Inside the Creative Wisdom of Attic Space

Photo by Nathalya Rosado

Abraham “Attic Space” Khan is a multifaceted creative force making waves in the North Texas music scene. Known for his bass playing with the band 'Bubby,' he also excels in visual projections for various bands and festivals, including the illustrious Austin Psych Fest. Additionally, his documentary work for Dust Mothers showcases his storytelling prowess, while his flyer designs effectively promote a multitude of events across diverse platforms. Recently, I had the opportunity to inquire about his inspiring creative pursuits.

At what point did Attic Space feel like a solid part of your identity? 

Attic Space, as a project, always felt like an extension of myself in one way or another, but once I really started to get lots of visual gigs, that’s when it started to really feel like part of my identity. After my initial run of visual gigs with local bands like Bad Dad Jokes, Dust Mothers, and Maestro Maya, I guess people started to take note, and people started to address me as “Attic Space,” which was a bit of a shock at first for sure, but I loved it. 

How many projects are you currently a part of? 

It’s almost hard to say, at any given time I feel like I’m working on a million things. As of this moment, I have Attic Space, the multi-discipline music and art project, of course, and I play bass in the band Bubby, and I’m currently working on something new, a little interview-style show with a few other local creatives, the details of which are yet to be revealed. But in terms of individual projects, hell I can’t even tell you, who knows!

Has your passion for creating always existed within you? 

Oh absolutely, in one way or another. As a kid, I’d sit around all day making little home movies with my friends on those shitty flip digital cameras. In my middle school and high school years, I was in my school orchestra as a Cellist, and that’s also around the time I started DJing and learning production, and since then I’ve pretty much always had some sort of creative thing I was working on.

Can you recall the moment that you felt that passion ignite?

Instead of their being one specific moment, I can pinpoint a bunch of small moments in my life that inspired me to get up and create. When I was in elementary school, we had this general music class (shout-out Ms. Elliot!) that taught us all about the basics of music. I remember the teacher put on this DVD called Animusic, and it was this animation that some guy made in the early 2000s that used MIDI to control 3D animations, and it created this surreal, almost liminal, audio-visual experience, and my little mind was blown. I can certainly trace my desire to connect music to a visual experience to that. But beyond that, I can think of plenty of moments that really sparked my passion- Hearing “I Remember” by Deadmau5 for the first time thanks to it being featured in a Wii game, being pushed to participate in competitions by my middle school orchestra instructors, seeing a rock show with visuals for the first time, meeting some of the incredible local DFW musicians, I could go on and on. 

While being so consistent in several different creative fields, how do you keep yourself from experiencing burnout? 

I think the thing that actually keeps me from burning out is having so many projects going at any given time. Feeling uninspired to create a poster? Go work on some music. Got writer’s block? Go edit a video I’m working on. I love having lots of different things to do, it helps me scratch all the different creative itches I get. And when none of the things I’m working on do the trick for me, I can always just go start something new.  

Congratulations on being chosen to do visuals for Austin Psych Fest for the second year in a row! What was that experience like for you? 

Thanks! Yeah, it’s incredible and unbelievable having the opportunity to work on such an iconic, important festival. I can still hardly believe I got to do it once, let alone the fact that I’m gonna do it again. Being out there for Psych Fest or Levitation is just so nuts and fast-paced, truly a whirlwind. I got to meet so many incredible artists, and so many of my heroes, I couldn’t be happier. I love Levitation and TV Eye and all those guys!

What is the most exciting aspect of creating for you? 

I think the thing that excites me most is trying new things. I really can’t sit still or do the same thing over again, so when I have the opportunity to explore new territory or tackle a challenge, I find it incredibly satisfying. Also, I think the best part of the creative process is getting your work out into the world. It doesn’t matter if it’s seen by 5 people or 5,000 people- there’s just something about finishing a project and sending it out into the ether. It’s such a huge release.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?

Man, I’m drawing inspiration from everywhere all the time. Maybe it’s lame to say, but I genuinely love consuming media of all sorts, and I always find something weirder and more interesting than the last time, and every time I do, I’m immediately filled with inspiration. Very recently my main trip has been on the crossroads of Eastern mysticism and the early Western psychedelic movement. I’ve been doing deep dives on the early psych eras- in music, literature, philosophy, culture, whatever- and I’m learning so much and it’s all so fascinating. I think that’s probably the biggest source of inspiration- digging into how others perceive the world.

How do you feel these inspirations are most reflected in your art? 

It really depends on the art form. In my art and live visuals, I think the inspirations come through more literally. Something as simple as maybe throwing clips from an old movie that has a unique art style into my live visuals. But when it comes to music, it’s a lot more subtle and metaphorical (or at least I like to think it is!). I try to just absorb everything as much as I can and let it flow out in whatever way happens naturally.

Do you have any advice for someone trying to make their way into the scene? 

My advice for someone trying to break into the scene is two-fold: Show up and just do shit. By showing up, I mean the best way to get involved is by being there! Go to all the local shows, meet people, talk to people online, and become an actual part of the scene. It’ll happen way more naturally and way quicker than you’d think; it’s certainly how I started. And, as for the other part- just do shit- something I’ve realized, embarrassingly late, is that you can just work on whatever project you want to. Want to start putting out music? There’s no need to wait for a label or an audience for that matter, just put it out! Want to make a film or a music video? Pick up a camera and just start filming stuff. It seems so simple, and it’s something that I think everyone knows intuitively on some level, but it was a major revelation for me. Everything is at your fingertips and none of us are getting any younger. Just start doing stuff and sooner or later people will be along for the ride.