‘We were high on cookies’: The recipe for winning music’s biggest award

The recipe for writing a Grammy Award-winning song that’s been streamed millions of times around the world is not overly tricky, say Wet Leg’s Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers.

“We were high on cookies. Normal regular cookies,” says Teasdale, who penned the indie rock band’s single Chaise Longue while reclining at her bandmate’s house on the Isle of Wight in 2019.

Wet Leg’s Hester Chambers (left) and Rhian Teasdale. Wet Leg are supporting Harry Styles on his Australian tour.Credit: Justin McManus

“We went through a phase of baking the same batch of cookies. Some had sad chocolate chip faces and some had happy chocolate chip faces, so we were fuelled by cookies.”

Earlier this month, Wet Leg won the 2023 Grammy for best alternative music performance for their hit Chaise Longue as well as the award for best alternative album for their self-titled debut. A week later at the Brit Awards, where they also performed Chaise Longue, the band won awards for best alternative album and best new artist.

After celebrating at London’s Moth Club, they jetted off to join Harry Styles’ concert series, Love On Tour, in Japan the next day. This week they’re opening for the former One Direction star in his Melbourne stadium shows.

“We bumped into Amy from Amyl and the Sniffers at the Grammys,” Teasdale said. “She seems really nice, and they’re a really cool band. It was so mad we’d even been nominated, and really cool to go. You see pictures of the Grammys on the internet, and it seems really far removed from our reality and our world.

“Our world is kind of indie rock music ... and you don’t really get that kind of genre frequenting the Grammys. So, it was very strange and very unexpected to win anything.”

Chambers said growing up on the Isle of Wight, removed from the United Kingdom’s festival circuit, meant having a do-it-yourself attitude towards music. “You have to make your own music, to entertain yourself and your friends,” she said.

‘I’ve never been to a gig with that many women in the crowd.’

Rhian Teasdale, on performing at Harry Styles Love on Tour shows

Friends for the past decade, Chambers and Teasdale first played together less than five years ago. Teasdale had some summer festival shows booked, but was tired of being a solo performer.

“There was no way I was going back out there alone, and I said to Hester, ‘Will you please, please, please play guitar with me, so I can finish these shows?’

Fortunately, Hester said yes.

Rhian Teasdale (left) and Hester Chambers of British indie rock band Wet Leg, from the Isle of Wight.

“We went around to the festivals together and had a really fun, wholesome summer of driving around in my car. At the end of summer we decided to start Wet Leg, basically so we could play festivals.”

There’s been little rest since. Their album was released last year, and they were soon back on the festival circuit. And they’re pinching themselves about playing in front of Harry’s fans.

“We feel really lucky, and Harry’s fans are so up for it,” Teasdale said. “They’re so nice and supportive, you see so much camaraderie and sisterhood. “There’s lots of dancing, lots of screaming and it’s so nice to see. I’ve never been to a gig with that many women in the crowd because we’ve always gone to indie rock shows.”

As many as 350,000 Harry Styles fans are expected to dance along to Chaise Longue on this Australian tour, which wraps up in Sydney on March 4.

“It made us laugh so much,” Chambers said, about writing their Grammy-winning song. “We honestly never thought it would leave the computer file. It was just a really fun couple of hours.”

A cultural guide to going out and loving your city. Sign up to our Culture Fix newsletter here.