As Le Tigre make a comeback on the festival circuit, you may well wonder: who are this generation’s post-riot grrrl royalty? Look no further than Dream Wife, a Brighton-formed trio of shes and theys who aptly opened for the American band at their Troxy London show last month. Known for energetic, rage-filled punk-rock bangers concerned with systemic misogyny and fuelled by anti-capitalism and radical sensuality, hits like 2017’s ‘Let’s Make Out’ and 2020’s ‘Hasta La Vista’ capture the cutting yet romantic point of view from which this band writes music. Now, with two successful albums under their belt and a growing reputation for delivering fizzingly spectacular live shows, their latest record Social Lubrication is out in the world, showing real technical refinement and self-assurance.

‘Lyrically, I think this new record is an amazing body of work,’ confesses the band’s guitarist and producer Alice Go rather bashfully. The album’s name alone, Social Lubrication, holds just the right amount of intrigue and ambiguity. ‘It’s very . . . fluid,’ agrees bassist Bella Podpadec, chuckling at their own pun, before snapping into earnest mode to explain its meaning. ‘I think it came to represent systems and mechanisms that we use to gloss over issues present in a society that just isn’t serving most people. It’s like the ways in which we’re polite when we shouldn’t be; it’s the ways in which we’re pushing for representation rather than reshuffling power structures; it’s adding oil to the gears of a machine that is actually kind of designed to hurt us.’ 

‘The gatekeepers, the so-called legends/You boys gonna let the girls play?/Or are they merely ornaments on display?’ asks lead vocalist Rakel Mjöll in ‘Leech’, the album’s first single, before repeating the line, ‘just have some fucking empathy,’ again and again over sustained chugging bass and guitar from Go and Podpadec. Mjöll’s signature commandeering voice lulls you into a false sense of security with its obsequious tone, before melting your face off with a death-growl scream: ‘THE LEECH IS OUT FOR BLOOD!’ 

It’s precisely this type of killer one-liner that the trio are known for landing, thanks to lyricist Mjöll’s ability to distil concentrated drops of fury and wit into small, snappy doses. ‘She’s amazing at weaving in different perspectives and things going on in the current social climate, as well as our own conversations and conversations she’s had with others,’ says Go of her blushing bandmate. Nodding in agreement, Podpadec adds, ‘yeah, like this ability to be able to take incredibly personal, individual feelings and talk about them in ways that are really relatable and far-reaching. We’re always pendulating between the micro and the macro.’   

Aside from its dense lyrics, a strong emphasis on visuals (created by artist and friend-of-the-band Maisie Cousins) gives the record a cohesive, bold aesthetic, from its album artwork through to music videos. ‘Maisie’s art just made so much sense for what this album was about,’ says Mjöll. ‘It’s sticky. It’s sensual. But also something’s off and not quite as it seems.’

‘We all studied different strands of Fine Art at uni, so I think, for us, the visual world has always been so tied into music,’ continues Go. ‘It mirrors the album in the sense that it’s dealing with serious issues, but also it’s playful, sexy, kind of steamy rock’n’roll. And I think all of those things come into the visuals. The red, the blood; it’s bold but there’s still a sense of humour.’

Dream Wife are known for creating inherently political music, but this never comes at the expense of their signature silliness. Cheeky satire and in-jokes heard in a song like 2020’s ‘Sports!’ (‘Height is time, time is money, never apologise/These are the rules!’) remain a fundamental part of this band’s style. Their new album may show creative maturity but a playfulness remains. Just look at a song such as ‘Hot (Don’t Date A Musician)’ which was born out of advice from Mjöll’s well-intentioned grandmother asking her to ‘stop bringing home musicians’, and suggested she try dating someone from another profession.

‘That song is super funny to us,’ the singer admits. ‘We’re poking fun at ourselves. We’re basically saying we are undatable.’  

When first performing ‘Hot’ live, Dream Wife were shocked at the crowd’s response. At a particularly memorable gig in Glasgow’s ‘iconic’ St Luke’s, Mjöll recalls ‘people were cracking up and really wanted to sing along!’ Despite this reception, Go chimes in to remind her bandmates that ‘Hot’ wasn’t deemed single-worthy at first by their label. ‘We were like, “wait, what!? This song has to be a single”. The audience response, the way people were screaming along to it before they even knew the track; if you don’t see it in the live setting, maybe it’s easy to dismiss.’ 

With their live shows being the band’s beating heart, no one knows their audience better than Dream Wife themselves. ‘Our fans are the truest barometer of knowing what matters to people and why it matters,’ believes Go. 

Luckily Scottish fans need not wait long to share their thoughts on Social Lubrication as Dream Wife prepare to hit TRNSMT’s King Tut’s stage. ‘We always love Glasgow; the music scene is incredible,’ Mjöll gushes. ‘It’s definitely a rowdy crowd but a crowd so full of love. There’s such a sense of security in the mosh pit.’ A serious compliment from a band who coined ‘bad bitches to the front’, a ritual to ensure their gigs are a safe space for all. But even so, in such physical conditions both performer and fan alike require some serious stamina. ‘Rock’n’ roll is an extreme sport!’ insists Go. ‘We go to the gym, we’re in training. We have to treat our bodies like we’re athletes.’ Sounds like Dream Wife are fighting fit and ready for battle. Let’s hope Scottish crowds can stay in the ring. 

Dream Wife play TRNSMT, Glasgow Green, Sunday 9 July; Social Lubrication is out now on Lucky Number.