THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In a world full of lies and deception, it’s important to live within the truth when it comes to what we tell ourselves. That’s what Poet Lies, the debut album by San Diego’s Moondaddy, is all about.
Multi-instrumentalist and driving force behind the project Cara Potiker wrote the record as a means of grappling with difficulties she’s lived with for most of her life. An escapist at heart, Potiker’s manner of getting away during the early days of the pandemic, when no one could go anywhere, meant diving deep into songwriting as a coping mechanism. Yet in that process of solitude and introspection, Potiker discovered a few aspects of herself that she no longer wanted to keep buried, and it all unfolds within the notes of the tracks. The 11 songs that make up Poet Lies all comment on establishing a balance between working to resolve that which ails and being proud of the person those ailments helped shape — an interesting dichotomy that manifests itself in many ways.
When it comes to the structure and thematic approach on the new record, Potiker fervidly disperses and weaves different subjects throughout. Titles like Odd Time, Angel and Alone Again may hint at a certain way they’re leaning, but they each manage to be broad in their personal specificity to instances in Potiker’s life and self. She likens the experience of writing and recording the album to that of an exorcism; it’s a release of the vice grip that love, addiction, obsessive tendencies, and self doubt have had on her which allows her to examine how those things have influenced how she has felt about herself while maneuvering through life.
Poet Lies is a reverb-soaked, shimmering fever dream of a record that sonically pulls from influences ranging from 1970s glam rock to ’90s shoegaze and trip-hop. Featuring contributions from talented local musicians from Juarez, Mexico and El Paso, Texas, it was recorded at Sonic Ranch in Tornillo, Texas by Manuel Calderon — aka El Cosmophonico — known for his production work on records by Animal Collective and Beach House, as well as his own band, Estereomance.
Listen to Poet Lies below, watch the video for Lover’s Eye above, and follow Moondaddy on Instagram.
