“You were a cute girl standing backstage... What did you expect would happen?” snarls Rakel Mjöll on Dream Wife’s Somebody, before retorting: “I am not my body, I am somebody.” While there is never exactly a bad time for a riot grrrl comeback, #MeToo and #TimesUp have provided the ideal political backdrop for the arrival of Dream Wife, all angular haircuts, bold eyeshadow and insouciant charisma.
The London-based trio – one Icelander, two Brits – met while studying art in Brighton, and in 2014 formed a fake girl band as part of a performance art project. Named after a 1953 romcom starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr, the pretend band recorded some songs, realised they were actually good, and decided to give it a go as a real band, with Alice Go on guitar and Bella Podpadec on bass. Influenced by Bikini Kill and Sleater-Kinney, but also Grimes and the Spice Girls, their sound is upbeat, catchy and fuelled by an undercarriage of righteous rage. (If glam grunge pop is your bag, also see “DIY punk witches” Dream Nails.)
Unapologetic female sexuality is at the heart of the group’s ethos – Let’s Make Out is a joyous hymn to “wasting our youth... stuck in a kissing booth” – and they have a romantic side too: last year they marked Valentine’s Day with an acerbic cover of Peaches’ Fuck the Pain Away. They tour the UK, 20-24 March
