History has proved that live albums can be hit and miss affairs. Even when it’s your favourite band, there’s no guarantee it’ll hit you in the feels like you expect. Some bands get it right; some get it wrong. Especially now, with an oversaturated market and low attention spans, music, like all media, has become a throwaway commodity, like it or not. Musicians must up their game to compete, survive and ultimately gain the attention of a potential new fanbase. We all know it shouldn’t be that way, but here we are in 2026.

That’s where Delila Paz & Edgey Pires (otherwise known as The Last Internationale) come in. Remember when getting hold of a new album was an event? When you would queue at the record shop on a Saturday to get something no one else, or very few others had. The excitement of peeling off the film and perusing the artwork while listening for the very first time…a ritual. Delila & Edgey do, and one of the pros of being an independent artist is having total control of your music. At the time of writing, ‘Live In Europe’ is not on streaming services, you can’t buy it on Amazon, and you can only purchase it directly from the artist. Yes, it’s more expensive, yes, it takes longer than 24 hours to get to you. But they will sign the cover, ship a beautiful looking record to your house and believe me, you will listen to, appreciate and spend more time with that album than you ever will on Spotify.

With just 7 tracks, ‘Live In Europe’ is not a sprawling, career-defining double live album, and it doesn’t outstay its welcome. The fat has been stripped back, and Delila, Edgey and the band are presented in the raw, as they are live, night after night, whether it be in clubs or on festival stages across Europe.

“Kick out the jams, motherfuckers!” is a statement of intent and a killer intro for any live album, and their version of the MC5 classic is done justice here as it sets the scene for one of the finest live acts currently treading the boards. ‘Life, Liberty & The Pursuit of Indian Blood’ is a live favourite with a chanting refrain designed to ignite a festival crowd; the added Hammond organ and guitar-wielding chaos make it an exciting live version. The 70’s rock swagger of ‘1984’ and recent single ‘Hero’ comes across great live too.

Side two takes it down a notch with the emotive ‘Soul On Fire’. A piano introduction and a stunning lead vocal that leads nicely into an extended and quite mesmerising intro to ‘Wanted Man’, where Delila shines as one of the strongest live voices around. A powerful statement of intent from a band with a political agenda as strong as its musical one. The rhythm section pumps the beat along to Delila’s faultless and emotive vocal until Edgey’s effect-ridden guitar takes centre stage. The crowd participation section may be lost on the listener, but I can assure you the singer is in the crowd with the whole room in the palm of her hand, as she makes a whole room sit on command.

It ends as it began with a punk rock fury. ‘1968’ is their very own anthem of defiance and revolution, a long-time set closer that is extended with crowd interaction, yelling the “freedom” refrain. It builds to a marvellous climax that will see the guitarist literally rip the string from his guitar night after night.

The Last Internationale are an independent band who live for the stage and fights to survive night after night, and ‘Live In Europe’ captures the power and emotion of a high-energy, entertaining live band and is a fine example of how to do a live album in 2026. Support independent music and spend your Xmas money on something worthwhile.

Buy Here

Bandcamp

Author: Ben Hughes