, which cuts through me like a knife.

"In terms of our own music though,we are perfectly matched," he added.

The band spent much of last year touring off the back of Lungs, and are booked in a support slot for U2 this June.