Hurray For The Riff Raff – ‘Live Forever’ album review: As close as you’ll get to being in that room
Exactly two years on from the release of their spellbinding eighth studio album, The Past is Still Alive, Hurray For The Riff Raff, the Americana-centred project of songwriter Alynda Segarra, has chosen to cap off the album’s cycle with Live Forever, a live album showcasing a performance from the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago.
The Skinny: It’s sometimes hard to be able to justify a live album as something beyond it simply being a snapshot of a project at a given point in time, and quite often, records of this nature feel as though they’re lacking in the key element of what makes a live performance so compelling – the fact that you can see it. While Live Forever doesn’t have footage of the performance tagged onto the audio release, there’s still a palpable energy to their renditions of the ten songs from The Past is Still Alive, along with a smattering of tracks from their back catalogue.
While the live arrangements also don’t add much to the original studio recordings, it’s evident from listening to these new versions that Segarra deliberately writes their songs with the intention of them being belted out in front of an audience, knowing that this is where their impact will arguably be felt best. On top of this, there’s arguably nothing more special than being able to do this in front of a crowd in the city you live in, with Segarra having adopted Chicago as their home shortly after the release of the album in 2024.
The Past is Still Alive was already an incredibly emotionally-charged album, but the impassioned performances here give you a fair idea of how much catharsis Segarra experiences from delivering the tracks, with ‘Vetiver’ and ‘Snake Plant’ being two songs that especially come to life in this context. However, equally as poignant are the additions of the anti-ICE anthem of ‘Precious Cargo’ and much earlier career standouts like ‘Pa’lante’, which demonstrate how Segarra’s talent for evocative storytelling has always been present in their work.
They have this undeniable Springsteen-esque ability to paint a picture of America, no matter how gruesome it can be in places, and this is also delivered in the same manner as some of his most euphoric and hard-hitting material. Given how ‘The Boss’ has become something of a national treasure in the States for his rapturous live shows that provide attendees with a sense of community, you can just picture Segarra adopting this same role in their own show, much like a minister delivering a sermon to their devoted denomination of fans.
Backed by a stunning cast of musicians from their adoptive hometown of Chicago such as Nnamdi Ogbonnaya on bass and Sen Morimoto on sax and keys, their backing band rarely ever lose the energy required to deliver this special set, and to have had it all captured for future listening is a blessing for anyone who wants to either relive or imagine being present for this momentous occasion.
Standout track: ‘Snake Plant’
The Verdict: Yes, it’s hard to always connect to a live album when you simply can’t beat the experience of being there, and while the versions of the songs heard on Live Forever don’t differ greatly from their studio recordings, Segarra and their band do a remarkable job of inviting you into the room as much as possible, helping it function as an enjoyable listening experience when removed from its context.
Release Date: March 20th, 2026 | Producer: Johnny Wilson | Label: Nonesuch
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