Anna Jordan Huff is an American multi-media artist, composer, producer and actress best known by her stage name Anna Oxygen. After starting her music career as a member of the Space Ballerinas, a synthpop group then based in Olympia, she recorded her debut solo album '' All Your Faded Things'' (2003) with producer

Justin Trosper Justin Trosper is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, born in Olympia, Washington. He fronted the post-hardcore band Unwound from 1991 to 2002. He has also been a member of bands such as Replikants, The Young Ginns, and Worst ...

, before releasing her second album '' This Is an Exercise'' (2006) on the

Kill Rock Stars Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but was originally know ...

label. Her albums have featured guest vocalists such as

Beth Ditto Mary Beth Patterson (born February 19, 1981), known by her stage name Beth Ditto, is an American singer and songwriter most notable for her work with the indie rock band Gossip. Her voice has been compared to Etta James, Janis Joplin and T ...

and

Mirah Mirah (born Mirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn) is an American musician and songwriter based in Brooklyn, New York. After getting her start in the music scene of Olympia, Washington in the late 1990s, she released a number of well-received solo albums on K ...

. Currently based in Ithaca, New York, Huff has appeared as a guest artist on recordings by groups such as

The Microphones The Microphones are an American indie folk, indie rock, and experimental project from Olympia, Washington. The project was founded in 1996 and ended in 2003, with a short reunion following in 2007 and revivals in 2019 and 2020. Across every ite ...

. Huff is also a member of Cloud Eye Control, a performance art group, and is a member of the

psychedelic folk Psychedelic folk (sometimes acid folk or freak folk) is a loosely defined form of psychedelic music, psychedelia that originated in the 1960s. It retains the largely acoustic instrumentation of contemporary folk music, folk, but adds musical el ...

group Day/Moon. Her feature film debut as an actress was the 2005 film '' Police Beat'', and she has written for a number of film soundtracks, including the three films ''This World Made Itself'', ''Myth and Infrastructure,'' and ''Dreaming of Lucid Living'', animated by Miwa Matreyek, and numerous short films by animator Maureen Selwood.

Performance career

Space Ballerinas (1990s–2001)

Huff began her musical career in the late 1990s with the novelty synthpop group the Space Ballerinas, based in Olympia. She handled vocals and keyboards, as well as helping write their original material. Making their debut as a trio at Ladyfest Olympia, the group released two EPs on Yoyo Records entitled "Diamonds" and "If Goth Was Pink" and opened a show for

Peaches The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, non-fu ...

before disbanding in 2001. Also around this time she contributed to albums by local artists such as

The Blow The Blow is an American electro pop band, comprising Khaela Maricich and Melissa Dyne. Maricich and Dyne write, compose, produce and perform all the music. It was formed as a solo project by Maricich in 2002, and she was joined by Jona Bechtol ...

Phil Elverum Philip Whitman Elverum (; born May 23, 1978) is an American musician, songwriter, record producer and visual artist, best known for his musical projects The Microphones and Mount Eerie. Based in Anacortes, Washington, in the mid-2000s he began ...

, and

Karl Blau Karl Blau is an American indie rock and country vocalist, producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but originally from Anacortes, Washington. A member of the Knw-Yr-Own/K Records collective, he is know ...

Solo material, acting (2002–2007)

Huff's solo career started in 2002 after she moved from Olympia to

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

. She then recorded '' All Your Faded Things'' with producer

, which was released on Cold Crush Records (an affiliate of

Dim Mak Records Dim Mak Records is an independent, Los Angeles-based record label, events company, and lifestyle brand founded by Steve Aoki in 1996. The label has released music under the genres of punk, indie rock, hardcore, hip hop, and electronic dance ...

founded by

Derek Fudesco Pretty Girls Make Graves was a post-punk band formed in Seattle in 2001, named after The Smiths' song of the same name (which itself was named after a quote from Jack Kerouac's ''The Dharma Bums''). Andrea Zollo and Derek Fudesco had played to ...

Murder City Devils The Murder City Devils is an American garage rock band formed in 1996. History The band's original lineup, consisting of Spencer Moody, Dann Gallucci, Derek Fudesco, Coady Willis, and Nate Manny, formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1996. Gabe Ker ...

and Steve Aoki) in 2003. MacKenzie Wilson of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

termed the album synthpop and commented on the "minimalist approach" of the production, stating "she adds a bit of sauce to the new-millennium electroclash stage and celebrates the delicious design of classic new wave." Huff's feature film debut as an actress was in the 2005 film '' Police Beat'', an American crime film written by Charles Mudede of '' The Stranger''. After releasing the single "45 Meet Jennifer", Huff released her second album '' This Is an Exercise'' on the

label on February 21, 2006. As Anna Oxygen, she composed the album herself, handling primary vocals and sequencing. It featured guest artists such as Kitty Jensen and Mirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn as vocalists. Portland artist

Jona Bechtolt Jona Bechtolt (born December 2, 1980) is an electronic musician and multimedia artist based in Portland, Oregon, United States, best known for his band YΔCHT. He is a former member of The Badger King, Dirty Projectors, and The Blow. YΔCHT bega ...

helped Huff with the cover art. With mostly original music, the album also includes a cover of " Willow's Song" by American composer Paul Giovanni The album was met with a largely positive reception. The ''

Phoenix New Times ''Phoenix New Times'' is a free digital and print media company based in Phoenix, Arizona. ''New Times'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music and arts, as well as longform narrative journalism. A weekly print issue ...

