Wet Leg - "moisturizer" (2025)

Wet Leg felt like a a breath of fresh air in late 2021 when they broke onto the scene with the silly and irreverent Chaise Long. UK indie rock was very much in one of its worshipping the post-punk classics phases and as great as some of those bands are, the scene as a whole was seriously lacking a sense of fun. Chaise Long and by extension the band's debut record had it in droves, which is why I was really quite surprised by the lead single for their follow-up. Titled catch these fists, it is everything that the first album stood out from: bog standard angular post-punk guitar lines, a repetitive chorus and standoff-ish, riot girl-lite lyrics about annoying men in nightclubs. It felt very run of the mill and unoriginal, and doesn't play into the bands appeal in the slightest. The second single, CPR, is an improvement on catch these fists. The lyrics about crushing on someone so hard that you need CPR is much more fun than 'men suck' and Rhian Teasdale puts on some fun vocal inflections throughout the track. However it still sticks with the more aggressive post-punk instrumentation which I just don't think fits the band's writing style and overall vibe.

Luckily, when diving into the album as a whole, some of the deeper cuts do retain the sense of silliness and whimsy that made the debut so great. The third single, davina mccall, is a dreamy lovesong with some goofy pop-culture references (the title and opening line is a reference to Davina McCall's catchphrase on Big Brother from 20 years ago now). jennifer's body is obviously a reference to the film and has a driving rhythm section that propulses the song forward. pokemon, similarly, is a slinky and groovy synth driven cut that has some really cute lovestruck lyrics about escape and running away with your love. The best of the bunch is by far mangetout, and is the only track that captures the pure catchiness and simplicity of the debut. The snarky hook of "get lost forever" and jokes about magic beans feels like a much more 'Wet Leg' approach to annoying advances from men than the kind of sour and bitter vibe of catch these fists.

There are also two songs on the back end that I find quite interesting, don't speak and the closer, u and me at home. They go for that woozey, shoegaze-y guitar tone that's reminiscent of my bloody valentine. Combining that with poppy hooks and vocals that are actually intelligible, it feels like an alternate universe where mbv were actually interested in making indie pop songs. I wouldn't say they're the best of the bunch on the record as they are definitely carried by their vibe rather than the tunes at the core of them - but they're certainly an interesting diversion.

Unfortunately the record really struggles with consistency. pillow talk is another heavy track for the band, and while it is more interesting than the singles; at less than 3 minutes it feels like a non-committal half step into hard rock that ends before it can progress into anything more than just heavy riffs and aggressive vocals. pond song and 11:21 are unremarkable, meandering, slower paced tracks that go nowhere and don't have memorable hooks.

I feel like moisturizer fits the cliche of 'difficult second album' pretty well. You can tell the band are trying to shake off the accusations of industry plants and being a gimmick band by deliberately avoiding making the same album again and trying on new sonic (and visual) pallets. However, I can't help but feel like a lot of the personality that made them unique has been lost in the transition. There's some good songs on here but it doesn't come together to form much of a whole.

Top Tracks: davina mccall, jenifer's body, mangetout, pokemon

6/10

Paramore - "This Is Why" (2023)

Paramore's previous record, 2017's After Laughter, was my entry point to the band, as they pivoted into catchy synth pop and new wave from their staple pop punk sound (and a genre that really does nothing for me). It's a really tight and superbly written album that I have slowly fallen in love with other the years due to the comforting themes of moving on and letting go when life gets tough, all packed into some of the catchiest pop songs of the 2010s. I was super excited to see where the band would go with the follow-up after Hayley Williams brought groovier art rock elements to the new wave sounds in her subsequent solo records. What results is This Is Why, which delves deep into post-punk revival and dance punk, indebted to the likes of Talking Heads and Bloc Party, with a smidge of the artier Radiohead-esque stuff on Haley's solo output, a handful of heavier 00s alt rock elements and a teeny bit of their emo leaning roots to boot.

