Uh Huh Her

When I heard that Uh Huh Her were doing a UK tour, as a massive fan of this L.A. based band, you can imagine the excitement I felt. Then when I got a chance to meet the girls before the gig the excitement turned to fear… What will I ask? How can I make this more memorable that a boring old press interview? And how can I get what these girls want the world to hear out there?

Uh Huh Her is composed of Camilla Grey (formerly keyboardist to Adam Lambert, Kelly Osbourne and Dr Dre while also being in the band Mellodrone) and Leisha Hailey (formerly of The Murmurs). They are currently promoting their second full length album, 'Nocturnes', and describe their sound as "indie electro-pop."

When I arrived at The Arches in Glasgow I was already aware that this gig had sold out. What I didn't expect to see was the queues of women (and the odd male in amongst them!) here early, lining up around the block to get to the front of the show. These were the die-hard fans... a mix of Uh Huh Her fans and the devoted Leisha Haley followers desperate for a glimpse of their favourite actress (of L Word fame).

After arriving and getting my press access sorted out and my friend's tickets collected it was time for a quick drink in the bar to settle my nerves before heading down to the girl's dressing room for a quick chat. I expected a ten minute chat with two girls keen to promote their new album, while being tired from travelling around The UK (and a bit of Europe too). After handing over a small gift as a welcome to Scotland (whisky of course!), what I got was half an hour of great conversation (and a wee dram) with two women who are passionate about their music, who want to get their message out to the world and who want to have a lot of fun along the way.

What I took away from the interview was that this band means business. Cam is a highly intelligent girl with a heart and soul to match both her intelligence and her musical talent. Leisha is no 'actress in a band' This is a woman who is a musician through and through… she just happened to do a bit of acting in between bands that is all. Cam is a classical trained musician with a love for Mozart, Bjork and a desire to go back to her roots. Leisha, a 'riot girl at heart' who happens to like a little bit of country. Having once read that Cam had confidence issues on stage and in interviews, these were certainly not evident tonight. She seems calm, cool and collective, and in her element both on stage and while sitting talking to me.

Their latest album is a D.I.Y album written after a split from their label and management. This gave them the chance to do things their way, and the sound of the album is proof that it has worked. "With a little help from their friends", Cam and Leisha took on everything from merchandise to artwork and spent that little bit longer (8 months) writing an album that is less polished, raw and from the heart. The album has a warmer rock feel that previous work and it was certainly well received by Glasgow.

What's next? Hopefully more visits to The UK and lots more live shows. After wishing them luck with their performance I headed upstairs to join the crowd and immerse myself in a set list of songs that I love.

Uh Huh Her's set was filled with emotion. Their newly found 'rock feel' evident from the start. The girls are very different to each other on stage. Cam is a very technical musician and the concentration on her face is immense while also providing strong lead vocals and fronting the musical performance. Leisha provides soulful harmony vocals while energetically dancing around with her guitar and looking like she is having the time of her life. A perfect match for each other.

Throughout their set they covered a mix of songs from both albums and also their EPs, 'I See Red' and 'Black & Blue'. and the crowd was right behind the band from the get go. The ever expected 'Alice' screams (Leisha's L Word character) were present throughout the evening, although I must admit nowhere near as much as I had expected. They were certainly reminded tonight that this woman is not Alice... she is a musician through and through... and a very good one too. The room might have had an awful lot of Alice fans in it but these women were here to see Cam as well. Even if some of them didn't know it till she walked out on stage. These girls took their heart and soul on stage with them and gave a performance that will be ingrained on the minds of the crowd for years to come. The atmosphere in the room and the great sound in The Arches added even more magic to this amazing live performance. This is a band we definitely want to see more of in The UK.

FUTURE GIGS

sorry, we currently have no gigs listed for this act.