tunesday – get to know wet kiss

Isn’t music wonderful? If you ask frontwoman Brenna O, you’ll find the answer in the music of Wet Kiss. The Melbourne/Naarm-based band is ramping up to release their sophomore album – Thus Spoke the Broken Chanteuse – this June 27th via beloved local label Dinosaur City Records. Between playing shows all over the country and drip-feeding thirsty fans a taste of the album through singles “Isn’t Music Wonderful”, “Skirt” and “Chick From Nowhere”, Brenna sits down with us for a chinwag to dish out just a touch of her worldly wisdom.

What is your earliest music memory? Seeing Björk’s video clip for “Oh So Quiet” on Channel V was revelatory and prophetic. I wanted her to be my friend and teacher. Around the same time, I desperately yearned for the CD, Spice World!

When you’re not making music, what are you up to? Writing music reviews for No More Poetry’s The PETTY magazine, attending parties with my entourage and hitting the bar with a biography on Candy Darling, Janis Joplin, Marriane Faithful or Cookie Mueller. 

Tell us a little bit about the inspiration behind Thus Spoke the Broken Chanteuse. It’s a glam-rock record. Glam was co-opted by heterosexual men from transsexual performers like Jayne County, so I view it as a trans woman's medium. I just needed the stories, so I conceived of the character ‘The Broken Chanteuse’ a year before we recorded the album, then spent the following year in Berlin becoming her.

Who are some of your favourite chanteuses? There's too many to count, but to be brief: the 1970s German chanteuse – Dagma Kraus – for her shrill voice and jaunty war ballads, the 1940s American vaudevillian – Libby Holman – for her bordello songs of sin, and the 1920s blues singer-songwriter Bessie Smith. 

Members in Wet Kiss often adorn bunny ears and creature-inspired costumes. What is your spirit animal? Well, as a kid I wasn’t allowed to have any pets – now I’ve got a band of them. I guess you could say I’m the tamers’ lion. 

How has Wet Kiss changed since releasing your debut record, She’s So Cool? I got blonde and now we're having way more fun.

Do you have any pre-performance rituals? We spin Judy Garland Live at Carnegie Hall while we do our makeup. That really gets us in the mood. 

You’re prolific for delivering incredible in-between song banter – what’s the secret to coming up with something rad to say? The key to delivering a good one-liner on stage is down to your poise and attitude. You don't have to be that clever, you’ve just gotta say it with confidence. When you have the mic, you have the audience's trust. They lap it up when you treat them mean, as long as you're treating them sweet too. 

How would you describe a typical Wet Kiss live show, if there is such a thing as a typical one? Typical is not the word I’d use to describe a Wet Kiss show. A Wet Kiss show underscores the melodrama of life. Allow us to hold your hand and take you somewhere over the rainbow. Mwah! xoxo