*Wet Leg.* Photo courtesy of Hollie Fernando

As with a vast majority of things in my life, I discovered Wet Leg, a UK post-punk duo, while scrolling through TikTok. It has indisputably been a long winter and a long couple of years, and I was searching for something that could provide a little excitement in my life – a pick me up, if you will.

After just one listen, I was immediately enamoured by the effortlessly-cool sardonicism of their debut single “Chaise Longue”. The track offers their witty perspective on graduating with a degree: “I went to school / and I got the big D”. Having graduated a couple of years ago, I realised I too had gone to school and got the big D. Ha. With the song on repeat, I got out of bed and danced all day long.

Amongst the idleness of the pandemic, the duo of Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers have seen an exponential rise to popularity. Having joined the roster at Domino Records in November 2020, the group released “Chaise Longue” in June 2021, and have soared to new heights amongst the Britpop scene ever since. Released on April 8, Wet Leg’s debut self-titled album is available to stream or purchase on CD, LP, or baby-pink cassette.

The 12-song record comes in with punchy post-punk sounds, and sonically fluctuating and repetitive vocals. It all starts with “Being in Love'', a song that compares the whirlwind feeling of loving someone to being punched in the gut, the inability to sleep at night, and self-medicating with another drink. Setting the tone for the album, this song immediately catches your attention.

The first few songs are upbeat, hard-hitting and extremely catchy. They cause you to sing along on your first listen, with the lyrics remaining rampant in your head for the rest of the day. There is a range from heavier post-punk songs to more mellow indie Britpop songs sprinkled throughout the album. I was reminded of the mid to late 2010s indie era (think Alvvays) with some of the instrumentation and melodies in songs such as “I Don’t Wanna Go Out” and “Loving You”.

The entire album keeps you engaged with catchy and repetitive choruses, alternating tempos, charmingly-cartoonish vocals and playful lyrics. The lyrics are riddled with raw British cynicism, sexual innuendos, pop culture references, and dry wit. Emanating across this record is the duo’s appetite for French disco and sheer curiosity throughout its production. There is an effortless energy about the songwriting, with a stylistically-silly element throughout the album. And yes, there is even a little bit of screaming. Excuse me, what?

I must admit that I am a big fan of a guttural feminine scream. It fills a gap in the post-punk and especially the Britpop scenes, while giving permission to female lyricists and their listeners to engage in a feeling that is often only excusable for cis men. Imagine my delight upon the revelation of the duo’s longest and loudest scream on “Ur Mum”, a release both chilling and relieving to hear. Perhaps such a release is one we all secretly need — we can all have a guttural scream, as a treat.

Across this album, I am reminded that there is something so raw about the way that female songwriters narrate their experiences. There’s a poignant honesty to it, with the beautifully-heartbreaking way of storytelling that lyricists like Phoebe Bridgers, Mitski and Snail Mail weave into their music. It makes your heart ache and swell when you listen to their songs, making you feel heard for the seemingly-specific life experiences and thoughts that you’ve had. On Wet Leg, the duo works this magic with a very sarcastic, dry and honest feminine voice: “I just need a bubble bath / to take me on a higher path”.

The album finishes with “Too Late Now”, a song that has a slow build and switches tempo completely halfway through. Listening to this song felt somewhat similar to a panic attack, and I mean that in the best way possible. It features a slow beginning that abruptly shifts into frantic speaking—not dissimilar to overthinking—before a loud chaotic finish complete with distorted feedback. This track marks the perfect finish to the album, and knowing that Wet Leg began releasing music in a time without live shows, it certainly gives us a taste of how this band will perform. The album feels complete.

Wet Leg has given us a coming-of-age—or, rather, coming into adulthood—album that is deeply engaging to someone in their twenties. The album represents that feeling of being unsure of yourself and navigating the world without the slightest idea of what’s going on. That being said, with this album having been produced during the pandemic, it feels simultaneously personal in a remarkably collective sense — exposing Teasdale and Chambers’ truths, which are not unlike our own, as we all attempt to ease slowly out of this past chapter of history.

Altogether, Wet Leg provides a sense of rebirth, a liberatory thawing alongside the melting snow. It captures the energy of waking up after a raging sickness and the chaos that ensues. It’s frantic with fluctuating energy, layered with silliness, and cathartic in its completion. This album will certainly be at the top of my playlists in the months to come; I highly recommend sitting in the sun, listening to this album and defrosting. It’s chaise longue season, baby.

Wet Leg

Released April 8th, 2022 via Domino Recording Company

1. Being In Love

2. Chaise Longue

3. Angelica

4. I Don't Wanna Go Out

5. Wet Dream

6. Convincing

7. Loving You

8. Ur Mum

9. Oh No

10. Piece Of Shit

11. Supermarket

12. Too Late Now

Vocals, guitar, and writing by Rhian Teasdale

Guitar, vocals, and writing by Hester Chambers

Bass and writing by Michael Champion

Drums and additional vocals by Henry Holmes

Synths and programming by Dan Carey

Synths and programming by Jon McMullen

Production by Dan Carey

Production and engineering by Jon McMullen

Production, engineering, and writing by Joshua Omead Mobaraki

Engineering by Alexis Smith

Mixing by Alan Moulder

Mastering by Matt Coulton

Photography by Julian Hanson

Graphic design by Matthew Cooper

Wet Leg

Instagram | Bandcamp | Spotify

Maia Allan-Riley is based out of Ottawa and works in social media. Dabbling in various creative endeavours, she spends her spare time doing photography and videography, journaling, drawing, and making jewellery.

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