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Meg Duffy

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For those of the same or a similar name, see Megan Duffy (disambiguation).

Meg Duffy
Duffy performing at the Getty in Los Angeles, CA in 2022
Duffy performing at the Getty in Los Angeles, CA in 2022
Background information
BornAmsterdam, New York
GenresFolk, indie folk, indie-rock
OccupationMusician
Instrument(s)Guitar, Slide Guitar, Piano, Bass
Years active2013–present
LabelsWoodsist Records, Saddle Creek, Fat Possum

Meg Duffy is an American musician and guitarist who has played as a studio musician on records by The War on Drugs, Weyes Blood, Perfume Genius, Sasami, and William Tyler, among many others. Duffy was a longtime member of Kevin Morby's live band, is a current member of Perfume Genius's band, and is the sole member of indie-rock band Hand Habits.[1]

Background

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Duffy is originally from Amsterdam, New York, and first started playing guitar at 17, although they had played drums since 5th grade.[2] After graduating from high school, Duffy attended Schenectady County Community College for guitar performance as the only female student in the program.[2] After graduating from college they briefly relocated to Albany, New York, prior to joining Morby's band in Los Angeles, California.[2] Duffy uses non-binary gender-neutral pronouns.[3][4]

Session work

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Duffy is credited on a number of albums as a session musician. They played a slide guitar solo on "Holding On" off The War on Drugs' Grammy-winning album A Deeper Understanding,[5] and in 2019 they played on William Tyler's instrumental album Goes West.[6] Duffy contributed guitar, slide guitar, and bass on the albums Fading Lines (2016) and European Heartbreak (2018) by Dutch artist Amber Arcades.[7][8] Duffy played slide guitar on "Seven Words", a 2016 track from the album Front Row Seat to Earth by Weyes Blood.[9] Duffy appeared on Mega Bog's albums Happy Together (2017) and Dolphine (2019).[10][11] Duffy was a regular member of indie rock musician Kevin Morby's live band from 2015 to 2018, and played guitar, piano, and bass on his 2017 album City Music.[12]

Duffy collaborated with music Jenn Wasner on Wasner's second album as Flock of Dimes, Head of Roses.[13] They are also heavily featured in Sylvan Esso's expanded live band from their WITH tour, of which a full-length concert film and double LP WITH was released. Duffy also performed on the follow-up EP, WITH LOVE.

Their other latest credits include playing guitar on SASAMI's album Squeeze, Christian Lee Hutson's Quitters, Weyes Blood's And In the Darkness, Hearts Aglow, Mega Bog's Life, and Another, Hurray for the Riff Raff's The Past Is Still Alive, and many more.

Hand Habits

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Meg Duffy (center) performing with Hand Habits at Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, UK in 2019

Duffy is the founder, primary songwriter, and only permanent member of the Los Angeles-based band Hand Habits.[14] Their first release as Hand Habits was a 2012 split record titled Small Shifts (included as part of the pinky demos).[15] On September 25, 2015, Hand Habits released double EPs titled This Sounds Like Nothing Tonight and This Sounds Like Nothing Before.[16][17]

Wildly Idle (2017)

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Their first full length record Wildly Idle (Humble Before the Void) was released by Woodsist Records in 2017.[18]

Wildly Idle was self-produced by Duffy and recorded partially in Saugerties, New York and partially at their home in Highland Park.[4] Kevin Morby said about the album: "Wildly Idle feels incredibly intimate, like a secret between her and the listener. It hits soft, like warm water, and before you know it it is all around you – a bath, and Meg's whisper has made its way inside you".[19] In reviewing the album for Pitchfork, Quinn Moreland wrote: "Duffy sings of romances come and gone without ever sounding jaded or spiteful; future love promises a mystery, a sensuality that’s open like the road".[18]

placeholder (2019)

[edit]

On March 1, 2019 Hand Habits released their second studio album, placeholder, produced by Brad Cook in Justin Vernon's Wisconsin studio.[20][21] Duffy stated that the songs on placeholder "are about accountability and forgiveness .... These are all real stories. I don't fictionalize much".[22]

