You’ll be hearing a lot from Wet Leg this year. One of the U.K.’s most hyped bands of recent years, the English duo finished second in BBC Radio 1’s Sound of 2022 poll.
We included them in our list of 22 artists to watch in 2022: “The duo are everywhere at the minute, oozing effortless cool in whatever they do,” we wrote. “Their songs are performed with a nod and a wink, infused with a lovely sense of absurdity. Indie rock at the fun end of the spectrum.”
Everything about Wet Leg – Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers – screams idiosyncratic and that’s continued with a completely unique cover of Madonna’s ‘Material Girl’.
The band stopped by SiriusXMU this week and dropped their utterly unrecognisable version of the 80s hit: the gloopy pop veneer is gone, replaced by a taut rock anthem. The guitars are scuzzy and threatening as Teasdale purposefully drawls her vocals, performing a sort of absurdist take on sprechgesang.
After hearing the cover, you genuinely feel that “They can beg and they can plead / But they can’t see the light (that’s right) / ‘Cause the boy with the cold hard cash / Is always Mister Right” was made to be delivered this way (see below).
It cannot be overstated: Wet Leg have released just two singles. Rarely has a band sprung up in such a quick manner, certainly not one that makes the Atlantic crossover so early and efficiently. Before their SiriusXMU appearance, they’d already attracted U.S. attention with their debut late night performance on Seth Meyers and their Tiny Desk Concert for NPR.
Everything is set, then, for their forthcoming self-titled debut album to be one of the most talked-about releases of the year. Wet Leg is scheduled to arrive on April 8th via Domino.
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‘Material Girl’ was included on the classic 1984 album Like a Virgin, and helped establish Madonna as an 80s pop icon. It’s since been covered by the likes of Britney Spears, Hilary and Haylie Duff, and Idina Menzel.
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Check out ‘Material Girl’ (Madonna cover) by Wet Leg:
