Did you ever run across a band that you just couldn’t put your finger on a way to truly describe their sound? Almost to the point that it starts an argument amongst other people who have heard of the band yet can’t describe them either? Alice Sweet Alice is a prime example of a band sounding familiar, yet they don’t sound like anything you have ever heard before. I know that may sound confusing, but after one listen of their CD Mandala, I think you just might agree.
The quartet is currently based out of Kansas City, Kansas and its origins trace back to 2007. The band consists of founder/bassist/vocalist Scott Martinez, keyboardist/vocalist Ali Kat, drummer Billy Brown and guitarist Ron Bales. Their unique sound is the culmination of four distinct individuals coming together and meshing into a totally new creation. We spoke with founder, Scott Martinez, recently about where the band is and what lies ahead in 2013 for the band.
Hey Scott! Thanks so much for making time for us today to do this interview.
No problem man and thank you for wanting to talk to me about our band!
Let’s jump right in and give our readers a bit of a background story on the band. First off, where did the name of the band originate?
It’s actually a B movie that came out in the 70s (somewhere around 1976). It was Brooke Shield’s very first movie. I think she was like 16 or 17 in the movie. A funny story is that a girlfriend of mine grew up in New York City and knew a spinning instructor and Brooke was her client. We ended up contacting her and we ended up getting her official endorsement to use the name. Hopefully, one day when we are rich and famous, we can get Brooke to star in one of our music videos – contrary to the movie, we won’t kill her in the music video (laughs).
I had heard of that movie before and I wondered if that might have been where you got it. What about your sound? I described you to a friend as sounding familiar, yet unlike anything that I have ever heard before. How did that unique sound develop?
Man, that is the coolest thing! I love the fact that you can’t wrap your head around what we sound like. You know, you’re actually not the first person who has said something similar to that. So, thank you; I appreciate that. As far as how we came together, I think it was back in 2007. I was coming off a ten year musical hiatus. I have a love/hate relationship with my own voice, so I wanted to find a female to front the band. I started looking on bandmix.com and that’s where I found Ali Kat. She has an amazing voice and she is an amazing songwriter. In 2009, I decided that I was either going to really get serious about this or I was going to keep dreaming. So I moved from Maine to Kansas City. I got lucky when it came to Billy. He did his homework and he came to a tryout all prepared and did an awesome job. The last piece was Ron, and he came to us at the end of 2010. He and Billy had been in other bands together and Billy kept mentioning his name to me, so we gave him a shot. Our first gig with Ron was in Chicago. It was a long eight hour drive from Kansas City to Chicago, but it was well worth it.
What is it about the four of you that makes this band so special and unique?
I think a big part of it is our diverse influences. Ali is a big Pink Floyd fan as well as 80s and 90s rock. Billy’s tastes are pretty diverse. He gets into everything from reggae to 80s The Police and Rush. Ron is more of an 80s hair metal guy, but he also loves Filter and A Perfect Circle. As for me, I was a skate punk kid and then I got into goth rock and new wave and bands like Dead Can Dance and the Cocteau Twins. Now, I love everything from classic rock from The Doors and Pink Floyd to classical, jazz, and blues. If it makes me think, then I like it. I think all of those influences somehow combine to create our sound. Our sound continually matures and evolves. We’re getting better at creating and working together. We’re not trying to be metal or progressive. We just want to make songs that don’t suck.
From what I’ve heard, you don’t have to worry about that because your songs do not suck. I think your sound is unique and your album Mandala that came out in 2011 is great. You guys have been working on a new album entitled Ribbons and Stones. How is that coming along?
From what I’ve heard, you don’t have to worry about that because your songs do not suck. I think your sound is unique and your album It’s close to being done, but we don’t want to rush it, so it may not be out until May. I can say that we are super happy with how it’s coming along. We recorded it live with very few guitar and vocal overdubs because we were trying to keep it as organic as possible. We’re planning on doing one or two videos for it as well.
What about taking it out on the road to the fans? Do you have any lined up that you can tell us about?
We’re in the talking stages right now and a tour depends on when we actually get the album out. We really want to tour nationally this time. We toured around Tennessee, New Orleans, and Arkansas with our last album. We may end up doing the college circuit this year and hopefully some festivals. Our goal is to take it overseas in 2014, depending on how good we do here.
Wow, going overseas seems like a pretty major target to hit. Can you elaborate on that any?
America is a hard sell for our sound, but it’s a different story overseas. We have a much bigger following over there, especially in the UK. We’re also doing very well in South America and Brazil. We have street team members in all of those places who are on the ground and spreading the word for us. I can’t wait to get over there and meet these fans, but it’s not cheap to do. We’re definitely going to go, but we just don’t know how yet (laughs).
Dream big or don’t dream at all! I think that’s an awesome thing and I really respect that. How about we wrap up this interview with a special message from the band to your fans?
I really want to thank our fans and I really want to emphasize that we are totally approachable. I probably spend at least 40 hours a week on our different social media sites. It’s so important to be open and to communicate with our fans because we truly value them. If they reach out and communicate with us, we will respond. I hate it when celebrities don’t communicate with their fans. If a fan takes the time to write to us, we will write them back and it truly surprises them. It really does go back ways because I love hearing from them and they love hearing from us. Our goal is for our music to become the soundtrack to our fan’s lives. If that happens, then I am a happy man.