Much like Wet Leg's debut from last year, it doesn't reinvent the genre's wheels, but it's an absolute blast while it's on and is not afraid to have fun in a genre which quite regularly gets its head stuck up its own arse. All is evident from the opening title track. The song is reminiscent of Talking Head's Burning Down The House with its shouty, stomping chorus set against quieter, groovier verses. It wears its influences on its sleeve and is an absolute earworm. The antisocial, paranoid lyrics about minding your own business in a world of shitty chronically online takes means it slides so easily into an indie disco playlist next to the self aware cultural commentary of the likes of All My Friends and Time To Pretend.

The much heavier, grittier The News follows. The sinister, angular guitars and Hayley's manic vocals expressing the personal derangement of down the global news rabbit hole evoke the heavier, darker side of the genre. The track is a full on rager with a killer chorus and bridge, something that is a common theme throughout the record. C'est Comme Ça is one of the weaker cuts here, being a pretty by the numbers and repetitive 2000's style dance punk song, but is absolutely saved by it's powerful and high tension bridge section. Sandwiched in between these two is the absolute gem Running Out Of Time. The track is a super catchy Bloc Party-esque dance punk song absolutely crammed full of hooks. The groove of the track makes you want to get up and move as Hayley goes on these ear-wormy vocal runs. "She's always running out of tiiimee" she sings as she despairs at her constant guilt for not being a perfect person who got everything under control and on time. The track has a tongue in cheek self-awareness to it that like the title track brings a smile to my face every time.

Big Man, Little Dignity is the first time the record slows it down, and is a track I feel quite conflicted on. Instrumentally, it evokes slower post-punk ballads with its gentle strumming guitars and lowkey rhythm section, and Hayley's vocal performance is great. However, what holds the track back for me is the lyrics. The song is a fairly weak willed take down of men in positions of power who take advantage of others. It just comes off so limp for a writer who is normally not afraid to go straight for the jugular, which is something Hayley proves right away on the next track - You First. You First is a complete indulgence into petty revenge. Hayley outright states on the bridge "I never said I wasn't petty". The cathartic lyrics feel so great to belt along to, and you can just feel the anger seething off Haley's voice. The line "Who invited you?" in particular is just so cutting. The heavy, angular rhythm guitars and chiming post-chorus lead guitar elevate the song to a really massive sounding tune. The band then goes and one-ups the intensity on Figure 8, where the aggressiveness and intensity of the instrumental is more alt-rock than post-punk, and Hayley's absolutely soaring vocals reminiscent of the band's more emo roots. The song plays on the idea of going round in circles (or figure eights), and how Hayley never seems to escape her bad habits and vices.

These two songs work as the intense, powerful belters at the centre of the album, with the back end slowing down and becoming more moody and subtle. Liar is a slow arty ballad reminiscent of some of the quieter moments from Hayley's solo records. It's patient and mature, but it doesn't quite have that draw for me that most the track's on the record do. Following this is Crave, which has a very retro post-punk feel to it with its rumbling bassline and chiming lead guitars. Just like the rest of the record, the chorus of the song hits hard and sticks in your head. Closing out the record is the bluesy Thick Skull, which encapsulates the themes of the record really well. The track details how Hayley seems to always attract people who are no good for her and how she becomes invested in the fruitless task of trying to 'fix' them, leaving her worse off for it, blaming her 'thick skull' for these repeated cycles in her life. The track has an off-kilter swagger to it, and linearly builds up the instrumentation to raucous climax.

This Is Why is a really great time, and injecting some fun into a genre that I feel is currently in one of its 'white guys trying a little too hard to sound like The Fall' slumps. It's well written and meaningful without being pretentious or morose. While I'll say the slight bumps in quality mean its not quite on After Laughter's level (and that After Laughter as a whole feels a bit more in depth and tighter in its core themes), its still a damn good time that I'll definitely be playing all year.

Top tracks: This Is Why, The News, Running Out Of Time, You First, Figure 8, Crave, Thick Skull

8/10

Wet Leg - "Wet Leg" (2022)

With the return of all things 2000s over the past couple of years, including pop punk and nu-disco dance pop, it's no surprise that Wet Leg have been hyped up as the harbingers of the return of 2000's indie rock. Breaking through with the internet hit Chaise Longue last year, a cheeky and irreverent post-punk tune with a sense of fun that the genre has seriously been lacking for the past half a decade. (As great as bands like IDLES and Fontaines D.C are, they're hardly what you'd call fun). This attitude has been carried out through the rest of the singles the band dropped and now their debut record as well.

