LIVE REVIEWS
To say The Last Dinner Party’s live reputation precedes them would be a sinful understatement. Tales of the Brixton-formed quintet’s onstage theatrics have become so renowned among London gig-goers over the past couple years that they’ve sold out their “intimate” show at Camden’s Roundhouse tonight – on the eve of their debut album’s release – with so few singles you can count them on one hand.
For a band who built their name on the live circuit and opening for the likes of The Rolling Stones – so successfully that they’ve spent their breakthrough year batting away “industry plant” allegations – the air of pre-show anticipation is one of excitement and intrigue. When the group floats out from the shadowy wings, mediaeval gowns and stompy boots cast silhouettes against a white chiffon backdrop, their staging immediately resembling a renaissance-era painting. The reverence to the ceremony is stark, as the crowd remarkably refrains from documenting the tender opening moments of ‘Beautiful Boy’ through their phones.
But the band’s stillness doesn’t last long. They slip into recent single ‘Caesar On A TV Screen’ and frontwoman Abigail Morris is strutting, crawling and flinging herself into every drumbeat and wild keychange. Already the band have asserted that their baroque-pop lore isn’t just for show, as each corner of the stage holds a fervent display of musical excellence.
“I literally can’t tell you how fucking excited we are to be here,” says Morris, whose bashful stage personality is charmingly at odds with her thespian showmanship. Early previews of the new album follow, from the spiky diction of ‘The Feminine Urge’ to the ceremonial Albanian-language call ‘Gjuha’. But it’s ‘Portrait Of A Dead Girl’ that storms the ‘Prelude to Ecstasy’ portion of the set, as Morris’ voice veers from booming to hysterical, her squeals rising up to the dome’s iron rafters.
With much of the crowd being unfamiliar with the new material – which has only existed on stages and in YouTube footage thus far – energy levels rise and fall somewhat awkwardly throughout the neat one-hour set. But it means that raucous singles like ‘Sinner’ set the room alight. And their return for the encore – for which they bring out a mini orchestra – only heightens the anticipation for a grand finale. “And you can hold me, like he held her,” Morris proclaims, “And I will fuck you like nothing matters.” Fans throw roses onto the stage as Morris giggles and twirls amongst the nihilistic fervour of their runaway debut single ‘Nothing Matters’.
Pockets of friends turn away from the stage and face inwards as if preaching to one another. Tonight feels like a glimpse into the next era of The Last Dinner Party, for which they’ll be hitting stages with a whole album out in the world. Give it one more week, and crowds will be reciting every word right back at them.
‘Beautiful Boy’
‘Caesar On A TV Screen’
‘The Feminine Urge’
‘Burn Alive’
‘On Your Side’
‘Gjuha’
‘Sinner’
‘Portrait Of A Dead Girl’
‘My Lady Of Mercy’
‘Mirror’
‘Prelude To Ecstasy’
‘Godzilla’
‘Nothing Matters’
LIVE REVIEWS
It’s unusual for Sault, the elusive group headed by Little Simz’s past collaborator InFlo, to take the stage. So when All Points East revealed that they would be leading the opening day of this year’s festival (August 15), the excitement spread immediately. Even though they hinted at a global tour in 2023, their only live appearances to date were at London’s Drumsheds, where they delivered a sold-out extravaganza. This night, then, promised an experience no one wanted to miss.
The line-up throughout the day was stacked with strong names like Kirk Franklin, Sasha Keable, Nao, Ms Dynamite, and others. Sadly, every one of these sets was squeezed into a messy three-hour stretch, creating painful overlaps all across the park. After 6 pm, only Main Stage East stayed active, leaving festival-goers with a single option: to watch the headline run of Sault, Cleo Sol, and Chronixx. The latter two, both tied to the mysterious group, each had their slots as well as time performing with the collective.
Nothing quite sets us up for Sault’s epic five-hour showing, which proves both overwhelming and tangled. Dancers and a choir appeared cloaked in burnt ochre robes, resembling travelers from a fictional desert world, surrounded by sand, dunes, and golden-lined rocks. The production had serious funding – a full orchestra with piano, strings, harp, and guitars filled the soundscape, and in the middle of the crowd sat a dusty pyramid that most people ignored. Whispers carried through the audience about the spectacle’s grandeur, with one nearby voice remarking, “Doesn’t InFlo still owe Little Simz £1million?”
