Festival Review: The Last Dinner Party At The Great Escape

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In the wider world, it seems like The Last Dinner Party have emerged out of nowhere overnight. The music video for their first official release, Nothing Matters, shared 3 weeks ago, now sits at almost half a million plays. The only other material existing are elusive clips from the theatrical live shows (courtesy of Lou Smith), each set becoming brighter as they chronologically unfold. The buzz that surrounds The Last Dinner Party (made up of vocalist Abigail Morris, bassist Georgia Davies, Keyboardist Aurora Nischevci and guitarists Lizzie Maryland and Emily Roberts), has formed organically off the back of these shows alone, something that doesn’t really happen anymore. Prioritising establishing themselves a live band first over releasing music into the void later, is unsurprisingly, paying off. The queue is around the block tonight for Brighton’s 'The Great Escape' festival's and 2023’s most 'ones to watch’ band.

Bringing the The Virgin Suicides meets Mullholland Drive-esque aesthetic from screen to stage, the quintuple burst on with Burn Alive, a fierce, fun opener that could serve as a soundtrack to fleeing the scene of a house on fire, one hand on the steering wheel the other holding a cigarette. Ceasar on a TV follows carrying the energy through. Beautiful Boy is a highlight, Morris’s vocals are eye-wateringly good. As the set forges ahead, the ingredients that make up a debaucherous night with The Last Dinner Party reveal themselves, its a cocktail of genre bending, audacious bravado and untethered, triumphant energy. Nothing Matters, tonight’s closer, showcases all of these qualities, the explosive chorus, Roberts’ meticulous yet effortless guitar playing for the solo and the infectiously catchy lyrics that encapsulate both catastrophe and celebration.

And although they appear baby faced in the eyes of the industry (and the critics), the charm, craft and spirit between the band is undeniable. Believe the hype.