Wet Leg share their self-titled debut album
Wet Leg, the eponymous debut album by duo Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers, is a masterclass in those hazy, nostalgic moments of growing up.
★★★★★
Photo: Press
Wet Leg has firmly placed themselves as one of the hottest indie bands to date with their hotly anticipated new album, Wet Leg. I mean, any band that goes to school and gets the ‘Big D’ is bound to gain the level of attention that the duo have so solidly deserved.
The opening track Being in Love captures your attention from the first note with its festival anthem feels and synth vibes describing the beauty of those early days of falling in love. The track warms us nicely into Chaise Longue, which has been a hit ever since its release in June last year. It still dominates the radio waves with its jokey Mean Girls references: “Is your muffin buttered? / Would you like me to assign someone to butter your muffin?” alongside the heavy bass lines that run throughout the track, an instant crowd-pleaser.
Angelica and I Don’t Wanna Go Out show the band’s hazier approach to those washed-out guitar notes that would sound perfect dancing around in a field with your friends. Discussing topics such as adulthood and finding yourself in today’s society “And now I’m almost 28 / Still getting off my stupid face / A fucking nightmare / I know I should care.” Every track provides a very relatable story to navigating yourself through the trials and tribulations of early adulthood and feeling like you should belong in some way.
Wet Leg hasn’t shied away from experiences of loneliness, alcohol, drugs and sex, which is a testament to times we have all been exposed to at some point. In a sense, it’s like flicking through a journal that documents someone’s twenties and the rollercoaster ride that it brings.
Wet Dream holds no bars as the song really does live up to the title, need I say any more? This is what makes Wet Leg such an interesting band in the current landscape, as they approach what some may feel are taboo subjects and bring them to the forefront. Nothing is off-limits.
Slower tunes such as Convincing and Loving You capture the emotions of going through a breakup and the torment of ongoing communication once that chapter has closed. The more ethereal high note vocals of Rhian Teasdale with Hester Chambers on backing vocals makes Loving You sound even sweeter. The heavy bass is welcomed back in track Ur Mum which again makes for an instant banger all whilst instilling confidence in anyone who deserves more from a relationship: “You said that you tried your best / Why’s this such a fucking mess?”.
The tracks towards the end of the album continue in that upbeat trajectory, with Oh No offering striking guitars around simplistic lyrics with the subtle hints of doom scrolling: “I went home / All alone / I checked my phone / And now I’m inside it”.
Piece of Shit hints at misogyny with not feeling worthy enough with someone who isn’t showing full commitment, again made all the more sweeter with those dream-like vocals from Rhian.
The Isle of Wight duo finish off their debut with the last two tracks on the album: Supermarket, with its dreamy guitars paired with crushing drums against their playful lyrics documenting a stoned grocery shopping spree (“But now security keep asking us to leave / We got too high, high, high, high, high”) follows onto Wet Leg’s closing track Too Late Now that plays with the modern day themes of dating. I particularly love the tongue and cheek approach to dating apps with the lyrics, “I don’t need no dating app / To tell me if I look like crap / To tell me if I’m thin or fat.”
This debut really is a triumph in celebrating life in your twenties; the period that feels like an endless rollercoaster that you can’t get off, you just have to ride it out. Wet Leg have created something truly special, this debut is a taste of what else is to come from these two and if this is simply the beginning, I’m excited.