'' wrote that Huff's vocal stylings were "a perfect contrast to the rhythmically ebullient programmed synths and beats supporting them - backdrops coursing, playful, robotic, and pop basic." In 2007, as Anna Oxygen she released a single on the "Play, Kids Compilation" on Desoto Records.

Cloud Eye Control (2007–present)

Allison Wolfe, Anna Oxygen & Jen Smith 2011

While attending

CalArts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a private art university in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of both ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

as a graduate student in 2007, Huff formed Cloud Eye Control with fellow students Miwa Matreyek and Chi-wang Yang. Cloud-Eye Control is an experimental theater group, with Huff handling composition, co-creation and serving as a primary performer. In 2009 the group completed and performed the multimedia performance art piece entitled ''Under Polaris,'' first performed in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

and hosted by the Portland Institute of Contemporary Art (PICA). ''Under Polaris'' sold out a five-day run at REDCAT in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, and was featured at the 2009 National Performers Network conference in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...

. In 2010 the show traveled to the Exit Festival in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

, and the Fusebox Festival in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

. The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' called the show "retro-futuristic" and "a transcendently spectacular piece of theater." Huff,

Flying Lotus Steven Ellison (born October 7, 1983), known by his stage name Flying Lotus or sometimes FlyLo, is an American record producer, DJ, filmmaker and rapper from Los Angeles. He is also the founder of the record label Brainfeeder. Flying Lotus ha ...

, and Eric Lindley contributed music to various animated performances by Miwa Matreyek, including ''This World Made Itself'', ''Myth and Infrastructure,'' and ''Dreaming of Lucid Living''. ''Myth and Infrastructure'' premiered at the Global TED Conference in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and all three films went on to various international venues including the

2014 Sundance Film Festival The 2014 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 16, 2014 until January 26, 2014 in Park City, Utah, United States, with screenings in Salt Lake City, Ogden, and Sundance Resort in Utah. The festival opened with '' Whiplash'' directed by D ...

. Huff's own live performances have been exhibited in museums such as PS1 MOMA Contemporary, The Seattle Art Museum, Hammer Museum, PICA, and the Rohsska Museet in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Collaborations (2014–present)

Huff continues to be a member of the group Day/Moon, which is a

group she founded with long-term collaborator Tamala Poljak, of the Los Angeles group Longstocking. The group has also collaborated with Tara Jane O'Neill. Huff has worked with other artists such as Eric Lindley, Becky Stark,

David Scott Stone David Scott Stone (sometimes referred to as Sir DSS and Mr. David Ascott Stone) is an American musician who has recorded and toured with artists like The Melvins, Unwound, Fantômas, The Locust, Jello Biafra, Keiji Haino, Mike Patton, Adam Jo ...

and many others in the Los Angeles scene, and was a member of the Los Angeles Ladies Choir. She has collaborated with Jack Black's wife

Tanya Haden Tanya Haden Black (born October 11, 1971) is an American artist, musician, and singer. She is one of the triplet daughters of jazz bassist Charlie Haden. She is married to actor, comedian and musician Jack Black. Career Born in New York City, s ...

on art, music and puppet shows, and can be seen alongside Black and

Kyle Gass Kyle Richard Gass (born July 14, 1960) is an American musician, comedian and actor best known for co-founding—and being a member of—Tenacious D, a Grammy-winning comedy band. He also co-founded the bands Trainwreck and the Kyle Gass Band, ...

Tenacious D Tenacious D is an American comedy rock duo formed in Los Angeles, California in 1994. It was founded by actors Jack Black and Kyle Gass, who were members of The Actors' Gang theater company at the time. The duo's name is derived from "ten ...

, promoting their Festival Supreme in a series of shorts directed by Liam Lynch.

Discography

With Space Ballerinas

*2001: ''Diamonds'' EP (YoYo Records) *2001: ''If Goth Were Pink'' EP (YoYo Records)

Solo material

Albums

Singles

Guest appearances

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oxygen, Anna American women singer-songwriters American women pop singers Synth-pop singers Evergreen State College alumni Kill Rock Stars Living people Musicians from Olympia, Washington Year of birth missing (living people) Singer-songwriters from Washington (state) American women in electronic music 21st-century American women