The pyramid stage design during Sault’s All Points East 2025 set. Photo credit: Jennifer McCord
Whatever meaning this grand production was meant to communicate was hard to grasp. The leading figures, who looked like InFlo and Sol, seemed to be chasing something, yet it was never clear exactly what. Perhaps it was freedom, since the lead vocalist echoed the refrain of ‘Free’, with additional nods to self-discovery and healing, but the storyline stayed muddy and difficult to follow.
Energy picked up once Sol and Chronixx emerged early in the performance, both in beige suits and reflective shades, slipping into the first act. Alongside the cloaked ensemble, they played through a range of Sault songs that stretched across all twelve albums. Fans were treated to hidden treasures like the mesmerizing ‘S.O.T.H.’ and emotional ‘Pray For Me’, alongside more recognizable tracks such as ‘I Just Want to Dance’ and ‘Why Why Why Why Why’. For many in the crowd, though, the event played more like a quirky encounter than the immersive artistic showcase Sault seemed to be aiming for.
It took nearly two hours for the night to loosen up, and that turning point came courtesy of Chronixx. His uplifting reggae and radiant spirit shifted the whole space, people skanked along to ‘Smile’ and swayed to ‘Likes’, and suddenly the atmosphere felt celebratory again. Once he exited, Yasiin Bey (fka Mos Def) appeared out of nowhere in a strange yet brilliant surprise. Over chirping bird sounds and glitchy electronic noise, he reshaped ‘Umi Says’, spinning across the stage in a checkered drape, embodying the song’s spirit of liberation with almost comic exaggeration.
Chronixx performing at All Points East on Friday, August 15. Photo credit: The pyramid stage design during Sault’s All Points East 2025 set. Photo credit: Jennifer McCord
After four relentless hours of spectacle, Cleo Sol finally claimed the spotlight for her whole performance. The shift was instant, her gentle voice floated across Victoria Park, drawing hips to sway and couples to curl into each other, the entire air easing at once. She shone in glittering silver cocktail wear, moving gracefully with the poise of someone fully aware of how badly we needed this release. ‘Rose In The Dark’ carried an almost ironic weight as she sang “Hold on a little longer / It’ll be alright”, mirroring exactly what the crowd had been doing throughout the marathon. Closing with ‘Know That You Are Loved’, she stood atop the glowing pyramid while voices from the crowd echoed every lyric back to her, delivering the emotional peak of the evening.
She tried to squeeze in ‘Why Don’t You’ as an encore, but curfew struck, the lights snapped on, and the moment ended abruptly. The intention was clear, to unveil the breadth of Sault’s world through an unconventional showcase, yet the finale, like the beginning, left more questions than answers. For a group as rare on stage as Sault, a little less mystery and a little more music might have made their All Points East appearance truly measure up to the highs of Drumsheds.
Sault played:
‘Glory’
‘Free’
‘Let Me Go’
‘Over’
‘I Just Wanna Dance’
‘Warrior’
‘Faith’
‘Up All Night’
‘Son Shine’
‘Masterpiece’
‘Why Why Why Why Why’
‘Stop Dem’
‘Black Is’
‘Pray For Me’
‘S.O.T.H.’
‘T.H.’
‘W.A.I.’
‘Wildfires’
‘This Generation’
Chronixx played:
‘Big Bad Sound’
‘Here Comes Trouble’
‘Exile’
‘Survivor’
‘Market’
‘Captureland’
‘They Don’t Know’
‘Don’t Be Afraid’
‘Family First’
‘Spanish Town Rockin”
‘Skankin Sweet’
‘Majesty’
‘Sweet Argument’
‘Way You Make Me Feel’
‘Resilient’
‘Eternal Light’
‘Tenement Yard’
‘Saviour’
‘Love Is On A Mountain’
‘Smile Jamaica’
Cleo Sol played:
‘Love Yourself’
‘Rose In The Dark’
‘When I’m In Your Arms’
‘There Will Be No Crying’
‘Things Will Get Better’
‘Reason’
‘Don’t Let Me Fall + Outro’
‘Promises’
‘Sunshine’
‘Don’t Let It Go To Your Head’
‘Blue’ (Unreleased)
‘Know That You Are Loved’
‘Why Don’t You’
