Friday, July 24

KEXP and Rickshaw Stop co-present

SPACEMOTH (album release party)

Hannah Lew

beaunoise

8 pm doors

$18 adv / $20 doors

all ages

Inward Eye, the new record from Spacemoth, is a journey through the inner and outer worlds, cosmic psychedelic pop made of pulsating rhythms and loops of sounds inspired by cycles of nature and the cycles of life. “It’s a metaphor for the mind’s eye, your imagination and memory, your ability to visualize experiences and emotions,” says Qudus.

The years following Spacemoth’s 2022 debut, No Past No Future, were busy ones for Qudus. Spacemoth hit the road as the support act for Tortoise, Spellling, Speedy Ortiz and others. In 2024, Qudus produced psych rock band La Luz’s (Sub Pop) News of the Universe, a collaboration that led to her joining the group on the road over the last few years. While criss-crossing the country on various tours, Qudus ensconced herself in the back of the van with a tiny synthesizer and started piecing together the songs that became Inward Eye.

Inward Eye establishes a bigger vision for Spacemoth’s sound, one charged with groove and motion. Opener “Do We Exist?” is a spacey pop banger that begins with a lone repeating bassline and slowly builds to a galactic cacophony. “Internet Fantasy” features a droning organ and modulated vocals overlaid on a bouncing bassline and crisp drum pattern that soothes in their repetition and predictability. “North Star” is an ode to connection over time and distance, while “Flower Memory” reflects the nostalgic glow of the family movies that played while she was making the record.

Sonically, Inward Eye is indebted to the interplay inherent to bands with multiple players: the intricacy of Can, the post-rock of Tortoise, the avant-pop of Stereolab. The self-command of Kraftwerk and Cluster were also huge influences. On Inward Eye, Qudus has crafted exquisitely patterned, cyclical music that still feels loose and imaginative, arranged to evoke positivity while allowing space for listeners to map out their own emotional journeys through their inner worlds.

Recorded at home in Richmond, CA and in The Best House studio with Maryam Qudus in Oakland CA, with the assistance of a crack team of West Coast musicians, this album sees Hannah Lew stepping out from behind the legacy of her two groups Grass Widow and Cold Beat. While musically bearing similarities with her previous work, “Hannah Lew” is a bold leap into direct pop territory, making ample use of a vocal style that teases out the inherent melancholy in her melodies. Mastered by Sarah Register, each song is a perfectly honed nugget that frequently pulls the heart in two directions at once.

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