The Last Dinner Party @ Glastonbury Festival 2024

Abigail Morris of The Last Dinner Party @ Glastonbury Festival 2024 (Kalpesh Patel)

As the band walk on to Glastonbury’s second biggest stage they appear almost timid, clutching onto their instruments as lead vocalist Abigail Morris follows. But as they break into Burn Alive, the troupe quickly find their groove and whatever trepidation they might had had soon disappears. Morris has the stage presence of someone who has been just casually playing on the second biggest stage, at one of the biggest festivals in the world, for many years. And the rest of the band, Aurora (keyboard), Emily (lead guitar), Lizzie (rhythm guitar), Georgia (bass) are not far behind. They’re introduced one by one fairly early on in the set, so those in the crowd who are not familiar with them remember their names, because they will certainly be back.

They wear their musical influences on their sleeves; Bowie, Florence Welch, Kate Bush, Queen, and for some this may indicate a lack of originality. But as unavoidable as it is to ignore their past inspirations, they do display tremendous self-confidence.

The Feminine Urge offers the crowd a chance to sing along to its catchy chorus, after which Lizzie takes up flute for the intro of Beautiful Boy and a change of tempo. More ‘weepy’ numbers follow for what is the only dip in their set. Stirring Gjuha is introduced by keyboardist Aurora Nishevci as a song about being ashamed about not knowing her mother tongue, the title itself meaning tongue or language in Albanian before the rousing Sinner is delivered, the crowd surging in a second wave of energy.

Unreleased new tune Second Best is the crowd’s “treat”, introduced by guitarist Emily Roberts as “about choosing to leave someone who treated you as second best”. Vocal harmonies are allowed to dominate before sparse guitars and storming bass bring it’s bounce, Morris pausing the tune mid-flow, almost snarling at the Glastonbury crowd while dominated by the character she embodies for the song’s delivery.

Morris is endearing as she engages with her crowd asking for “something in return” for the gift of a new song. “It’s just your lungs and your souls and your willingness to sing with us on this next one” she requests as piano kicks off Portrait Of A Dead Girl, it’s deceptive gentleness soon making way for it’s soaring chorus. And of course the crowd oblige, when the time is right before Mirror allows an opportunity for the band to stop and let Morris’ powerful vocals take centre stage.

They close their Other Stage set with biggest single Nothing Matters, but not before Abigail attempts to diffuse any political apathy in the crowd by reminding them of this week’s election (albeit getting her months mixed up!). The word on the street is that The Last Dinner Party are still looking for a permanent drummer to join them full time, but question is do they even need one?

Review of The Last Dinner Party at Glastonbury Festival 2024 by Dnieper Cruz, photos by Kalpesh Patel

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Interpol @ Somerset House Summer Series

Paul Banks of Interpol @ Summer Series at Somerset House (Dnieper Cruz)

Every year in July, Somerset House hosts its Summer Series, when it amasses huge and diverse talent from across the globe, over various evenings. Held in its Georgian era courtyard for an intimate experience with a 3,000 capacity, it’s the ideal location to host one of the most ground-breaking bands in recent times. Ice rink by winter and al-fresco concerts by summer, what more could you want?

Tonight’s support comes from The Lounge Society, hailing from West Yorkshire. They’ve been on an upward journey since releasing their debut album Tired Of Liberty last year, having previously opened for The Strokes (there seems to be a pattern emerging). No doubt there’s a part of these guys that wish they had been born 20 years earlier and 3,000 miles further west. With shaggy curly hair and neat sideburns, they bring contagious guitar riffs and words with political undertones, from their unique and personal northern perspective. They greet the now mostly filled square and show off their musical confidence. They prove that they can be an important part of the indie rock scene in the 20s, bringing it back to life once again.

The NYC indie veterans walk onto the stage waving to the crowd through the dense stage fog. Someone was having a field day with the smoke machine and seriously working it into the ground. As they open with Toni, the first single from the latest album The Other Side Of Make-Believe, the greyish haze is turned up to 11. Every band member is now almost completely hidden behind a thick layer of smoke and it’s a tricky one to shoot. Looking around, other photographers also seem puzzled.

They quickly move onto Obstacle 1 from their debut album released all the way back in 2002, Turn On The Bright Lights. Always a favourite to have as part of the setlist and the crowd immediately recognises the swift initial chords from Banks and Kessler.

