Uh Huh Her 'See Red' on Debut EP

Let's get this straightaway: Uh Huh Her is a Los Angeles-based band -- musician/actress Leisha Hailey and singer/producer/multi-instrumentalist Camila Grey (Mellowdrone, Dr. Dre, Melissa Auf Der Maur) -- named after a PJ Harvey B-side from the identically titled 2004 PJ Harvey album.

"It's a great song," Grey tells Spinner of the Harvey tune and subsequent band name. "And we just liked the way it sounded, really."

Uh Huh Her, who released their debut EP, 'I See Red,' this week, marks Hailey's formal return to music after her previous outfit the Murmurs, and later, Gush, disbanded more than five years ago. Though she garnered success with her portrayal of journalist Alice Pieszecki on Showtime's 'The L Word,' Hailey, who's currently in Vancouver shooting the show's fifth season, considers herself equal parts musician and actress. "I don't feel torn at all," she says. "I find that they inspire each other. They help me, especially with the live show. In a way, you're playing someone else when you're onstage. As far as time commitment goes, it's hard. But it's how I like to live [laughs]. I'm an overachiever. It's kinda my thing."

Hailey and Grey first crossed paths one year ago following a Mellowdrone show, which brought forth the impetus for UHH, a self-described indie electro-pop hybrid. "I had been waiting to meet someone who I was really into," Hailey says. "[Cam] and I started talking about it and met up a couple of times. We just really liked each other."

The two, together with drummer Alicia Warrington, whom Grey knew through their mutual work with Kelly Osbourne, began writing and recording songs for 'Red,' last January. In May, however, Warrington took her leave in pursuit of other musical opportunities. Despite the amicable split, Hailey and Grey are in no rush to find a replacement. "The plan was kind of to deal with it as a duo," Grey says. "And then when Leisha's done with the show in the fall -- when we actually start touring -- to go ahead and hire somebody then."

"For now, we're just going to play with the electronic drums," Hailey chimes. "Cam was just up here [in Vancouver] for a couple of weeks and we rehearsed it like that. It sounds really cool."

The two are currently writing songs for a proper full-length album to be released early next year, with a sound that finds sultry crashing head on with profound, replete with elastic bass lines, ambient synths and hypnotic backbeats. "[The sound] is the evolution from our backgrounds," Grey says. "We slammed them all together and that's what came out."

While Hailey got her pedigree in indie rock early on, Grey grew from her classical piano studies as a child and her father-fed Neil Diamond diet, to eclectic ventures providing vocals for film score composer Hans Zimmer, Dr. Dre and Busta Rhymes, among others.

"It's such a weird world," Grey says. "Here I am, little me with all of these crazy hip-hop superstars. I didn't feel like I fit in, but one day I played Dre one of my songs, and he was impressed that I could actually play something. We became buddies and I'd go there and hang out, and we'd play each other music. They couldn't be more lovely people -- and smart. To be able to go into that world and have the two collide is really interesting."

Meanwhile, the duo, whose single 'Say So' landed at an impressive No. 28 on iTunes' pop chart this week, will play a free, one-off show in L.A. on August 19, with more dates expected later this year. And though Hailey's stardom has ensured Uh Huh Her a ready-made fan base, she's not interested in incubating that support. "I love the fans that we have because of ['The L Word'], and all the good things that come with it," she says. "But I don't want to be referenced as that 'L Word' chick's band. I worry about that. To me, they're completely different worlds. It will be a challenge but it's up to us to prove that we're something beyond that. Of course, we are. That's a no-brainer to us."

"Hopefully, people will hear the music first," Grey says. "That's the hardest part -- trying to get out of that shadow. It's a beautiful shadow, but a shadow nonetheless."