Naarm/Melbourne glam-punk powerhouses Wet Kiss are back with ‘Skirt’ — a glitter-stained, white-wine-fuelled war cry that perfectly tees up their new album Thus Spoke the Broken Chanteuse, landing 27 June via Dinosaur City. Equal parts funny and furious, the single channels frontwoman Brenna O’s knack for turning humiliation into high art, all while shredding through toxic gig culture with a leer and a wink.
‘Skirt’ recounts a botched Berlin solo show — complete with wine-drunk flailing, unwanted voyeurism, and a literal upskirt moment salvaged by razor-sharp banter. Brenna flips it: “Girls get paid in fascination / even while the night gets wasted,” she howls, building a stomping, strobe-lit middle finger out of the rubble. Think PJ Harvey via Suzi Quatro at a dive bar karaoke night where the glitter never really comes off.
The video — shot in Chinatown with a garden leaf blower and rave glasses taped to the lens — is a mini masterpiece of DIY camp, casting Brenna as a trashy Marilyn Monroe with fairy lights sewn into her tights. It’s absurd and genius, like all the best acts of revenge.
Wet Kiss continue to tear up the rulebook with their femme-punk maximalism: equal doses of mascara and menace, feral glamour and sardonic wit. Thus Spoke the Broken Chanteuse promises more of that delicious imbalance — the kind that rattles your ribcage and leaves you grinning.
See them live and get messy:
• Fri 9 May – Melbourne, The Curtin (w/ Wrong Way Up + Boyfriend TV)
• Fri 23 May – Sydney, Marrickville Bowling Club (Nag Nag Nag Festival)
• Sat 24 May – Melbourne, The Forum (w/ Floodlights + HighSchool)
‘Skirt’ is out now. New album Thus Spoke the Broken Chanteuse drops 27 June.