WET LEG are back with that deadpan drawl, showcasing new tracks from upcoming album Moisturizer, including new single CPR on its release day at Edinburgh’s Usher Hall.
Tonight’s support is Katy J Pearson, who’s known Wet Leg’s singer/guitarist Rhian Teasdale since she was a teenager starting out on the Bristol music circuit, both Pearson and Teasdale singing each other’s praises during their respective sets. Pearson’s music uplifts the crowd, its syrupy Americana splashed with waves of synth, and her vocal for me at times reminiscent of Tanya Donelly. Tonight she dips back to 2020’s debut album, Return and 2022’s Sound Of The Morning before showcasing numbers from last year’s Someday, Now, including the joyful rush of Maybe and dark, discordant detours of Long Range Driver. With a couple of stints on ‘Later…with Jools Holland’ under her belt, let’s hope we’ll be hearing a lot more from Pearson in the near future. Great stuff!
Wet Leg kick off their set with Catch These Fists, first release from Moisturizer, Teasdale magnificently manifesting through a veil of dry ice as she flexes her biceps, her performance on par with the song – addictive, assertive and unapologetic, that wry humour never far from her lips. Teasing the crowd as she gyrates around the mic-stand and crouches down towards the pit, she’s got the whole audience eating out the palm of her hand, the Usher Hall one massive grin as she snarls the words “man down”. The band sear through the number with driving guitar riffs and burly basslines, offering hints of what’s to come on the album, the sound more gutsy, full-bodied and experimental this time round, the theme, dare I say, a bit more frothy, focusing on that cantankerous old fool, love.
Although Wet Leg’s 2022 self-titled, award-winning debut was co-written by Teasdale and guitarist Hester Chambers, they now present as a full band with guitarist Joshua Mobaraki, bassist Ellis Durand and drummer Henry Holmes, who all played a part in the making of Moisturizer. Chambers seems to hide from the limelight, in the past admitting to bouts of anxiety which finds her facing away from the audience for most of the show tonight. That said, from where I’m sitting it looks like she’s staring at drummer Holmes for most of the set which wouldn’t be such a big deal if it wasn’t for the fact that she’s dating guitarist Mobaraki, who’s strumming his wee heart out, quite oblivious to the possible deceit unfolding behind him…ah, that cantankerous old fool, love. But Teasdale’s on the case, every now and then stepping back to distract Chalmers from Holmes before taking centre stage once more.
Wet Dream (there, I typed it even though it’s enough to make an old girl blush) is a triumph live, arms aloft throughout the audience with claps in all the right places. New numbers airing tonight include the punchy, punk-charged angst of Pillow Talk and soothing lulls of Davina McCall, inspired by, you guessed it, Davina McCall, this song revealing a gentler side to their new music. Old favourites such as Angelica and Ur Mum stir up the crowd, the latter’s closing scream lasting longer than should be humanly possible and both scary and impressive…how Teasdale can pick herself up and carry on after that I’ll never know. Breathtaking!
As the set draws to a close, the droll musings of debut single Chaise Longue induce the biggest singalong of the evening, and although the moshing’s a little tame, the band make up for it, thrashing away like their lives depend on it. Last number is new single CPR, released today, its bruising baseline heartbeat pulsing under the emergency-red lighting and nonchalant intones of Teasdale’s spoken word before a blaze of guitars explode. Later in the number Teasdale reaches for an old-style (aka proper) telephone to make an emergency call, declaring that she’s in love, the blatant exhibitionist that she is. At that, Wet Leg decide to call it a day without any encore, perhaps in case an ambulance actually does turn up, which would be a wee bit embarrassing.
Wet Leg are great fun, putting on some top entertainment alongside their brazen, anthemic indie-rock. And hats off to Chambers, she felt the fear and did it anyway! Catch them if you can…they’re back in Scotland for TRNSMT in July and will no doubt be touring for the foreseeable future.
Moisturizer is out on July 11th on Domino Records.
Words: Shirley Mack @shirleymack.bsky.social
Pictures: Calum Mackintosh @ayecandyphotography