Tonight, is not a show focused on their 2022 record, but instead mostly alternating between beloved tracks from Turn On The Bright Lights and Antics, with other popular tracks from Pioneer To The Falls.

The first big cheer of recognition from the crowd goes to Evil, upon hearing one of the most identifiable bass riffs in the indie world. In unison, the crowd chants alongside Banks “Rosemary, heaven restores you in life”, but it quickly dissipates into mumbling as we realise that no one actually properly knows the words of the first chorus. As in all the previous times I’ve seen them live, Fogarino will come in furiously on the drums playing it double speed. There’s a sudden change in tempo and the vocals struggle to keep up with the pace. I used to find the rushing quite irritating, but I’ve now started to play a game where I try and guess just how fast he’ll make Banks sing.

Bank’s is distracted by his earpiece and keeps fiddling with it. There’s a short pause after Pioneer To The Falls, and Banks is off stage for a few minutes after Rest My Chemistry. He returns, presumably with newly fit earpieces, and thanks the crowd for their patience. I don’t think anyone truly minded. Now more settled, the band are laser focused when delivering C’mere, No I In Threesome, and Roland. Wonderfully composed songs from across three different eras in the band’s discography and the crowd should be going wild for it, but everyone bar a handful of people, seem flat. I blame the Monday Blues.

It’s a relatively short set, and after Leif Erikson and PDA we’re nearing the end. The band momentarily give us a wave and steps off stage. They return first with Lights from their eponymous 2010 record and every time I’m left wishing they had played more from this incredibly underrated album. As Kessler delivers his signature rhythm on a vintage sunburnt Epiphone Casino, the crowd goes into a frenzy for Slow Hands. It signals a farewell from the band and feels bittersweet. With Fogarino’s not so slow hands, it all comes to an end too soon.

For a band that has been consistently active for two decades and then some, they’ve always remained true to their musical style. It’s one of the reasons why I always come back to Interpol after all this time. Moody and unpretentious, they deliver rock-solid performances and tonight is no exception. Bank’s live vocals has faltered once or twice in the past, but this is the best I’ve heard him. It’s all testament to the fact that whatever unpredictable shit the world may throw at us in the future, we can be confident that the NYC trio will remain a constant in our lives.

Live review and photography of Interpol @ Summer Series At Somerset House by Dnieper Cruz on 10th July 2023

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Raye @ Glastonbury Festival 2023

Raye @ Glastonbury Festival 2023

The 25-year-old London artist began her career in 2014 at the age of 17 with her EP Welcome To The Winter and has since collaborated with various artists, such as Stormzy, Mabel, and David Guetta. Her debut album My 21st Century Blues was released earlier this year, just in time for fans to fall in love with it before RAYE began her UK and European festival campaign.

Wearing a floor-length black dress, she perfectly contrasted herself against the backdrop of her band in all-white. They all looked very glamorous on the Pyramid Stage.

She opened her set with Oscar Winning Tears, the second track on her album about learning from bad relationships, emotional abuse, and becoming a stronger person. Within just a few minutes, she kicked off her high heels, setting her feet free.

With a trembling voice she introduced herself and expressed disbelief over people turning up to see her perform, before sharing personal advice not to date rappers. She continued her energetic set with The Thrill Is Gone and spoke openly about sexual violence and shared with the audience her own vulnerability, welcoming them into her personal life. With her sincere openness and honesty, she wasn’t afraid to ‘bring the mood down’ with Ice Cream Man and the crowd appreciated her for it. She closed her set with Escapism, the most popular song from her album by far, after a sing-along cover of You Don’t Know Me. RAYE’s set felt undeservedly short, but I have a feeling she’ll be back next time with a prime slot and an even bigger crowd.

For me, she’s the one of the very few artists since Amy Winehouse to truly stand out in a crowded world of pop music, with superb songwriting and emotive live performances. RAYE blends pop, jazz, R&B and blues to create perfect harmonies and feel-good songs, even when her lyrics seem so deep. At one point she told the crowd that “screaming down the microphone is one of her favorite things to do in the world”. Her debut Glastonbury performance proved that she’s incredibly good at it too.

Review by Dnieper Cruz and photos by Kalpesh Patel at Glastonbury Festival 2023.