The record also smartly avoids the trappings that sank the genre back in the late noughties, being a collection of tightly written songs that don't outstay their welcome - as opposed to the repetitive 'laddish' anthems desperate for teenage guys with dark fruits to overplay at festival campsites. The songs are produced much more in the less-is-more approach of the trailblazers of the genre like The Strokes, rather than the overly compressed, everything and the kitchen sink mess that so much 2000s rock became. Rhian Teesdale's vocals also set her apart from many of the acts the band are calling back to, dynamically shifting from a nonchalant drawl akin to Julian Casablancas to a Kate Bush-esque yelp, to spoken word, to riot grrl sarcasm and aggression. 

The opener Being In Love exemplifies this clever simplicity well, being a song about all the cliché negative feelings associated with romance - e.g. feeling sick and lethargic. But instead of comparing love to these things, the theme is inverted and Rhian lists these feelings and concludes to them feeling like being in love. Combined with the swirling, detuned guitar lines; it makes the track a whole lot of fun. The irreverence of Chaise Longue is carried through the other singles with Angelica being about shit parties in your mid-20s where no-one knows whether to go wild like they used to or to act like sophisticated adults and bring some lasagne. The track has this thick and noisy post chorus instrumentation that is surprisingly heavy. Wet Dream sees Teesdale imagine what a certain guy's fantasies may be, with ridiculous scenarios described over a catchy dance-punk groove. Ur Mum, much like Chaise Longue, is a simple post-punk tune with some glorious lyrics tearing into an ex-lover who just lazes around smoking weed all day. "I feel sorry for your mum" is as about as blunt as it can get. The song closes out with Rhian proclaiming to give her longest and loudest scream, before going ahead and showing us. All of these songs are just so fun and catchy.

The slower tracks also hold up pretty well too, leaning into the more neo-psych territory. I Don't Wanna Go Out ebbs and flows through its lose and swirling structure. The track is about growing out of party culture and feels like the hazy hangover that becomes more frequent as you get older. Loving You and Piece Of Shit are cathartically bitter ballads about shitty guys, matched to lethargic and hazy guitars. The closer Too Late Now is also a bit more of a slow builder, despite in actuality being about the same length as all the other songs. The song is about the uncertainty and pressures of young adult life, and how sometimes you only need simple pleasures despite what is told to us. The track builds in pace from a sluggish first verse, into a tense spoken word middle section, before exploding for the remainder of the tune.

There are a couple of moments where the record feels a little derivative, primarily the repetitive 2 chord garage rock riff of Oh No (despite some great lyrics and vocal moments from Teesdale) and the underwritten Supermarket. Supermarket really feels like filler to be honest, it's repetitive and not all that catchy or unique - especially compared to some of the earworm singles earlier on in the record.

Wet Leg is just a fun, well written indie rock album. What it does might not be the most revolutionary thing, but it does it well. I just can't imagine anyone listening to a track like Angelica or Ur Mum and not having a smile on their face. I know it'll be in my rotation for the whole summer at the very least.

Top Tracks: Being In Love, Chaise Longue, Angelica, I Don't Wanna Go Out, Wet Dream, Loving You, Ur Mum, Piece Of Shit, Too Late Now

8/10

The Wombats - "Fix Yourself, Not the World" (2022)

Out of the crop of late 2000s 'landfill indie' bands, The Wombats have certainly aged better than most. The bands cheesy, anthemic hooks have proven far less wince-inducing over the past decade than the awkward, laddish misogyny of the likes of The Fratellis and The Kooks. The band have also smartly evolved their sound over the years, with tracks like 2015's Greek Tragedy sounding closer to the 2010s' 80s revival indie pop of The 1975 than the watered down post-punk and garage rock of the scene they broke through in. This cumulated in 2018's Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life, which took the band back to their early influences and stripped back the sound to match. It's a record that I enjoy to a fair amount, with strong catchy songs that shows the band's clear adoration of the early noughties indie trailblazers like The Strokes and Arctic Monkeys. Fix Yourself, Not the World follows up on a lot of the post-punk revival and dance punk elements of that record, but maxes out the scale and bombast - to varying results.

