Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Abra Kadab. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Abra, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

My move to Los Angeles in October of 2015 is the biggest risk I’ve ever taken.

Before my move to Los Angeles, I lived in Denver, CO. My “past life” was very settled and, for the most part, very predictable. I had visited L.A. to record with Durga McBroom (backing vocalist for Pink Floyd). Durga had heard some of the music I had been working on and suggested that I move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the music industry.

Around the same time, my band situations in Denver had begun to dissolve, and the relationship I was in was no longer working. The next step seemed obvious, so I accepted her offer. I packed up a few books, most of my clothes, and all of my musical instruments and drove over 1000 miles toward the place I would soon call home. I arrived in Los Angeles after a 15 hour drive and my new life began almost immediately.

When I got my own place, I didn’t even have a bed. I slept on a futon. It was extremely uncomfortable. Sometimes I’d move the padding to the floor to try to get more comfortable. I remember laying there thinking of a quote from one of my favorite authors, Jeanette Winterson. “What you risk reveals what you value.”

I valued my music, my success, and my future as an artist, so risking basic comforts (as well as taking risks creatively) was a necessity. Thinking back on this, it made all of my physical and emotional suffering worth it. I told myself to just stick it out and endure it. I told myself this is what people mean when they use phrases like “put through a wringer” or “gold is tried by fire.”

Risk taking is central to my personality. I get bored when I’m not at the mercy of the unknown. And at that time, everything I had obtained (other than the aforementioned items), I’d found via online marketplaces, garage sales, or on the side of the road. My television was as heavy as a concrete block. It was straight out of the early 90s. And I was ecstatic when I finally exchanged that horrible futon for a real bed.

Many of the friendships I have established have been, in ways, seemingly unlikely. In the music industry, I’ve changed hands a lot. This means you meet someone, and you’re either compatible or you’re not. You may find someone to be an excellent fit and go along with that for a while. Or, you might like each other well enough on a personal level but artistically you’re on completely different paths. So then the question becomes “What do I have to offer them, and what do they have to offer me?”

The answer might be something entirely unrelated to creativity. You are your own form of currency in the sense that you just keep meeting more and more people and changing more and more hands. But eventually (as one of my former mentors used to say) you “find your tribe.” To continue along the lines of the metaphor of currency, you become someone else’s indispensable wealth, a treasure trove of ideas, perspectives, and skills. But this will only happen if you know your own worth.

I met my love in 2017, and after we moved in together, we created a cozy and dually creative environment to flourish and prosper in together. We are intellectually and artistically compatible, and there’s no denying that if I hadn’t risked everything to come to Los Angeles to seek success in the music industry, I would not be experiencing the love and stability that I have now. I am deeply grateful for this. Taking a risk and seeking self enrichment and personal betterment by moving to Los Angeles is one of the greatest, most important things I have ever done for myself.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a film composer and a recording artist. I believe my approach to lyrics may be a way in which I’m set apart from others. Another way is finding musical value in found objects, though, however uncommon, this is definitely a niche interest for many other people.

I experience a phenomenon known as synesthesia. It affects around 4 to 5% of the adult population. The easiest way to describe it is all my senses intertwine. Words have gustatory and olfactory assignments. Letters and numbers are associated with colors. When listening to music I see (in my mind’s eye) shapes, colors, and lights. The music moves in a linear fashion, much like a horizontal unraveling of a scroll. Here’s what I find interesting about this: As we know, both light and sound have a wavelength, a period of time in which they are experienced, an amplitude, and a frequency range. So when people, especially creatives, experience synesthesia it is quite possible they are perceiving something which may only SEEM imperceptible to most other people.

My approach to making music is experimental in nature, especially because I am a synesthete. I write albums according to a theme or an overarching concept. Oftentimes my lyrics are written from the perspective of a foe or a nemesis, but not always. I also love to employ the use of foley to add to the storytelling experience.

My third and latest album is called “KUBIK: When the Light Goes Out the Darkness Comes.” It’s about what happens when a person descends into utter darkness, abandoning all hope and all light. This descent could be the experience of one person, or a whole society. The album explores addiction as a form of idolatry and vices/immorality as a form of self ministry, Hollywood culture, narcissism and the nature of and will to power, fascism and Christian supremacy, obsession and self hatred, and disconnectedness. It will be released this later year.

Unless you’re listening to something purely instrumental, I believe that lyrics are the most important part of a song. People know that there are problems in the world but they are often unwilling or unable to identify the nature of the problems, especially socially. “That’s life.” “That’s just the way it is.” “It is what it is.” These are phrases that intentionally dismiss and wave off very potent, very real struggles that could be solved so easily just by simply understanding what the solutions are and actually applying them.

It really is painfully simple. If you want change it has to start with you. Understand that you yourself are a part of a world that needs to change. I deeply believe in restorative justice, and when we demand change, then we should step back and allow it to take place.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Our culture is particularly obsessed with immediate gratification, prepackaged personal interactions, and the impermanent satisfaction of dopamine hits. Mainstream society, as is more and more evident with each passing year, is, to put it kindly, an unreliable judge of character or the inherent value of any given person or thing. I am not concerned with pleasing or being understood by people who are beholden to or enthralled by pop culture.

The work itself is really it’s own reward. Whether other people find it to be relevant or important should always be a secondary or tertiary reason for creating it. Anything I make or write, I do it for myself first. I struggle with maintaining my mental health, so for me it’s giving pain, trauma, suffering, and rage a designated place to exist that isn’t inside my body or my mind.

I do hope people find value in what I do. That is only natural. But I don’t fixate on it, and I don’t take critiques from just anybody, and neither should any other artist.

As a person on the spectrum, I’ve had plenty of people tell me that I should express myself differently. “What if people misunderstand or mischaracterize you? Do it like this, not like that.” But, they way I see it, I don’t create my music with the goal of it being liked or disliked. It’s created to provide a specific experience. It’s created to usher people into a space of empathy and understanding, even for an antagonist. It’s about appreciating varied perspectives and experiences and using this vantage point to advance equality and social justice.

My advice is do exactly what YOU want to do, and only listen to people who’s opinions actually matter to you.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Begin to champion federal legislation to protect recording artists against corporate music streaming platforms and record companies that rob them of earnings that are rightfully theirs. Pay live performers fairly for their educations, their skills, and their labor. Lastly, follow the lead of Gen Z and invest in physical media such as vinyl, CDs, cassettes, and merchandise. If possible try to buy these things directly from the artists themselves. Budget for new music and go see live performances.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.theartistkubik.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.artist.kubik/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theartistkubik/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClqvuKdH2VXeRptXyAhWkrw
• Other: (Spotify) https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZPD1R9CNIVEZAfwjPTrT4?si=vj7ocZ4HTcepTcKNue6rxQ

Image Credits
Photos by: Paula Crichton