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Popes of Chillitown @ The Underworld

Popes of Chillitown (Dnieper Cruz)

The 500-capacity venue is full to the brim tonight, and it’s going to be a scorcher down in the infamous live music dungeon. First on the bill to warm up the crowd are the Ku-Go Death Ray, a three-piece fronted by Riskee of grime punk outfit Riskee & The Ridicule. This guy’s emotion in every song is unreal and as he paces the stage you can feel the undulating bassey vibrations under your feet. Next up are Dakka Skanks with their up-beat blend of ska, reggae and punk, taking on the injustices of the world with their lyrics.

With five minutes to go before the main act, I notice that some of the Popes members are stretching their limbs backstage – a sign that things are about to get serious. I choose a tight spot at the front of the stage with a chunky DSLR in one hand and a beer in the other as I wait for the band to come on. It’s always calm before the storm and there are no barriers to shield me from the onslaught of elbows that are about to land on my ribs. The opening number is Crashmat from the new album and the crowd timidly savors the first 30 seconds before carnage ensues. A mosh pit quickly brews behind me and together with the band’s electric stage presence, it’s a real tough gig to shoot. These guys just don’t stay still and that’s exactly why they’ve gained a reputation for being really fucking good live.

With no first three songs limit nonsense I’m free to stay for as long as I please, but by the third song I’m ready to meander through sticky bodies and take some shots from the side of the stage.

Matt the frontman doesn’t speak much, and he doesn’t have to. He concentrates on spitting lyrics over some catchy riffs with the hallmarks of ska, punk, reggae and dub. Everyone here tonight just wants to be in a sweaty mosh pit.

The crowd erupts at the sound of the first few notes from the sax for Opoom. Mikey kneels and scrapes his guitar on the floor, Trosso stretches out with his sax and Matt takes to the air. They like to move about in pretty much every direction possible, making me hustle to get some decent shots.

Vamos A La Luna has the potential of a circle pit, which fails to materialise. Some good old-fashioned moshing will do just fine. Jack gives off ferocious energy on the drums for The Last Elephant, with Arvin as cool as a cucumber behind the bass.

Tonight, is an opportunity for fans to have a first listen to some new tracks from the upcoming album Take A Picture. They welcome the new songs with enthusiasm but reserve their full intensity for the ones that have been cemented in the band’s repertoire such as Prang and Wisdom Teeth.

These guys have proved tonight that they are masters of their craft. Knowing how to completely dominate the stage is a skill that the whole band possesses, covering every bit of the small stage they’re on. Give them the Pyramid stage and they’d still make sure no inch is left untouched.

Note to self: Next time bring a spare top.

Live review and photography of Popes Of Chillitown @ The Camden Underworld by Dnieper Cruz on 9th June 2023

Kurt Vile Brings The Cool Water To A Sizzling London

Katie Melua (Mariam Sitchinava)

Katie Melua (Mariam Sitchinava)

In early May, Katie Melua embarked on a 12-day UK tour to celebrate her 9th studio album Love & Money. The tour is nearing the end and tonight’s gig is in London at the Royal Albert Hall, a 152-year-old, Grade I listed concert hall which has previously been host to the biggest names in music. There’s an announcement over the tannoy that the performance is about to begin and we all shuffle to our seats. Within five minutes, the singer-songwriter follows her four-piece band on stage right on cue. I have a feeling that tonight’s concert is going to run like clockwork, there’s no messing about at a venue which is fit for a king (literally) and if I squint hard enough, of the ~5,000 seats in the auditorium I can spot four (maybe five at a push) empty seats. 

As Katie opens the evening with Joy, a gentle song from Album no. 8, I take a sip of my small glass of house red, because a venue with ‘Royal’ in the name comes with royal prices. She’s wearing a silky golden floor-length gown and white trainers, and most in the audience do look very chic. I’ve obviously missed the memo, in my shacket and holey Vivos, but I should have known better. The stage design is understated and minimalist, hiding in its shadows 9,999 pipes from the second largest organ in the UK – fun fact. 

The 38-year-old thanks the audience for an “incredibly special show” as it’s the only one of this tour that is being recorded and she lets them know that “when it comes to making some noise, don’t be polite”. For the first time I notice considerable echo off the walls and it’s a little distracting. 

