Meg Duffy and Gregory Uhlmann Team Up For ‘DOUBLES’ LP

Our first encounter with Meg Duffy came back in 2016, when we saw them perform at Pickathon as part of Kevin Morby‘s band. Although Duffy was only a supporting member supplying subtle, yet tasteful, guitar to Morby‘s songs, their prowess with the instrument was such a standout that they became one of my favorite performers of the weekend. The winding guitar lines were impressive, but never overly flamboyant and always in the service of the music. When it was mentioned that Meg had their own solo project called Hand Habits, I wrote the name down in my notes immediately. I was curious to hear what a full Meg Duffy project might possibly sound like. We were clearly only getting a glimpse of their capabilities in this setting, but it was enough to compel me to find out more.

The debut Hand Habits studio album, Wildly Idle (Humble Before The Void), arrived the following year, showcasing a greater example of Duffy‘s talents with gentle, ethereal melodies and hypnotic guitar work. Placeholder [2019] only solidified those songwriting skills further through affecting lyricism and an increase in random experimental moments slipped into more traditional song structures. 2021 saw two more releases for Duffy, one of which was a slightly more upbeat Hand Habits LP titled Fun House. This release gave the drums more of a presence, injected occasional electronic accents, and showcased both tempos and melodies that felt influenced by Meg‘s time contributing to studio recordings for Weyes Blood. Meanwhile, yes/and was a full-on instrumental project melding Duffy‘s delicate finger-picking with the electronic explorations of producer, Joel Ford (Oneohtrix Point Never, Alex Cameron) to craft delicate, beautiful, and fascinating ambient soundscapes. A brand new Hand Habits EP, Sugar The Bruise, just dropped in June and features a much more texturally ambitious sound than ever before, even briefly venturing into territories of spiritual jazz and disco funk. Now, after years of proving the true range and depth of their musical abilities, Duffy is leaning fully into the very skill that initially pulled us in and releasing an entire album based specifically around the guitar.

As with yes/and, the new album, Doubles is another completely instrumental collaboration. The big difference this time around is that Meg is working with musician, Gregory Uhlmann, and the recordings are entirely guitar based. I’m much less familiar with Uhlmann‘s material, but he released an album titled Again And Again earlier this year through the independent, artist-run Brooklyn label, Northern Spy, known for adventurous releases by such experimental music pioneers as Arto Lindsay, Rhys Chatham, and Marc Ribot, a joint effort by J. Spaceman & Kid Millions, not to mention a couple of more left-field Thurston Moore collabs. Uhlmann has also played guitar alongside Duffy in Hand Habits and as touring members of Perfume Genius. Ironically enough, after offering their guitar and/or slide-guitar and instrumental chops on albums for everyone from War On Drugs and William Tyler to Sylvan Esso, the one album that I find Duffy credited as solely contributing vocals is Uhlmann‘s 2020 effort, Neighborhood Watch, on Topshelf Records, a label whose roster includes such Asian post-rock and/or math-rock musicians as LITE, Mouse On The Keys, Mid-Air Thief, toe, Elephant Gym, and Tricot.

Recorded on a “borrowed tape recorder” at Uhlmann‘s brother’s house in Los Angeles, Doubles is the duo’s first real one-on-one collaboration and consists of a series of one-take improvisations. One of my favorite things about Duffy is how willing and eager they seem to be to test out new ideas with everything they do, so this type of approach to a project is definitely something that gets my attention. I’m a huge fan of experimental guitar work by artists like the late Manuel Göttsching, but the concept of having two incredibly talented and adventurous musicians bouncing off each other in real-time allows for a less controlled or meticulously planned recording than either one might embark on if going solo. This unity through mutual admiration provides a unique sort of freedom allowing each guitarist to sharpen their respective metaphorical swords off one another while trusting the other to keep things grounded as they venture off and explore, before reuniting at various points throughout. There is a push and pull created through these exercises that equally breeds moments of euphoric triumph as it does tranquil meditative synchronicity.

The first sample that we get of these results comes in the form of the aptly titled, “Braid,” with the intertwining guitars reflecting the chemistry that the pair possess with one another. There’s a confidence and cohesion in this tune that makes the fact that the recording session was being winged the whole time that much more impressive. That said, there’s also an underlying, yet tangible, magic to the song that can only be achieved from something that was freshly born in the moment.

The following excerpts from the press release provide more insight into the remainder of the LP, the intention behind it, and the overall creative process as a whole.

Side A of Doubles consists of two guitars in conversation: looping feelings, braiding sound, blowing kisses, and finishing each other’s sentences. Less of an echo and more of nod, the songs unfold in radical, mutual witnessing. Refraining from any over dubs or edits on the final tracks, the immediacy of the compositions makes it feel like we are in the room with them.

Where Side A establishes a glistening intimacy, Side B takes on the tone of sonic scavenging, incorporating sounds from their past year of touring together. Taking the self as source material, the second half of the album dismantles the presence of Side A in order to incorporate the tactility of memory. Using samples from the road and from the world, these compositions are a scrap book of glued and chopped up sound.

Doubles is slated to be released on September, 22 via Orindal Records. Those who are interested in pre-ordering the album can visit the duo’s Bandcamp page to pick it up on limited edition vinyl or cassette.