From Chaise Longue to Loud and Strong: Wet Leg’s Velvet Evolution at O2 Victoria Warehouse
- Desh Kapur
- May 30
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 1
Victoria Warehouse Manchester 29th May 2025
IMAGES / WORDS DESH KAPUR
Wet Leg Conquer with Swagger, Shyness, and Shimmering New Sounds
Wet Leg ( Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers ) delivered a brilliant performance at Manchester’s Victoria Warehouse, showcasing their continued evolution from viral newcomers to bona fide indie-rock icons. With a setlist that leaned equally on their Mercury Prize-winning self-titled debut album while teasing the weightier textures of their upcoming second record Moisturizer, the band struck a perfect balance between the familiar and the freshly ferocious.
From the opening chords of new track“Catch These Fists” with its indie-sleazyness to the raucous closer “CPR” the crowd sang back every lyric with unfiltered joy. The newer songs, like the grunge-laced “Catch These Fists” and the hypnotic “CPR,” were greeted with cheers, suggesting that fans have not only stayed with Wet Leg — they've grown with them. The crowd itself was impressively diverse in age, with teens, twenty-somethings, and longtime indie lovers standing shoulder to shoulder, all swept up in the same giddy energy.
Sonically, Wet Leg have deepened their palette. The quirky post-punk bounce remains intact — particularly on live staples like “Ur Mum” and the irrepressible “Chaise Longue” — but there’s a noticeable shift in tone in the new material, maybe because it has been written as a band co-wrote with drummer Henry Holmes, guitarist Joshua Mobaraki and bassist Ellis Durand rather than just the two front women. The guitars are louder, the rhythms more propulsive, but still laced with Hester’s angular licks and riffs and there’s a shoegazey haze in places that adds bite without dulling their sardonic wit. It’s a sound that feels both more grounded and more expansive, as if the band is stretching into themselves.
Front woman Rhian Teasdale’s visual transformation also marked a turning point. Gone is the kooky, retro-coastal aesthetic; on this tour, she cuts a more fashion-forward figure, tight daisy dukes/hot pants, cropped top and looking like she has been down the gym and not afraid to show it, flexing her muscles at will. Yet despite the confident exterior, her stage presence remains disarmingly modest. Interaction with the crowd was minimal — a few soft-spoken “thank yous” and smiles between songs — but it only added to her charm. There’s a palpable sense that she’s still coming to terms with the whirlwind of Wet Leg’s rise, still slightly stunned by rooms packed with people who love every word she sings.
The warmth in the venue was undeniable. Strangers danced together, arms wrapped around each other during the slower moments, and choruses were shouted like old anthems. It felt less like a gig and more like a gathering of the converted — a community forged through shared weirdness and guitar fuzz.
With a second album looming and a sound that’s growing bolder without losing its soul, Wet Leg are proving they’re no novelty. They’re here to stay — awkward, honest, and utterly electric.
SET LIST
1/ catch these fists
2/ pillow talk
3/ Wet Dream
4/ Supermarket
5/ I Don't Wanna Go Out
6/ liquidize
7/ jennifer's body
8/ Being in Love
9/ Oh No
10/ Piece of Shit
11/ davina mccall
12/ mangetout
13/ Ur Mum
14/ Too Late Now
15/ Angelica
16/ Chaise Longue
17/ CPR
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