All is revealed by the opening track, Flip Me Upside Down. The track is so shiny and polished, but feels so predictable and safe. The vaguely dance-punk groove is rigid and lifeless, the hook bland and by the numbers, and the maximalist production sanding off any scrappiness or energy that a track like this needs. The song is far from bad, but it's the kind of watered down early 2010's indie that the band have so far managed sidestep. This over-polished, super safe style is unfortunately carried through the entire album, from the Glastonbury-highlight-montage-core of This Car Drives All by Itself; to a softened up version of Death From Above 1979's heavier style of dance rock on Ready For The High; to the cringy millennial whoops on Don't Poke the Bear .

The lyrics on the album are also quite pessimistic, which is not a style which suits The Wombats well. While the outright cheese of the band has been slowly turned down over the years, the band maintained their sense of fun and levity. While nowhere near as downtrodden as say a Radiohead album (there's actually a really fun lyric referencing the band here), the band tries to tackle some broader societal and introspective themes on the album that they don't really have the writing chops to pull off. The songs are earnest, yet don't have much depth, and also try to retain the bands inherent silliness. It's a weird mix that never really finds balance.

The record still has its moments. Lead single If You Ever Leave, I'm Coming with You is a fun and universally emotional blast akin to a lot of their big hits in terms of melodrama and scale, and This Car Drives All by Itself is incredibly catchy despite how cliché it is. Method to the Madness builds slowly through a low-key, downtempo instrumental into a thunderous and chaotic climax which is surprisingly heavy for The Wombats.

All in all, the album is fine, but incredibly run of the mill. It sounds straight out of 2011 in all the wrong ways, the kind of watered down, overblown, festival-sized indie rock that garnered the 'landfill' term back then. I can see teenagers new to the band loving it, but it lacks originality even compared to the bands earlier work.

Top Tracks: If You Ever Leave, I'm Coming with You, Method to the Madness

5/10

The Strokes - "The New Abnormal" (2020)

Ever since The Strokes iconic debut, Is This It, set the direction of the post-punk revival and indie rock in general for the 2000s, the band have struggled to really match that album in terms of quality and vision. Their follow up, Room On Fire, while a great album in it's own right, certainly followed in ITI's blueprint. The most noticeable stylistic shift was a doubling down on ITI's lower fidelity and messy recording and production style. This combined with some of the lyrics on the album gave the impression that the band weren't really comfortable being the genre zeitgeist and were almost trying to shrug off the fame and critical success. From this point forward, the band's discography becomes really hit or miss. There are some really good tracks in there, but the group's haphazard incorporation of noise rock and new wave into their sound, combined with constant infighting within the band, the obvious disinterest in the performances and rough, careless production made for some really mixed records. So even after the first couple of tracks were released and I really enjoyed them, I was still apprehensive about The New Abnormal, but I'm happy to say that it's really good and the best thing the band has released since Room On Fire.

The band seem to have worked through all of the issues that plagued their past few releases here. The album is a tight 9 tracks, and nothing feels redundant or half finished. They have also brought on Rick Rubin as producer, known for his clean (albeit often compressed) production style. This shift in approach really allows for these tracks to really pop in a way the band never really has before, most notably in Julian Casablancas' vocals - which are traditionally buried deep in the mix on a Strokes record, and his vocal performance is stellar here. The combination of him overcoming his alcohol problem and him actually caring about this record can be really heard in his voice.

One such moment is the opening track, The Adults Are Talking. The verses are sung in this hushed, sensual tone over a kinetic guitar and drum line. The chorus melody is catchy and cool, and the second time round Casablancas launches into a souring falsetto bridge. It features two solos and feels so unique within the bands catalogue. The tracks Bad Decisions and Brooklyn Bridge To Chorus are similarly uptempo and catchy. Bad Decisions has been on repeat for me since it was released as a single. It cribs the riff and part of the melody from Billy Idol's Dancing With Myself, although it is played in a tighter more New Order-esque style. The lyrics about wanting someone in your life, despite the bad influence you might have on each other are fun and feel very honest and open. Theres a part of the bridge where Casablancas sounds just like Lou Read and adds to the throwback feel of the song. Brooklyn Bridge To Chorus is straight up synth pop, and features the weird and catchy line "I want new friends, but they don't want me" as part of the chorus. The melody of the coda is also just really fantastic and I wish that part of the song went on longer. It's fun and doesn't take itself too seriously, although it's the only track where the production feels a little off. The whole track is too loud, and the synths sound really compressed and pierce through the mix, whilst Casablancas' vocals and the guitars fight for space lower down. It's not awfully sounding, but you can definitely hear the sharp raise in volume from the previous track.

