As a self-proclaimed indie electro-pop 'baby band,' Uh Huh Her has generated enough buzz to rival most groups in their third or fourth year of inception. Comprised of Camila Grey, formerly of the Mellowdrones, and Leisha Hailey, of the Murmurs and The L Word fame, their prior engagement in successful ventures has certainly added fuel to the fire in terms of immediate curiosity. Rather than dwell on the source of their initial appeal, Uh Huh Her is making the most of their foot in the door, signing up with LiveNation label Nettwerk Records and embarking on their first national tour.
While some of their audience members may be shouting 'We love you Alice!' - a reference to Hailey's character on the L Word - all of them are running home and downloading their EP, as evidenced by their place at #28 on iTunes top 100 downloads. Their live performances have gone above and beyond the benefit of the doubt and their infectious single "Say So" has secured them a place on the list of lady duos to look out for.
The pair was one of the last groups to grace the stage at Studio A last Saturday, before it bows out of the Miami music scene. Clubplanet took a moment to catch up with front-woman Camila Grey about life in the synth lane and the future of Uh Huh Her.
Clubplanet: How was touring in Europe?
Camila Grey: We were just in Ireland and in London and it was so much fun. It was such a blast, we really want to go back.
CP: Have you been finding it easy to connect with your fans out on the road?
Camile Grey: I think so. The fans have just been so amazing as far as the excitement level, especially in Europe. There's like this insane excitement in the air. I can't really explain it but they've been really amazing to us.
CP: You've described yourselves as a 'baby band' but you've been selling out a lot of your tour dates your first time out. What do you attribute your early success to?
Camile Grey: Well, I certainly think that Leisha's previous fan base and especially being on "The L World" and having that sort of immediacy to her has helped. We're so thankful that they are there in the first place and we hope to build on that and keep making more and more fans. I definitely think that that has a lot to do with it especially for our initial kind of run.
CP: What do you do to entertain yourself when you're on tour?
Camile Grey: Definitely, with everybody in the band, especially when you're on the bus or whatever you're in - there's a lot of joking going on and a lot of heckling people, throwing things at people and videotaping it, their reactions, that kind of stuff (laughs). We're always just trying to amuse ourselves.
CP: Are you still looking for a drummer?
Camile Grey: No! We've found one! (laughs) We tend to go through them pretty quickly, but we've had to find someone who really fit and that's in terms of personality as well as skill.
CP: Was it a gradual process for you deciding to work with Leisha or did you guys just have that automatic chemistry?
Camile Grey: It was kind of automatic in that we worked together really well but it was funny because we didn't really know each other too well as people and so that part of it kind of grew organically because we really didn't know each other. It wasn't hard working together though, we immediately kind of clicked.
CP: Did you both settle on the PJ Harvey reference or was that more your contribution?
Camile Grey: (Laughs) Yeah we did! We had started writing the EP already and we had signed to this management company and we didn't have a band name yet and they were kind of like 'hey guys, we'd really love for you to have a band name'. They were kind of knocking on our door asking when we were gonna think of it. So we ended up going with that. At the time we were a three-piece band of ladies, we felt it was fitting. Since then Alicia's left but it's just kind of stuck.
CP: People have been drawing comparisons between your sound and bands like the Cocteau Twins and other 80's synth based groups. Is this the kind of sound you want to keep or have you begun to evolve already?
Camile Grey: I think we'll always have that synth element in there because it's kind of what I do, it's what I bring to it. Absolutely, we'll evolve. I think that the sound is already kind of evolving since the EP came out. To me, the record sounds completely different. It's the same songs on there but it's definitely evolved since last time. We're still sort of discovering our sound because we are so young as a band and I hope that we'll keep evolving, but I think synth will always be there.
CP: You've labeled yourself as indie electro-pop, do you feel comfortable being in that genre?