2020 to 2021

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In 2020, Hand Habits released singles "Pictures of Flowers", a collaboration with Jess Williamson,[23][24] and "Comfortable", a collaboration with Ryan Hemsworth.[25][26] They released their EP dirt in February 2021,[27] and in June of that same year, they released the singles "motherless" and "no reply", produced by Luke Temple and Jeremy Harris.[28]

yes/and (2021)

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Duffy's collaborative project with producer Joel Ford, yes/and, debuted with a self-titled album in July 2021.[29][30][31]

Fun House (2021)

[edit]

In August 2021, Hand Habits announced their upcoming album Fun House, and released the first single "Aquamarine".[32][33] The album, which was produced by Sasami and engineered by Kyle Thomas, was released on October 22, 2021.[34] In their positive review of the album, Pitchfork noted: "[Fun House] embodies all Duffy’s gifts at once, bringing their virtuosic talent into their own wheelhouse, on their own terms."[35] The FADER dubbed the album a "breakthrough," with Shaad D'Souza writing that the album is "lush, bright, in constant forward motion, in a constant state of change... Duffy’s third and best record, it possesses some grimy, earthen magic."[36]

2022

[edit]

On September 14, 2022, Hand Habits released two new songs "Greatest Weapon," a song about "coming to grips with the dance of time," [37] and "Under The Water" via Sylvan Esso's Psychic Hotline label.[38] The latter track is a collaboration between Duffy and Sylvan Esso's Amelia Meath.[39]

Sugar the Bruise (2023)

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In March 2023, Hand Habits announced a six-track album Sugar the Bruise, which was released by Fat Possum on June 16.[40] The record was co-produced by Duffy and Luke Temple, with additional production from Philip Weinrobe and Jeremy Harris, and was recorded at Panoramic House Studios in Stinson Beach, CA.[41][42] Of the album, Paste Magazine writes, "these chapters are personal, droll, flushed and cresting; wondrously experimental and deftly consummate; a skyline of everydayness... Duffy paves a new slate, growing slowly into subversive song constructions and articulating how a body might begin tumbling through familiar habitats with a romantic, curious and joyous eye."[41]

Equipment

[edit]

In a 2017 interview, Duffy stated they play a Fender Lone Star Stratocaster with a rosewood fretboard.[4] The guitar, they stated, is set up with Seymour Duncan pickups in a HSS configuration (a single coil at the neck position, a single coil in the middle position and a humbucker at the bridge position.[4]), also known as a “fat strat.”

Discography (as Hand Habits)

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LP

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  • Wildly Idle (Humble Before the Void) (2017)
  • placeholder (2019)
  • yes/and (2021) (collaboration with Joel Ford)
  • Fun House (2021)
  • Fun House + Blueprints (2022)

EP

[edit]
  • pinky demos (2012)
  • Small Shifts (2014)
  • This Sounds Nothing Like Tonight (2015)
  • This Sounds Nothing Like Before (2015)
  • Dirt (2021)[27]
  • Sugar the Bruise (2023)[40]

Singles

[edit]
  • "Yr Heart" (2017)
  • "Pictures of Flowers" (2020) (collaboration with Jess Williamson)
  • "Comfortable"(2020) (collaboration with Ryan Hemsworth)
  • "4th of July" (2021)
  • "motherless" (2021)
  • "no reply" (2021)
  • "Aquamarine" (2021)
  • "No Difference" (2021)
  • "Graves" (2021)
  • "Clean Air" (2021)
  • "Greatest Weapon" (2022)
  • "Under The Water" (2022) (collaboration with Amelia Meath)
  • "Something Wrong" (2023)
  • "Private Life" (2023)
  • "The Bust of Nefertiti" (2023)

Live albums

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  • Audiotree Live (2017)

Additional credits and collaborations

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Full list of additional credits/collaborations showing year, album, artist, and credit

