Music

Heralded as standard-bearers for a revival of rock, the five young women of The Last Dinner Party are not ready to sacrifice everything for a fleeting moment of glory. And that's fine!

Since their almost miraculous appearance in April 2023 with the track "Nothing Matters", the five Londoners who had been refining their repertoire for a year or two already have achieved a flawless performance, both on stage, on record and on platforms. Led by the twirling singer Abigail Morris, they built their careers 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 The Sparks), small intimate venues at 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 scratched 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 excesses and, we must call things by their name, the health risks that the race for success sometimes entails, is over. Rather than burning their wings prematurely, the band evokes "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 of 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. This has become so rare it should be highlighted...

So we thought it would be interesting to ask two personalities who matter why Abigail and her girlfriends are future greats. This should convince you!

Rudy Léonet of the "5 Heures" programme on La Première, a Belgian French-language radio station:
 "In a nutshell, they are great musicians and great instrumentalists, each individually, and the group is greater than the sum of its parts. It's so amazing to see a band on stage with members playing, having fun and singing together. We have the impression that they recreate the songs in front of the audience, their choice of covers is fantastic. I think they are the only ones who could claim today to deliver a relevant cover of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. That level of maturity in such a young group, commands respect."

Marc Thonon, former music journalist, AD at Virgin and Barclay, Founder of the Atmosphériques label:
"Gradually Lizzie, Emily, Aurora and Georgia have also grown in power alongside Abigail. Extremely well supported by an extraordinary sound and a solid drummer, they royally unfolded their organic rock, which is revolutionary in that it is not constrained by machines or those detestable "clicks" that have taken away all humanity from "screen" concerts (LEDs and smartphones). Their excellent choice of covers says a lot 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 refers us to Freddie Mercury... No less. The way she moves, the way she lives their music, her joy, confidence and humility mixed together do more than evoke the golden age of "rock gods". The greatest showman since Freddie Mercury is indeed a SHOWWOMAN!

"And what about their immense nerve: the last time I saw a band win over an audience on tracks that had not yet been released was at Pinkpop (festival in the Netherlands - editor's note) in 1979. That evening, The Police, who had only one album to their credit, gave us a "Message in A Bottle" that would only be released a few months later. At the Olympia, the discovery was "The Killer". In my opinion their future breakthrough single, the one that should propel them skywards. 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 source of huge happiness."

(AK/ML - Thanks to Rudy Léonet and Marc Thonon - Photos: Music Belgium Photos)

Photos: The Last Dinner Party on the stage of the Cirque Royal in Brussels (Belgium) on October 29, 2024 ( © Music Belgium Photos)