Camile Grey: I do, it was kind of our first label that we gave ourselves. That was where we were headed, it seemed sort of a hybrid of pop. The reason I say pop is because it's kind of got that pop sensibility to it, so I think I'll stick with it. We've got a little more Rock involved now though because I broke out the guitar and said 'we're gonna play some more guitar, people'. So, I think now we could maybe add 'rock' to that, (laughs).
CP: What was the production like on this album?
Camile Grey: I did all the pre-production at my house this time around, just getting the tracks ready, laying all the ideas out and what not. Then we took it to Al Clay, he mixed our last EP but he didn't produce it and this time he co-produced it with me. He makes everything sound sparkly and amazing (laughs), that's kind of where he comes in. We tracked over live drums whereas on the EP we had all electronic drums so a lot of it's just been brought up and elevated as far as the sound goes.
CP: Having worked with people like Dr. Dre and Busta Rhymes, how does that kind of experience compare to making your own music?
Camile Grey: With Dre it's like 'Do this' (laughs), he has such a clear vision of what he wants everything to sound like and I guess that's what makes him such a genius at producing and you just kind of bring what you bring but it's always in the way that he wants it done. With this we've been able to do whatever we want, we have free reign creativity wise over everything.
CP: Clea Duvall did some of the initial photo work on you guys for your website. She's probably one of the coolest people on the face of the earth. How did that relationship come about?
Camile Grey: (laughs) Yeah, we met through friends and then she met Leisha. She takes amazing photos.
CP: You've been playing on stage in pencil skirts and heels, is there a relationship between that image and the kind of music that you're making and what you're trying to portray to everyone?
Camile Grey: I've always just done that. When I was in Mellowdrone I did that and I just feel it's sexy. You know, women, heels, guitar, PJ Harvey - I just think it's sexy. It's more of an aesthetic than you know, a feeling. I also think it's challenging and I like to challenge myself (laughs).
CP: Thom Russo remixed a new version of "Say So" for your EP, are there any other DJ's or Producers you'd really like to work with?
Camile Grey: I definitely want to work with people like DJ Shadow. I've been trying to get Dre to do a remix on some stuff, we'll see if that ever happens. That would be pretty dope.
CP: Who do you draw from in terms of inspiration or in terms of your musical roots?
Camile Grey: There are so many sources of inspiration. I've been such a music fanatic since I was a kid. My dad brought me up on everything from classical to Roy Orbison to 80s music. I think I take from each genre and everything you listen to sort of sinks in and it has its influence on what you're producing. So, that being said it's such a wide range I can't even begin. I definitely prefer a lot of old 70's stuff, early Bowie, I really love Roy Orbison and all of the 80's synth stuff like Depeche Mode.
CP: Do you have any other side projects happening right now?
Camile Grey: I'm focusing for the majority of my time on this and I'm also trying to work other stuff out. When Leisha goes back to shoot the show I think I'll definitely be working on more side projects for sure.
CP: Will you be bringing anyone with you to Miami?
Camile Grey: We'll be touring with a solo act, her name is Angie Mattson. She's super cool, super pared down. She's got a band but she's going to be touring with us with just her guitar and her keyboard I think.
CP: What other cities are you excited about touring in?
Camile Grey: You know a place that I really love and I've been there before is Lawrence, Kansas. It's a really unique kind of artsy-fartsy music town that you'd never think would exist in Kansas, but it does. I'm definitely excited to go to Boston because that's where I went to college and it's kind of a little homecoming. I used to go see shows at the Paradise and we're gonna play there, so. And definitely Miami, I wanna go out and have a Martini or something (laughs).
CP: Have you been here before?
Camile Grey: I've been, let me think, once. I was in Miami with my parents so I didn't really get to experience it in the way that I wanted to. I was still in high school I think so, it's been a while. I just hope everyone will come to the show and hang out.
Uh Huh Her's first full-length album Common Reaction will be released August 19th, 2008.
For more info, check out www.myspace.com/uhhuhhermusic.