This is a tour to celebrate her brand-new record Love & Money and next is the fourth track from it, Lie In The Heat.  She places hand on heart and smiles at the audience as she sings the words to the chorus. “It’s overwhelming to be here, I’m nervous and excited”, Katie announces before being handed an acoustic guitar for Nine Million Bicycles. The audience immediately recognises the first initial notes, and they respond with a resounding cheer and whistles. Written by Mike Batt, Nine Million Bicycles quicky became one of Katie’s best-known recordings, and it’s the one I remember fondly from her 2005 album Piece by Piece. By the end of the song, the lady sitting by my side is already be fed up with the whistling from the row behind. At the end of each song, she’ll now pre-empt it by using her hands as ear defenders.

Ben Howard @ Royal Albert Hall

Royal Albert Hall (Dnieper Cruz)

Katie introduces her brother and guitarist Zurab Melua before reminiscing about their early childhood living in Georgia, when it was still part of the old Soviet Union. Plane Song tells the story of a time immediately following the disillusion of the Soviet Union’s grip on Georgia. Zurab steps forward and shares the limelight with Katie for the song. A beautiful number about a dark past and she sings it flawlessly; her contralto vocal range delighting the audience. It’s my favourite song so far this evening. 

Each song has been carefully introduced by Katie, giving the audience access to her personal experiences when songwriting. She tells the audience that during her “mid-30s life crisis” she decided that her life needed a dramatic change, to build a family alongside making records. So as not one to compromise, her 6-month-old baby has also joined the tour. I love this, and so do the 5,000 other people in the Hall this evening. Golden Record is a song about witnessing your closest friends become distant as they “wake up before sunrise, looking after young lives”, whilst you continue a successful 20-year musical career. Katie makes gentle arms gestures and moves delicately across the stage.

Next is Perfect World and you can hear a pin drop. I’ve been to classical concerts where the audience was less well behaved than these lot. With Your Longing Is Gone the pace picks up and the drummer swaps his brushes for a pair of sticks – he’s been waiting for this moment. On a foggy stage she plays Darling Star from her latest record, before jumping onto Remind Me To Forget. Love And Money is the last song before the interval and one that was inspired by the “incredibly strong women in my family”. 

The first set seemed to end abruptly, and the 20-minute interval is just long enough to get a drink before returning to our seats. The second half begins with upbeat love-song A Love Like That, and a disco ball illuminates the Hall from the corner of the stage. During the first half of the show, I got used to Katie giving us a brief insight into most of the songs she has played so far tonight, but before we know it, she’s into Pick Me Up. A brief introduction of the band is followed by her brilliant rendition of Wonderful Life, plucking away at her acoustic guitar.

Katie Melua (Mariam Sitchinava)

Katie Melua (Mariam Sitchinava)

Katie plays tribute with 14 Windows to Dr Mike McPhillips, the psychiatrist who helped her with her own mental health crisis back in 2010 and who tragically took his own life last year. She can’t quite believe that 20 years has passed since her debut record Call Off The Search and I get the feeling that during those dark days in 2010 Katie wouldn’t have been so confident that she would be showcasing her ninth studio album today. We travel to 2003 with Tiger In The Night followed by the hit single from the same year The Closest Thing To Crazy – “the song that changed my life”. She performs solo, with her band stepping back into the shadows and the audience shows their biggest appreciation of the night.

At the end of Red Balloon she announces that it feels incredible to be on stage as a young mum. I bet! Quiet Moves, from her latest record, is the closest we got to getting the crowd up and moving. There are some serious nodding to the beat with this one and just like that we, “the gorgeous people of London”, are thanked and waved goodbye – a standing ovation slowly forms. A few (too many for my liking) concert-goers may have forgotten about encores and start to leave prematurely. Shocking!

Before the sound of applause dies down, we are greeted for the third time by Katie and her wonderful backing musicians for just two more songs. Call Off The Search gets those who have been fans for the entirety of her 20-year career excited again. The band leaves the stage before Katie and her guitar complete the evening with I Cried For You.

Katie Melua has laid bare her most personal thoughts tonight, an intimate show perfectly executed. Even in the presence of thousands of others it felt like she was confiding in you her deepest secrets. Shame Katie didn’t play Just Like Heaven (The Cure), though, I like that one.

Live review of Katie Melua @ Royal Albert Hall by Dnieper Cruz on 16th May 2023

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