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When Wet Leg dropped Chaise Longue as their debut single in 2021, it was perhaps the most thrilling birth of a post-punk band we’ve seen in recent years. The fanfare around their first album was immense, with listeners divided between hailing the Isle of Wight duo as the Next Big Thing or hurling age-old, and nonsensical, accusations that they were industry plants. Three years of near silence followed before they announced their second album, moisturizer. Needless to say, the pressure is on.
On moisturizer, Wet Leg have partially moved on from the cool, aloof air of Wet Dream and Chaise Longue in favour of something more vulnerable and romantic. They’re not the only ones of their cohort; fellow members of the post-punk elite Fontaines D.C., IDLES, and The Murder Capital have been steadily moving towards more personal lyricism.
On moisturizer, Wet Leg stand out by depicting love as a multifaceted, often terrifying creature. Groovy opener CPR sees vocalist Rhian Teasdale resist the romantic forces at play, for fear of losing herself in a relationship. Falling in love is a tragedy, it seems, as she asks us: ‘Is it love or suicide?’
But there are plenty of sincere, romantic moments on the album, too. The curiously-titled davina mccall is perhaps the finest love song of the year. Towards the end of the album, 11:21 has a wildly different, softer, and more kaleidoscopic tone, swapping their usual tongue-in-cheek Sprechgesang for ethereal vocals.
Of course, if you’re craving the effortless cool of their viral singles, you need not fear. Catch these fists threatens creeps with physical violence against the searing backdrop of off-kilter guitars and a thundering chorus. Later on, Pillow Talk is a typically sexy, blistering number from the band.
With its semi-ironic references to Jennifer’s Body, Pokemon, Shakira, and Davina McCall, moisturizer is a constant reminder of Wet Leg’s sharp wit and clever knack for appealing to a modern audience driven by Y2K nostalgia. The fanfare may be quieter this time around, but Wet Leg have certainly not lost their spark.
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