Year Album Artist Credit
2024 Big For You Zsela Guitar
2024 The Cool Cloud of Okayness Tara Jane O'Neil Guitar Processor 10
2024 sentiment Claire Rousay Guitar
2024 The Past Is Still Alive Hurray for the Riff Raff Guitar (Electric); Background Vocals, Synthesizer; Slide Guitar
2023 End of Everything Mega Bog Guitar
2022 Squeeze SASAMI Guitar
2022 Quitters Christian Lee Hutson Guitar (Electric)
2022 Greeneville Angel Olsen, Lucinda Williams Vocals
2022 And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow Weyes Blood Guitar
2021 yes/and yes/and Guitar (Electric), Loops, Guitar (acoustic), Guitar (baritone). Production
2021 Dirt Hand Habits Primary Artist
2021 Life, and Another Mega Bog Group Member, Guitar, Guitar (Electric)
2021 I Want the Door to Open Lala Lala Engineer
2021 It's Not So Hard Chris Cohen Guitar
2021 No Reply Hand Habits Guitar, Vocals, Composer, Synthesizer, Loops
2021 Motherless Hand Habits Primary Artist
2021 Neighborhood Watch Gregory Uhlmann Vocals
2021 Fun House Hand Habits Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Baritone), Guitar (Electric), Guitar (Nashville), Slide Guitar, Vocals
2020 WITH LOVE Sylvan Esso Guitar
2020 WITH Sylvan Esso Guitar, Musician, Primary Artist
2020 The Fountain Night Shop Guitar
2020 Quarter-Life Crisis Quarter-Life Crisis Composer
2020 Beginners Christian Lee Hutson Guitar (Electric)
2020 You Think It's Like This But Really It's Like This Mirah Primary Artist, Producer
2019 Pictures of Flowers Hand Habits / Jess Williamson Primary Artist
2019 Vagabon Vagabon Guitar Loops, Slide Guitar, Textural Sampling
2019 Placeholder Hand Habits Producer, Bird Calls, Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Baritone), Loop, Organ, Percussion, Piano, Sounds, Synthesizer, Vocals
2019 Oh My God Kevin Morby Guitar
2019 Heartbreak City Apex Manor Engineer, Group Member, Guitars
2019 Gold Past Life Fruit Bats Guitar
2019 Goes West William Tyler Guitar (Electric), Loop
2019 Every Woman Vagabon Slide Guitar
2019 Dolphine Mega Bog Performer
2018 European Heartbreak Amber Arcades Slide Guitar, Bass
2017 Wildly Idle (Humble Before the Void) Hand Habits Arranger, Composer, Engineer, Mixing, Producer
2017 Yr Heart Hand Habits Primary Artist
2017 Holding On The War on Drugs Slide Guitar
2017 City Music Kevin Morby Guitar, Piano, Bass, Vocals
2017 A Deeper Understanding The War on Drugs Slide Guitar
2016 Front Row Seat to Earth Weyes Blood Slide Guitar
2016 Fading Lines Amber Arcades Guitar
2014 Small Shifts Hand Habits Primary Artist, Producer, Guitar, Bass, Vocals, Arranger, Mixing, Synthesizers, Samples

