After elevating other musicians, Huff steps into the spotlight
When it came to music, Amanda Huff took her time.
A versatile vocalist who recalls the range and ethereal nature of Bjork, Huff largely kept her gift to herself when she was growing up. In the past few years, she’s gained more prominence in the local scene, singing for Dream Attics, Strangelander and Thane, and fittingly starring in a live Bjork tribute concert at Company Brewing last December.
Those contributions were too splendid to stay in the background for long. Working with Los Angeles-viaMilwaukee electronic producer Strehlow, Huff finally has a full-length album to her name with “Hemiptera.”
If her past credits weren’t clear enough, the album — spanning from heady jazz to dreamy electronic music to a creative cover of Chris Issak’s “Wicked Games” — illustrates she’s one of the city’s most distinct, and impressive, emerging talents.
Early experiences: Growing up in Aurora, Ill., it was more like a secret thing. I was always doing my own thing in my bedroom or the shower or the car. I would do talent shows, but I never got into chorus or school plays or anything that was too structured. I always liked the idea of trying different voices and finding strange sounds, and this idea of play works well with the voice.
Local credits: I came here eight years ago to go to Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. I was in different musical projects through college that never took off, and I started writing songs I still perform now, but I was looking at the way music functions in relation to art and installation.
The performing part was never something I really considered; I was never socially apt. When I first came to MIAD, I met Daniel Mitchell, and we were in this tiny folk duo, the Honest Sleeves, where I’d sing harmonies to Daniel’s songs. After we disbanded, I spent time featuring on different artist’s music, like Airo Kwil, and started singing backup vocals for Dream Attics. Aaron Gardner’s Strangelander is probably the pinnacle of where I am now.
Describe your style: It’s playful. It’s about trying these different personas and trying to embody them. I want to be able to shoot in as many different directions as possible, not be pigeonholed with a style, and keep people on their toes.
Making “Hemiptera”: I definitely wanted to make an album. I just wanted to make sure when I did it it was polished enough, and make sure I was confident with my performing abilities and songwriting, learn some of the business aspects, how to manage my social media identity, all of the stuff you don’t realize goes into making music.
I met Strehlow in May 2017; he was doing a single and wanted vocals. Working with him is amazing; he’s incredibly respectful. He lets me try out weird things, which is huge. Everyone wants me to go into the studio and sing pretty, but he was all about capturing the rawness of the breath and taking things to work with artistically on his end. We both gave each other that freedom to experiment.
Favorite song on the album: “Ego” is just an interlude, but I always have a soft spot for interludes. It’s this concise telling that was written while I was contributing to the Bjork tribute and was steeped in self-doubt. (Strehlow) presented me with this simple track that was washing over me, and so I illustrated those feelings of bringing peace to the chaos that was my mind at the current time.
Resolution is the theme for most of the songs that I write. They start with some sort of internal issue and me telling a story to resolve it.
Next gig: 8 p.m. Sept. 2, AlleyWayz Concert Series, Black Cat Alley, 2122 N. Prospect Ave. No cover.
Watch two exclusive performances from Amanda Huff, including the premiere of “Nervous System,” at jsonline.com/music. Sound Check appears the 15th each month online and in the Journal Sentinel.