better than aliens

When I first met Marty from Better Than Aliens, he introduced himself
very professionally and handed me a business card, which I thought was
hilariously cool. Wow! A band that has business cards! I was floored.
On Wednesday I was lucky enough to meet with the whole three-piece and
get a glimpse into the minds of guys who, while very organized and
driven, seem to be doing music for all the right reasons.
Better Than Aliens has yet to release an EP or an album, but the
backlog of shows that they've played along with frequent shout-outs
from other bands and fans in the Bay Area have given them a good
amount of buzz. Their MySpace page is filled with somewhat old songs –
songs that were recorded when the band was just a two-piece.

Marty (guitar, keyboard, vocals) and Justin (drums) met on Craigslist
and immediately started working with the songs that Marty had already
written. The two recorded some songs in Marty's home studio, went
through at least three temporary bass players, and finally welcomed
Dan, again with help from Craigslist. But even after bass was added to
the equation, Marty said there is still some adjusting to do.

"We have a tendency to fill in the sound, and we need to leave room
for [Dan]," he said.

Part of this struggle to achieve balance comes as the band rehearses
songs that Marty composes. Marty brings the songs to the band either
as complete songs or sometimes just as ideas or riffs, and the guys
tweak the arrangements based on how each member hears the song.

"Sometimes we have a tendency to hear things differently," Marty said,
"and that changes the way it sounds."

Justin added, "The transitions and how to connect the pieces really
come on the fly."

When it comes to style, Better Than Aliens is truly hard to
categorize. Their influences range from Engine Down to Radiohead to
Sigur Ros, and the style is just as diverse from song to song. A key
element to the sound is Marty's voice. Dan joked, "It's like if David
Bowie and David Byrne had a kid, it would be Marty." Try not to think
about that one too hard.

Marty commented that his voice was not always the way it is now, but
that he used to dislike it quite a bit. "I used to suck at singing,"
he said, "and I literally one day discovered how my voice was supposed
to sound. From then on I felt like I was actually comfortable singing
because it felt like myself."

He went on, modestly saying that he didn't feel that he had much stage
presence. "I'm not overly confident like a lot of singers," he said.

Justin countered, "You have presence, Marty." We all laughed at the
fatherly reassurance. "You're not an arrogant dick, let's put it that
way. You don't wear only American Apparel and stuff like that."

Offstage it was clear that this is a band of very down-to-earth guys.
Whether or not that is a good quality to have for a band who's trying
to make it in rock and roll is another question, but it's perfect for
San Francisco, and they make lowly rock writers like me happy.

And the music is sure to make you happy. Because it is difficult to
qualify, the listening experience is one of a promising first date.
You listen intently to everything that is happening without even
realizing it, and the goosebumps are completely inevitable. The
melodies are entrancing and the arrangements are fantastic, especially
taking into consideration that these recordings were done with just
two members.

Better Than Aliens has just gotten started. The band plans to record
an EP in Marty's home studio in the next few months, and they are in
the early stages of putting together a California tour. They've also
put their efforts toward getting into Noise Pop and have ambitions to
get on an indie label someday.

For now, you can catch Better Than Aliens tomorrow (Saturday) at El
Rio with Here Here and Disastroid. Definitely check it out. 9pm, $7.

Published on Fri, 4 Jan 2008 13:51:10 2 Comments | Post a Comment - The Deli Magazine

Better Than Aliens CD Release Show Saturday at Du Nord
July 2, 2008

Indie/electro trio Better Than Aliens will celebrate the release of their debut EP this Saturday at Cafe Du Nord.
After playing quite a few shows in the Bay Area and building a following, the band decided it was about time to put out an EP, which was recorded in vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist Marty Mattern's bedroom. All of the tracks, including bass played by Daniel Leech and drums played by Justin Pittman, were recorded in one take.
"We recorded the all the drums in two days back in late February," Mattern wrote in an email. "The bass was done in 4 hours; but the mixing and the artwork has taken the most work to complete."
The sound is melodic and fairly sparse because the band doesn't try to layer their three instruments into heavy arrangements, but keeps them simple. This is particularly evident during the live show and feels refreshingly easy to stomach. But drama and emphasis are in no short supply as Mattern interjects wide vibrato and falsetto into his vocal lines in a few key areas.
While their live show almost equally includes guitar-based songs vs. keyboard-based electro songs, the 5-song EP only includes one song with keyboard. But fans can get their fill of those synth gems by downloading two of them from their MySpace page, including this one:

Better Than Aliens - "Wonder"
The show will also feature Sky Parade of LA, LSD and the Search for God and Eyes (with members of The Finches and Roots of Orchis). The show starts at 9:30pm and costs $10. Better Than Aliens will play the closing set.

Link: http://www.thebaybridged.com/2008/07/02/better-than-aliens-cd-release-show-saturday-at-du-nord/#more-1200 - Written by: Emily Logan at The Bay Bridged