[43][44]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Hand Habits' Meg Duffy Is Your Favorite Indie Rocker's Favorite Guitarist". Pitchfork. March 6, 2019. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  2. ^ a b c Lomberg, Cory (January 11, 2017). "If You Like Being Chill, You'll Love This Band Guitarist Meg Duffy Started". Noisey. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  3. ^ "Meg Duffy of Hand Habits Embraces the Undefinable". FLOOD. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  4. ^ a b c d Perlmutter, Adam (March 28, 2017). "Hand Habits' Meg Duffy: Guitar Poetry". premierguitar.com. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  5. ^ Listen to 'Holding On' by The War on Drugs, retrieved March 7, 2019
  6. ^ "William Tyler: Goes West". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  7. ^ "Fading Lines – Amber Arcades | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  8. ^ "European Heartbreak – Amber Arcades | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  9. ^ "Weyes Blood: Front Row Seat to Earth". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  10. ^ Moreland, Quinn (February 6, 2017). "Mega Bog: Happy Together". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  11. ^ Moreland, Quinn (July 3, 2019). "Mega Bog: Dolphine". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  12. ^ "City Music – Kevin Morby | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  13. ^ ""Album Review: Flock of Dimes, 'Head of Roses'"". April 8, 2021. Retrieved August 5, 2021.
  14. ^ "Hand Habits". Hand Habits. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  15. ^ "Small Shifts, by Hand Habits". Hand Habits. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  16. ^ "This Sounds Nothing Like Before, by Hand Habits". Hand Habits. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  17. ^ "This Sounds Nothing Like Tonight, by Hand Habits". Hand Habits. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  18. ^ a b "Hand Habits: Wildly Idle (Humble Before the Void)". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  19. ^ "Wildly Idle (Humble Before The Void), by Hand Habits". Hand Habits. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  20. ^ "Hand Habits: placeholder". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  21. ^ Sandstrom, Adelaide (February 21, 2019). "Hand Habits Makes Its Most Fully-Realized Statement on Placeholder". NPR. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  22. ^ "placeholder". Saddle Creek. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  23. ^ Schmidtke, Aaron (June 26, 2020). "Jess Williamson and Hand Habits unite on "Pictures of Flowers"". Earmilk. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  24. ^ Pikus, Lia (June 24, 2020). "Jess Williamson Shares New Song "Pictures of Flowers" Feat. Hand Habits". Paste Magazine. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  25. ^ Breihan, Tom (November 12, 2020). "Quarter-Life Crisis – "Comfortable" (Feat. Hand Habits)". Stereogum. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  26. ^ Gregory, Allie (November 12, 2020). "Ryan Hemsworth's Quarter-Life Crisis Shares Hand Habits Collaboration "Comfortable"". Exclaim!. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  27. ^ a b Gallagher, Alex (January 19, 2021). "Hand Habits announces new EP dirt, shares lead single". NME. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  28. ^ Pearis, Bill (June 14, 2021). "Listen to Hand Habits' new single: "motherless" & "no reply"". Brooklyn Vegan. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  29. ^ Rettig, James (April 23, 2021). "Yes/And – "Ugly Orange" & "Centered Shell"". Stereogum. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
  30. ^ "Meg Duffy (Hand Habits) and Joel Ford Are Casually Methodical". Talkhouse. July 22, 2021. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
  31. ^ Bloom, Madison (April 23, 2021). "Hand Habits and Joel Ford Form New Project Yes/And, Share Songs: Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved August 5, 2021.
  32. ^ Leas, Ryan (August 3, 2021). "Hand Habits – "Aquamarine"". Stereogum. Retrieved August 5, 2021.
  33. ^ Blistein, Jon (August 3, 2021). "Hand Habits Preview New Album With Tender Dancefloor Tune 'Aquamarine'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  34. ^ Pearis, Bill (October 22, 2021). "Hand Habits' Meg Duffy discusses the inspirations behind new LP 'Fun House'". Brooklyn Vegan. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
  35. ^ "Hand Habits: Fun House". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  36. ^ "Inside Hand Habits' Fun House". The FADER. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  37. ^ "Hand Habits enlists Sylvan Esso's Amelia Meath for new split single". The FADER. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  38. ^ Farrell, Margaret (September 14, 2022). "Hand Habits Release Two New Tracks for Sylvan Esso's Psychic Hotline Single Series". Flood Magazine. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
  39. ^ Darville, Jordan (September 14, 2022). "Hand Habits enlists Sylvan Esso's Amelia Meath for new split single". Fader Magazine. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
  40. ^ a b "Hand Habits Announces Tour Dates and Sugar the Bruise, Shares New Song". Pitchfork. March 27, 2023. Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  41. ^ a b Mitchell, Matt. "Hand Habits Soften the Ache". Paste Magazine. Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  42. ^ Murray, Robin (March 28, 2023). "Hand Habits Announces New Mini-Album 'Sugar The Bruise' | News". Clash Magazine. Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  43. ^ "Hand Habits | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  44. ^ "Meg Duffy | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
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