CD of The Week

The Last Dinner Party became the rare British group to live up to their intense press hype with their debut, Prelude to Ecstasy. Less than two years later, the London quintet is back with From the Pyre, a moody and literate album that dodges the sophomore slump and impressively establishes a singular identity for the band.

Previously, the Last Dinner Party could be described as sounding like a series of influences (Florence + The Machine and Kate Bush come to mind), but From the Pyre places the band in aunique lane. They simply never hold back, either emotionally or musically. Singer Abigail Morris convincingly belts “here comes the apocalypse, I can’t get enough of it” on the epic opener “Agnus Dei,” which sets a template for the intense imagery found throughout the album. Subject matter includes murder (“This is the Killer Speaking”), war (“Rifle”), and amputation (“I Hold Your Anger”), but the tone is more theatrical than disturbing. The arrangements are similarly arresting with a sweeping grandeur that matches the impressive range and power of Morris’s vocals. Everything comes together wonderfully on album highlight, “The Scythe,” a devastating song about grief that builds in volume with increasingly propulsive instrumentation before climaxing in layers of background harmonies and a great guitar solo from Emily Roberts.

With the consolidation of a bombastic, semi-prog sound (but with a bookish, vulnerable perspective), none of the hooks on the record are as immediate as those on “Nothing Matters” or “Sinner.” However, this is by choice, as the songwriting is more ambitious and appealingly strange than before. The only significant flaw is the production, which errs on the side of being too smooth. James Ford was the perfect fit for the band’s blend of the melodramatic and gothic on their debut, but Markus Dravs (Coldplay, Mumford & Sons) adds extra polish that dulls the raw impact of the vocals and lyrics on songs like “Count the Ways.”

Ultimately, From the Pyre is another triumph for one of the best bands to emerge from the UK in recent years. On their second release, The Last Dinner Party have solidified their sound while taking risks and creating compelling, rich melodies that far surpass their peers.

The Last Dinner Party will be returning to Philadelphia for their largest headlining show yet, at Franklin Music Hall, on Wednesday, April 15th, 2026.

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