We’ve got so much music at our hands these days, it’s hard to feel that anything is new. The old acts are still releasing new material, even if they’ve long since passed away (The Beatles put out a “new song” last year – QRO review). All the young artists seem to sound like new versions of the old artists, just remade for a new generation. That’s why the grand, orchestral pop-rock of The Last Dinner Party is such a breath of fresh air on their debut, Prelude To Ecstasy.
Prelude begins with its titular orchestral introduction, and never lets up in terms of its grandeur, even as it skillfully swings from emotion to emotion. There are takes on male domination and expectations in “Caesar on a TV Screen” and “Beautiful Boy”, but it can close with a kiss-off in “Mirror”. “Portrait of a Dead Girl” and “Nothing Matters” deliver powerful back-to-back evocation just before that close. And “Sinner” is killer grand pop that also rocks.
Admittedly bearing hallmarks of great artists that have come before (think Florence & The Machine, or Kate Bush), The Last Dinner Party still do it all their own as they give you their Prelude To Ecstasy.
