Photo by Joyce Kim
Appreciators of deep musical realms, rejoice! We’ll see you for the sunset this February 15th high atop one of LA’s most cherished overlooks for the first group listen of Gregory Uhlmann’s Extra Stars, out in March with our International Anthem family. We’re also bringing out our telescope for the first time ever to share turns gazing at the stars, whether Hollywood or celestial.
Following a long run of supporting work with artists like Perfume Genius, Tasha, and Hand Habits, alongside an eponymous recorded output largely focused on his more singer-songwriter oriented music, Gregory Uhlmann has spent the better part of the last couple years trotting out album after album of groundbreaking instrumental modern music.
From the sparse melodies and hushed ambient soundscapes of Small Day, to his much-lauded duo outing Doubles with Meg Duffy, to his perhaps lesser-known but no-less-brilliant duo record Water Map with Dustin Wong, to the lush chamber-jazz interplay of his trio recording with saxophonist Josh Johnson and bassist Sam Wilkes, to the two genre-breaking albums he released as a co-leader of synth-laced trance-jazz quintet SML (2024’s Small Medium Large and 2025’s How You Been), Uhlmann has subtly, if not quietly, established himself as an essential presence in some of the most progressive recordings of this decade.
Extra Stars encompasses all he’s learned through all the above. A radiant sidereal serenade, the album’s fourteen miniature infinities swirl serendipitous synthesis and measured, melody-rich song into a panoramic menagerie of sound. As the album’s title was inspired by a trip to California’s Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, where the reality of the night sky’s starry expanse stretches beyond the boundaries of belief, we hope to see you at the empyrean edge of Elysian Park alongside Peter Shire’s Angels Point sculpture in shared collective vision.
You bring a blanket, we’ll bring a telescope.
Greg will be hanging out to introduce the album.
We’ll press play shortly after 5p, but feel free to arrive earlier to picnic and enjoy the day.
Gregory Uhlmann is a guitarist, composer, and producer from Chicago living in Los Angeles. His musical palette embraces beautiful warble-y sounds, low fuzzy vibrations, and playful rhythms that overlap in surprising ways. His often-otherworldly guitar tones and syncopated picking style are immediately recognizable across a vast array of musical collaborations, and that distinction while maintaining a shapeshifting flexibility is no small feat.
Uhlmann’s early work as co-leader of LA indie experimental outfit Fell Runner established his presence on the West coast scene after relocating from Chicago, and his resume since includes stints as a regular recording/touring member of Perfume Genius, Hand Habits, and Anna Butterss’s backing band. Whether he’s contributing to the LA trance-jazz improvisation of SML, the progressive electro-acoustic chamber music of his trio with Josh Johnson and Sam Wilkes, or in the hushed melancholic rhythm machine of Duffy x Uhlmann (his duo with Meg Duffy of Hand Habits), it’s clear that Uhlmann is a lead asset in every collaboration.
His work as a solo artist ranges from cleverly arranged chamber-folk songwriting to beautifully abstract experimental jazz-informed instrumental compositions, and his latest album, Extra Stars, explores that latter territory to a deeper degree than ever before. This new work, his solo debut for International Anthem, pulls Uhlmann even further into the spotlight while showcasing his knack for directing the talent of his community of collaborators, establishing him as one of the most exciting emergent artists in modern music.
