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Erected as standard-bearers for a rock revival, the five young women of The Last Dinner Party are not ready to sacrifice everything for a fleeting moment of glory. And that’s just fine!
Since their almost miraculous appearance in April 2023 with the song “Nothing Matters”, the five Londoners who had been refining their repertoire for a year or two already have performed flawlessly, both on stage and on record and on platforms. Led by the whirling singer Abigail Morris, they are building their career the old-fashioned way with a lucidity that deserves respect. Carefully selected opening acts (Hozier for example), radio sessions (like for Studio Brussel in Belgium where they recorded “This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both Of Us” by Sparks), small intimate venues for the release of the album “Prelude To Ecstasy”, a series of festivals in the summer of 2024 and a European tour, always the old-fashioned way, this fall.
But a grain of sand has come to scratch this beautiful mechanism. After a few English concerts cancelled due to illness, five performances on the continent have now been cancelled. After a final stop in Prague (Czech Republic), the group will take a well-deserved break. Fortunately, the time for excess and, let’s call a spade a spade, the health risks that sometimes come with the race for success are over. Rather than prematurely burning their wings, the group speaks of “an emotional, mental and physical burnout that must be taken very seriously”.
Whether at the Olympia in Paris or at the Cirque Royal in Brussels, The Last Dinner Party has demonstrated in recent days the full extent of its potential but also its generosity since the group welcomes no less than two other artists in the pre-program. Each of them led by a singer and supported by a real band and real instruments. It has become too rare not to be underlined…
So we thought it would be interesting to ask two important people why Abigail and her friends are future greats. That should convince you!
Rudy Léonet from the show “5 Heures” on La Première, a French-speaking Belgian radio station:
“In two words, they are great musicians and great instrumentalists each individually and the group is greater than the sum of its parts. It’s so incredible to see a group on stage again with members who play, have fun and sing together. We have the impression that they are recreating the songs in front of the audience, their choice of covers is fantastic. I think that they are the only ones who could claim today to deliver a relevant cover of “Bohemian Rhapsody”. So much maturity for such a young group, it commands respect.”
Marc Thonon, former music journalist, AD at Virgin and Barclay, Founder of the Atmosphériques label:
“Lizzie, Emily, Aurora and Georgia have also gradually gained momentum alongside Abigail. Extremely well supported by an extraordinary sound and a solid drummer, they have royally unrolled their organic rock which is revolutionary in that it is not constrained by machines or those detestable “clicks” which have taken away all humanity from “screen” concerts (LEDs and smartphones). Their excellent choice of covers speaks volumes about the lineage they are resurrecting: Kate Bush, the Sparks, Blondie,… And it is an understatement to say that they live up to their references.
Abigail for her part reminds us of Freddie Mercury… Nothing less. Her authority in moving, her way of living their music, her joy, her confidence and her humility mixed together do more than evoke the blessed era of the “rock gods”. The greatest showman since Freddie Mercury is indeed a SHOWWOMAN!
“And what about their immense nerve: the last time I saw a group take an audience to songs that had not yet been released was at Pinkpop (a festival in the Netherlands – Editor’s note) in 1979. That night, The Police, who only had one album to their name, treated us to a “Message In A Bottle” that would not be released until a few months later. At the Olympia, the discovery is called “The Killer”. In my opinion, their future ” breakthrough single”, the one that should propel them to the firmament. After Billie Eilish, The Last Dinner Party prove with immense brilliance that women are the future of rock!!! It had to happen and it’s a huge joy”.