The back half of the album goes on such a run. The first of these tracks is the first single released, At The Door. This song is simply fantastic. It's really stripped back, primarily featuring some thin, dark sounding synths, with a little guitar popping up here and there. This allows for so much focus on Julian's emotional, powerful croon. The lyrics feel like a gut punch, and use obtuse and dark imagery to tell what sounds like the end of a relationship (which fits Casablancas' divorce in 2019). The following three tracks delve more into this topic, giving the end of the record a real sense of unity. Why Are Sundays So Depressing is probably the most classic Strokes the record gets, in terms of sound and done. Yet is longer and slower, and has a funkier edge to the verses. Julian sings about how he just wants an easy life and to just chill out, and that he doesn't care that "his baby's gone" or that his friends have also left him.

The final two tracks really go into the pain and anguish caused by the break up. The first verse of Not The Same Anymore sounds cynical and sarcastic - with weird lyrics such as "You'd make a better window than a door". It really reminds my of some of the more bitter moments in the Arctic Monkeys discography. The track then straightens itself out and Casblancas starts to accept responsibility of his misdeeds and ponders the impact on his son. It's so honest and earnest from someone who often puts on a show of brashness and unbotherdness. Ode To The Mets, as the title suggests, is about Casablancas' love for the New York Mets baseball team; but also features lyrics looking back on the history of the band and also feels like its referencing the breaking down of his relationship. The track sounds so pained and tired and bittersweet, as it builds and builds, and Juilens vocals sour higher and higher. The outro to the song is truely phenomenal.

The track Eternal Summer is the only real misfire on the record. It flits between two different styles; breezy 80s pop tune for the verses with entirely falsetto vocals, and a shouty, noisey chorus similar to Casablancas' other band The Voidz. I get the concept behind the track, as it is about the threat of climate change, yet society's inability to accept it. But it's the longest track here, over 6 minutes, and doesn't really progress anywhere due to its constant shift back and forth between these two styles that jar against each other.

At first, even though I though the record was decent, I didn't quite pick up on how good it was because it doesn't sound like the band's first two albums. It really is a grower, and as you start accept that it doesn't sound like the last time The Strokes were this good, and let the lyrics and atmosphere soak in, you start to get what they're going for and how well they've achieved it.

Top Tracks: The Adults Are Talking, Bad Decisions, At The Door, Why Are Sundays So Depressing, Not The Same Anymore, Ode To The Mets

8/10

Klaxons - "Myths of the Near Future" (2007)

2000's indie rock holds a soft spot in my heart, it was the music of my childhood after all. So discovering a new one is always a treat for me. The faint familiarity of the big single Golden Skans when it came up in a playlist, and the fact that it is a total banger, inspired me enough to check out the Klaxons' debut.

Much like another group breaking through at the time, Foals, Klaxons aren't just exploring straight up post-punk on this project. The band incorporate elements of rave and alternative dance to create a short, frantic album which dances all over the place, making for a very entertaining listen. 

The previously mentioned Golden Skans is a bit of an outlier on the record, having a much more new-wave feel with its shiny synths and catchy 'wah-ohs'. Other tracks, including Atlantis To Interzone and Magick, have this almost indie rock meets The Prodigy style. They have edgy, angular sounds and elements, yet remain incredibly dance-able. Jamie Reynolds' scattershot and sometimes shouted lyrics add to this aesthetic nicely.

It's a shame that Klaxons aren't remembered in the same way some of the indie bands of the 2000's are, since this album provides a sound quite unique which not many bands were experimenting with at the time. Not every track hits the mark for me (mid-point Isle Of Her drags in particular), but this refreshing sound and short length makes it an easy listen.

Top Tracks: Two Receivers, Atlantis To Interzone, Golden Skans, Totem Of The Timeline, Magick, It's Not Over Yet

7/10