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Theyre about to meet one of their heroes albeit over Zoom.
Wet Leg regularly cover one of Byrnes most famous songs in concert, Talking Heads Psycho Killer.
And all three musicians share a knack for infusing their tunes with deft, sly humor.
But Byrne and Wet Legs paths to global recognition most certainly evolved at a different pace.
It all culminated with the release of their acclaimed self-titled debut album earlier this spring.
Now, theyre heading to Europe after a run of Stateside music festivals including Lollapalooza and Outside Lands.
Weve never really had a plan!
Its always been very much off-the-cuff.
Talking to Byrne, they want nothing more than to soak up the iconic musicians knowledge and wisdom.
you might always evolve into something else throughout your life and career, he tells Wet Leg.
You just have to keep the muscles moving.
David, youre a self-professed fan of Wet Leg.
How did you come to hear their music?
Byrne:I dont remember.
It might have been on some website.
It might have been in a magazine that mentioned you guys.
Immediately added them to my playlist of what I was listening to that month.
I was not alone there, I soon discovered.
It was like,Get in line!I want to ask about your songwriting process.
How does that work?
Im sure youve been asked this a million times already.
Teasdale:Yeah, but not by you!
And then sometimes the words are first.
Especially if its some sort of story or point of view that I really have in mind.
I feel like I can go either way.
But starting with the words gives the music more space to develop.
So how do you all work?
Teasdale:With this band we never start with the words.
The words also come at the same time or are revised from an impromptu kind of jam afterwards.
When I used to write solo stuff, I would always start with the words.
Hester, I dont know if you did the same?
Chambers:Maybe a bit of both.
But I would always more likely have a guitar with me.
Otherwise I felt like Id never be able to actually marry the words with the music.
Byrne:So you have to have the instrument going?
Chambers:I think it can be really helpful.
These random things start to flow.
Its the repetitious movement of the music that helps.
Teasdale:Moving forward well be writing together with our band because were such a close-knit group now.
It all happened so quickly and was so unexpected.
Byrne:Where are you now?
Are you at home?
Teasdale:No, were at the Louisiana in Bristol.
Its like a little pub music venue.
Byrne:Oh good!
Did some of those venues have a hard time surviving the pandemic?
Which is why its so nice to get to do it this year.
To get to be the ambassadors, whatever that means.
Byrne:Did the venues get any government support to help ride out the pandemic?
Teasdale:Yeah, I think there was a little bit of government support.
Where are you calling from?
Byrne:Im calling from my home in New York.
Im here working on some projects.
I did a Broadway run of a show that ended a couple months ago.
It was a lot of fun to do.
And then come up with some new stuff.
When it was in rehearsals, it was all-encompassing.
And then youre home.
So it wasnt like everything stopped.
But I certainly couldnt tour.
I couldnt leave the city.
Teasdale:Its kind of funny hearing you say you were anchored to one place and cant tour.
That must be quite different.
Thats quite a unique thing doing the throw in of jobs that we do.
Byrne:That is really different being anchored like that.
I like touring too!
I like traveling around every once in a while; I take a bicycle and explore the different cities.
Teasdale:You take a bicycle on your tour bus?!
I have a folding one.
Its larger than a Brompton but a little bit smaller than a full-size bike.
And it folds up and fits in the luggage compartment of the tour bus.
Teasdale:Thats so nice!
Rhian and Hester, you regularlycover Talking Heads Psycho Killerin your live set.
How did you land on that track in particular?
Teasdale:It was just a song that Id grown up with my dad playing around the house.
I think its a cool song thats really fun.
Its an interesting song to take on as a woman.
It just sounds different.
I think some of the best covers are the ones that somehow you will hear something different in them.
That was quite an easy one for us to land on.
Byrne:I dont [perform Psycho Killer] very often now.
Even though that one was very popular.
I remember I thought,I wanted to write about this dramatic subject in a non-dramatic way.
I wanted to write from inside this persons head.
It was not going to be a slasher movie.
It was going to be a little bit calmer than that.
At least thats what I was thinking.
I originally wanted it to be more of a folk song.
But that version wasnt so popular.
Wet Leg began in the Isle of Wight, which is very rural.
Have you two enjoyed traveling around to more cosmopolitan areas?
Chambers:I suppose were used to it now.
Honestly, we could be anywhere all the time.
Byrne:You need bicycles then!
Sounds like that to me.
Maybe get some inspiration from the various places we are in.
David, have you ever toured with a pet on the bus?
Byrne: I dont think so!
Ive toured with children on the bus.
Thats kind of okay.
Teasdale:No, but wed like to.
Were doing the groundwork research.
Byrne:It sounds like it would be a bit tricky going through borders and things like that.
Teasdale:What age were you when you started getting really busy with your music?
You grow up and you give up on it as a career.
You settle into your job and we had pretty nice jobs.
Byrne:That sounds really similar to me.
I was in my mid-20s, I think.
I was always doing music of one sort or another for fun with friends.
But I didnt take it seriously as a career.
Maybe theyll tell their friends![Laughs.]
And it did grow little by little.
It wasnt super fast as youve experienced.
But maybe thats a difference because of the internet and social media and everything thats available now.
But yes, it was kind of like,Oh, this is a bit of a surprise.
Now I can direct my attention to this because people seem to like it.
Teasdale:Where were you at the time?
Where were you living?
Byrne:I grew up in the suburbs of Baltimore.
Kind of an industrial town.
Its fallen on hard times.
I lived in the suburbs.
It was nice but I was kind of isolated.
There wasnt internet or any of that.
Your friends would buy a record and youd go, Oh!
I got the new record by so and so.
And youd go over to their house and sit and listen to a record.
It was really exciting!
But the wide world seemed to be happening somewhere else.
I thought it was so wonderful I was in the big city.
Just walking down the street was exciting.
What about you two?
Chambers:I actually still live in the country on the Isle of Wight.
Almost like a grain of dust.
So I found I get comfort from the small town.
Its okay to be a speck of dust in the country.
Being on the Isle of Wight I would always feel quite hopeless.
I was just working really weird waitressing jobs at first.
But I was really happy to do that.
I was happy to work with people who were actors and musicians and had their side hustles.
Being in the city theres just so many more possibilities and so many more inspirational people around you.
David, what is the secret to constantly being so innovative?
Its so easy to become jaded, which is sad because often its for the thing you love.
You dont seem to have that problem at all.
You seem to be able to reinvent.
Ive always been a little wary of being too successful.
Its nice to be successful, its nice to be liked.
And thats just not true.
Teasdale:We are really taking it every day as it comes.
Who knows, we might get hit by a car tomorrow.[Laughs.]
Byrne:I hope not!
Thank you, ladies, so much for taking the time to do this.
It was an honor for me.
Great to say hi and I hope to see you at a show somewhere someday.
Teasdale:That would be really cool!
