The Last Dinner Party’s spellbinding record store tour is a masterclass in conjuring emotion

hmv Empire, Coventry, 20 October 2025

“Welcome to the Pyre”, proclaims Abigail Morris, lead vocalist of the band, nursing a bottle of Corona in her hand. She spreads her arms wide, enveloping all the audience in her radiance and banishing their Monday night blues. The dusky orange glow of stage lamps filters through the smoke that shrouds the venue. It becomes clear, after just one song, that a coven has come to Coventry and all are invited to share in its dastardly delights.

On such an overcast Monday night, more than a small pick-me-up is needed, and oh boy does The Last Dinner Party deliver. The opening songs ‘Agnes Dei’ and ‘Second Best’ infuse a much-needed liveliness into the crowd. Morris flits about the stage with her typical Stevie Nicks-esque whimsicality. Her boundless energy and whorling garments render her nearly hypnotic. Every person in the venue is entranced as she lingers before the mic stand, arms spread to either side.

The theatricality of the band truly brings this compendium of stories alive

Religious imagery has always been woven tightly into the tapestry of The Last Dinner Party’s work, and From The Pyre is no exception. In fact, there is a sense that everyone in the venue is partaking in some hushed and sacred covenant during ‘Sail Away’. This beautiful ballad brims over with emotion, and many of the audience watch through glassy eyes. Addressing the crowd with her usual charming candour, Morris comments that she can only now “play that song without crying”. Indeed, ‘Sail Away’ provides a much-needed lull after the near-primal experience of ‘Woman is a Tree’. The guttural harmonies crescendo into a cacophony that seems taught with the rage of the Ancient Greek nymph Daphne herself, on whom the song is based.

From The Pyre must be heard live. Sonorous and full-bodied, each song contains a novel’s-worth of folkloric narrative. The theatricality of the band truly brings this compendium of stories alive. Undoubtedly, the quintet is in their element in front of a crowd. Concerns abounded when the band dropped out of their last UK tour after “pushing themselves past their breaking point”. This performance leaves no doubt, however, that they are well and truly resurrected. Simply being on stage seems to infuse the band with vitality. Perhaps Morris speaks for them all when she sings “I do this for my health.”

‘The Scythe’ is so strikingly emotive that it becomes tricky to admire Lizzy Mayland’s haunting flute solo through such blurry eyes. Then, a hush falls over the audience as the performers gather in the centre of the stage – instruments abandoned. A deep breath. The crowd is enraptured. Now, the harmonies that the group create can only find their equal in the songs of sirens. Simultaneously melancholic and almost painfully tender, the next five minutes of intoxicating harmonies are delivered completely a-capella. No instruments, no backing-track – just pure musical prowess and raw emotion from each of the members of the band.

The crowd clearly craves catharsis and The Last Dinner Party seem delighted to deliver

Suffice to say that the venue has fallen reverently quiet after such an onslaught of emotionally charged music. The crowd clearly craves catharsis and The Last Dinner Party seem delighted to deliver. They finish the night with an in-character rendition of ‘This is the Killer Speaking’. The characters in question are some rather unorthodox Southern Belles with an unorthodox southern accent to match. Needless to say, perhaps this particular band should stick to singing rather than acting. Regardless of how questionable the accents were however, the song itself is a joyous romp through a Spaghetti Western’s soundscape. The band’s energy is absolutely infectious! By the end of the tune, every single person in that chilly venue is jumping in time with the absolute powerhouses on stage.

Playing a brand new set from a brand new album  is a tall order for any band. With The Last Dinner Party’s dense lyricism and complex harmonies, the challenge is all the steeper. However, they rise to it with gusto and deliver a powerful  performance that no one in the audience is soon to forget. When a crowd trudges into a venue with their Monday morning lecture on their mind, but bounds out brimming with energy; you can only assume that the band has cast some kind of spell. What a triumphant return from The Last Dinner Party.

★★★★