The Cambridge Corn Exchange is swarming with Victoriana dresses, prairie skirts and puffed sleeves: it can only be for a The Last Dinner Party show. If you’re not familiar with them, they’re the winners of both the BBC Sound Of 2024 poll and the BRIT’s Rising Star award, and they’ve played at Glastonbury, Latitude, and scored an opening slot for The Rolling Stones. Not bad for a band who only released their debut album this year.
In a live setting, it feels like support act Kaeto (5/10) lacks the bite that she has on record. Opener Carry You is heavy on backing track, and the singer’s breathy vocals get lost in the reverb. It’s a similar story with No Body, which starts out well with a punchy riff but starts to feel derivative by the end. There’s not bags of charisma or stage presence on display here, either; that said, the deadly silent crowd isn’t giving them much to work with. However, the trippy, moody Distance is a highlight, as is the dreamy refrain of Pacifist. It’s not a bad set, but it’s not a memorable one.
The Last Dinner Party (8/10) are known for theatrics, and it’s clear from the start, as they kick off with Burn Alive, the opener from their acclaimed debut album Prelude To Ecstasy, that tonight’s affair will be no different. Everything from the occasionally blinding stage lights, the costumes (the fairy wings of guitarist Emily Roberts’ particularly stand out), and the opulent, Kate Bush-style vocals of frontwoman Abigail Morris, screams drama. Caesar On A TV Screen, one of the standout tracks from the album, encapsulates this theme perfectly, its bombastic rock opera style evoking a modern day ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’.
Ballad Beautiful Boy sees Roberts pick up a flute, while keyboardist Aurora Nishevci moves to piano to accompany Morris’ haunting vocals. The vulnerable romanticism of On Your Side is a particular highlight, as is Sinner, the irresistible hook of which sees one of the biggest singalongs of the night. The harmonies in the group are seriously impressive, and it seems Morris isn’t the only one with impressive pipes: this is confirmed when Nishevci takes lead vocals on Gjuha, which is sung in Albanian, her mother tongue. They also prove they can really rock: the likes of Big Dog and My Lady Of Mercy sound made for stadiums.
Towards the end of the set, Abigail casually mentions that their last show in Cambridge was at The Portland Arms pub, a considerably smaller venue than this one, which just shows how meteoric their rise has been. Ending with both Killer, an unreleased track set to feature on their next record, and of course, their irrepressible debut single Nothing Matters, The Last Dinner Party prove they’re a force to be reckoned with. It won’t be long before the Corn Exchange is considered well behind them.
Check out more photos of The Last Dinner Party in our photo gallery below, captured by Jemma Dodd.
