“Something that really blows my mind is that before Wet Leg, Rhian didn’t know how to play guitar”: Wet Leg are one of the hottest indie bands on the planet – but leader Rhian Teasdale couldn’t play guitar until she started the band

Rhian Teasdale of Wet Leg performs on the arena stage at Roskilde Festival 2025 on July 02, 2025 in Roskilde, Denmark
(Image credit: Joseph Okpako/WireImage/Getty Images)

Wet Leg drop their highly anticipated sophomore album, moisturizer, today (July 11), mere days after their lauded performance at Glastonbury Festival, which saw co-guitarist and now main vocalist Rhian Teasdale wield a quirky acrylic B.C. Rich Mockingbird.

In the space of a few short years, Wet Leg have become one of the hottest indie guitar rock acts on the planet – and that's quite an achievement, owing to the fact Teasdale didn't play guitar until the band was formed.

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“I think it might have come more from the fact that we love guitar music. It definitely sparked something in us seeing bands like Big Thief, and just listening to The Strokes and Kings Of Leon growing up. But it’s really fun to let go of our insecurities. We can say, ‘We’re not like those people, we’re not technical but we can still write songs and play gigs.’”

Wet Leg - Ur Mum (Glastonbury 2025) - YouTube Wet Leg - Ur Mum (Glastonbury 2025) - YouTube
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“Something that really blows my mind is that before Wet Leg, Rhian didn’t know how to play guitar,” Chambers commented with a smile.

“She’s excellent at writing songs on a piano but had never done it on a guitar. She was like, ‘I’m gonna write on guitar,’ and it just kind of happened. She’s got a really beautiful way of playing and writing. She’s not restricted, not like, ‘Oh, I need to learn these chords so I can make this song.’ She just kind of plays around.”

Fast forward to 2025, and Teasdale is leading the pack – which now includes long-serving touring musicians Henry Holmes, Josh Mobaraki, and Ellis Durand as official members of the band – with a guitar typically associated with metal and worlds away from the Surf Green Jazzmaster she was associated with in the band's previous era.

This is far from a brand-new phenomenon, as the past couple of years have seen many non-metal acts embrace the allure of metal guitars.

Janelle Borg

Janelle is a staff writer at GuitarWorld.com. After a long stint in classical music, Janelle discovered the joys of playing guitar in dingy venues at the age of 13 and has never looked back. Janelle has written extensively about the intersection of music and technology and how it is shaping the future of the music industry, and has a special interest in shining a spotlight on traditionally underrepresented artists and global guitar sounds. She also had the pleasure of interviewing Melissa Auf der Maur, Yvette Young, Danielle Haim, Fanny, and Karan Katiyar from Bloodywood, among others. When she's not writing, you'll find her creating layers of delicious audio lasagna with her Anglo-Maltese, art-rock band ĠENN.

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