WETLEG // BECKETT UNIVERSITY, LEEDS
Short and snappy Wet Leg show at Leeds Beckett Uni delivered quality but not quantity
★★★☆☆ (3/5)
WETLEG - BECKETT UNIVERSITY, LEEDS
PHOTOCREDIT: JOHN HAYHURST
The biggest song of 2021 was ‘Chaise Longue’ a debut single from Isle of Wight duo Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers, better known as Wet Leg. It was that song that made most people want to check them out more, and shortly followed by a string of other similar fun indie singles that came from their debut album released only this year. They were the band everyone wanted to see at The Park Stage at Glastonbury in 2022, and now they have been nominated for four grammys in the US Music Awards. It has taken just a few months for them to effectively conquer both sides of the Atlantic, and yet tonight they are playing a University venue with a capacity of 1100, they could have sold out the 13,700 capacity Arena down the road with the amount of people wanting tickets for this tour. People I spoke to happily paid over £80 on the tout market for tickets that originally would have cost you £15.
The lights are very low and their opening backing music is from Lord of the Rings film score (Concerning Hobbits), Rhian appears wearing some kind of cat/bat headgear and they nervously stand next to each other before they kick off with ‘Being in Love’. The nerves seem to disappear but they keep occasionally looking sheepishly across to each other for support.‘Wet Dream’ takes over and that's where the crowd are in their element, singing everything - chorus/verse, the little skits that occupy the far reaches of lyrics. Its a sign that there is some complete devotion to this band, who are really nothing more than a couple of mates, who have made up some quirky songs whilst strumming some indie guitars, and yet this simple concoction has been tearing up the charts and causing major pedestrian blockages at Glastonbury.
There is much more depth to be explored here and we get a short taste of it with an unreleased song ‘Obvious’ where Rhian Teasdale suddenly stretches her vocals from the talky approach to some very tender singing. Their secret weapon could be the almost operatic voice that Rhian possesses, frequently seen if you have ever caught Plastic Mermaids ‘Saturn’ intro live. Whether she gets the full chance to use it, and whether it fits in their current rich vein of unconventional indie styled success is another question. They follow up that ‘dabbling with something different’ with ‘UR Mum’ and the crowd dancing and singing back can continue as before. The singles were strategically spaced in the short set list and the expected ‘Chaise Longue’ is reserved for the end but done at 100mph as if they both need to get away quickly.
This was a short set for a band that should have enough songs to last an hour and a half, instead they stuck with playing most tracks off the album and as they are relatively short, the whole set was barely an hour. No encore, they play George Michael’s ‘Careless Whisper’ over the speakers as we leave the room.
Presumably they are going to tour this all again in much larger venues in 2023 as well as playing support to Harry Styles at Football Stadiums. Time will tell whether this is all a fad and a one album/hit wonder or whether there is more to hear from Wet Leg, and I think that will depend on how much Rhian Teasdale will be allowed to explore her more experimental side.
REVIEW + PHOTOS BY:
JOHN HAYHURST
SETLIST:
BECKETT UNI, LEEDS
BEING IN LOVE
WET DREAM
SUPERMARKET
CONVINCING
I DON’T WANNA GO OUT
I WANT TO BE ABDUCTED (BY A UFO)
OH NO
OBVIOUS
UR MUM
TOO LATE NOW
ANGELICA
CHAISE LONGUE