Having never been to Festival Hall, I wondered if I was lost until I spotted a sea of white skirts, corsets and red lipstick standing out like an apparition beneath the dark underpass. I concluded I was where I needed to be.
Climbing up the charts and winning over the hearts of many with their debut album Prelude to Ecstasy, The Last Dinner Party have charmed their way to Australia.
Their first time performing in the country started with a slot at Adelaide’s Spin-Off festival, a meet and greet at Sydney’s Sappho Books and headline shows in Brisbane, Sydney and of course, Melbourne.
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It was nice to see the London rockers book Australia’s own Tia Gostelow to kick off the evening. Opening the night with her song Nothing Else Matters from her most recent album Head Noise, the Groote Eylandt-raised Indigenous Australian musician graced us with her presence and an undeniable chemistry on stage with her band that was amazing to witness.
Dressed in a tartan skirt hiked above one knee and a red bow in her hair, Tia played Strangers, which is arguably her most-known song and certified Platinum by ARIA for good reason.
The excitement in the air was high after Tia’s set, the chatter was audible and a sea of eyes watched the stage in anticipation for what was to come. As the lights dimmed, phones began to rise as the first song Prelude To Ecstasy filled the room.
The band came on to the stage comprising of lead guitarist Emily Roberts, vocalist and guitarist Lizzie Mayland, keyboardist Aurora Nishevci, bassist Georgia Davies and lead vocalist Abigail Morris as she belted out the lyrics ‘I am not the girl I set out to be’ from Burn Alive.
The atmosphere was nothing short of ethereal and each member looked the part adorned with crimson red stockings, ribbons swaying from guitars and dresses, as well as a fitting glass of red wine making an appearance between songs.
The chemistry was as electric on stage as it was in the crowd where fans sang the lyrics just as ferociously. With only one released album, it was nice to hear them play it in order with a few unreleased songs and covers sprinkled throughout the set.
“I left it [Australia] a very long time ago so it’s pretty emotional that music has brought me back with my lovely British friends here,” said Georgia, pointing to the rest of the band. The emotion of playing a home show was evident as she started to tear up. “I’ve cried every night of this fucking tour,” she exclaimed half laughing, half crying before passing on the mic to Emily who introduced the next song.
Halfway through an unreleased song written by Emily called Second Best, the show stopped. Abigail runs off stage. A banner drops. The crowd cheers. The banner reads ‘Georgia’s Homecoming ‘24’ and in pure Last Dinner Party fashion Abigail said into the mic, “Welcome home bitch”.
The intro to Beautiful Boy shifted the mood, as Emily played the flute and Aurora, positioned behind her, played the piano. The whole crowd went silent. Hearing this harmonious song live was more mesmerising than I could have ever imagined.
Aurora introduces and sings Gjuha, an Albanian melody that she wrote from the shame of not knowing her mother tongue. As heart-wrenching as it is haunting, it seamlessly transitions into Sinner, with Aurora’s fingers never lifting from the keyboard for the duration of two songs.
Abigail spots a rainbow Pride flag in the front row and upon bringing it up on stage realised it had been signed by every member minus Aurora at their first-ever gig at The George Tavern. The disbelief and confusion on how it made its journey from London to Melbourne unfolds before us with the flag swiftly returned to its owner once Aurora had added her signature to it.
It wouldn’t be a show for an international band in Australia without a few hecklers chanting ‘Shoey, Shoey, Shoey’ until they are either shot down by other concert-goers or the band itself, but Abigail seemed very intrigued and happy to oblige, swiftly taking off her lovely black boot and filling it with a bottle of beer.
“Never thought I would see the day,” Georgia laughs before Abigail downs the boot in one.
The night was not over with song covers of Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game and Sparks’ This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both Of Us, as well as more unreleased songs such as The Killer performed.
However, like all great things, eventually, they must come to an end, although not without a bang which is what the band delivered closing out the night with Nothing Matters.
Read our interview with The Last Dinner Party here and keep up with the band here.
