Have a listen to Alphanaut's first every podcast interview with the show "The Great Unknowns Presents" hosted by Mikey Jayy. During the half hour interview the discussion includes information on the upcoming album "Little Sun" as well as cuts from the previous releases "Out of Orbit" and "The Lunar Age"
"The Alphanaut sound is special in that the music doesn’t seem to flow from King Crimson or Pink Floyd, but rather more Lou Reed and Bowie combined with modern electro accents. Content-wise, it’s far more idealistic than cosmic with thoughtful sentiment far too uncommon in modern indie music, which tends to avoid global topics in favor of interpersonal ones."
"Alphanaut’s ‘Out Of Orbit’ is one of those records that bloggers, like myself, continue to ‘re-label’ again and again as they listen. I thought for sure that “Spacey Space Rock” would sum up the album in it’s entirety. And I could continue with references about the record’s kinship with several 80′s bands. And then all of the sudden ‘Don’t Hide Away From The Sun’ makes me fairly certain that I’m listening to a very modern band who is heavily influenced by TV On The Radio."
"With Out of Orbit’s overall unflinchingly ‘80s appeal, there is no denying that it is born out of an undeniable love for synth-pop. But merely putting Orbit in the synth-pop rubric is too simplistic for a record that brings into harmony a diverse range of sounds and styles that transcend what is commonly perceived of this genre. Amid its synth-pop backdrop, “Satellites Crashing,” for instance, starts off with a dreamy trumpet piece that lasts for the length of the track, marrying seamlessly with some upright bass and laid back whispering drums, and makes it more of a jazzy downtempo piece."
The Alphanaut music video for the song "Never Been To Athens" was part of 'The Freshmen' contest for pick of the week. Read about the competition by Clicking Here.
03/22/2010
"Out of Orbit" Album Review
"Alphanaut, featuring Mark Alan, has impeccable timing for the collage of instruments – subtle piano, to the airy guitar riffs. Alan's overlaying is simple, but logical. None of the songs feel overbearing or assertive. Yet, each piece is a potent delivery of emotion and multi-genre fusion."
"Mark Alan of Alphanaut gives you space jams for 2010 and beyond with his new album!
"Out of Orbit" is electro pop madness that will literally blow your mind! You get a little bit of everything from Alphanaut & company including: retro keyboard sensations & elements of pop, funk, jazz and hip-hop."
"The musical journey of MARK ALAN - and his project ALPHANAUT - seems similar to the story of the protagonist from DAVID BOWIE’s ‘SPACE ODDITY’ – MAJOR TOM. The countdown commenced for ALAN around the early 90's where he fronted a couple of bands in his hometown of Seattle before moving to Los Angeles."
"Timid Creature" is the first track on “Out Of Orbit”, establishing Alphanaut as an act that can skillfully move through a number of musical genres, eras, and influences.
Where many albums have a precipitous decline in quality as they continue, “Out Of Orbit” hits hard with each track."
"This EP features Alphanaut’s “Her Eleven Eyes” and various versions of “Jennifer”. The overall sound of the EP is what I would categorize as alternative ambient.
There are three versions of the single, all very different from one another. Finally we have “Her Eleven Eyes” which has more of an experimental feel to it and is very minimal in its instrument use, it defiantly ads a bit of a twist to the overall mood of this release."
Well with the new album “Out of Orbit” the Alphanaut sound has really expanded and evolved in numerous ways. But the songs currently floating around from “The Lunar Age” EP and subsequent singles, the sequenced sound reflects my influences like Kraftwerk and Yello, partnered with guitar textures influenced by early Brian Eno. With the upcoming album I’ve spent the last six months really going after a much richer sound that ... (click below to read full article)
