A debut single should be a mission statement from any band, looking to make their mark on the music industry for the first time. With debut release ‘Story’, pop rock band Aliens Don’t Ring Doorbells prove themselves more than capable of creating intrigue with their unique blend of folk-tinged pop-rock in an emotional, arms-wide welcome of life in all its beauty and pain.
‘Story’ is a pop-rock ballad in a similar vein to tracks made famous by One Republic and Bruce Springsteen. Taking cues from the country-folk tradition of storytelling through songwriting, ‘Story’ posits that every family takes part in a narrative thread, winding through generations, and that character is shaped by the culmination of these plots and storylines. We must both acknowledge and also let go of the past in order to move forward and become the person we are meant to be, and this song sounds more like a celebration of life, looking forwards, than a lamentation for what we have lost along the way.
The instrumentation is kept simple but effective in its accompaniment of King’s powerful vocals, and the song plays with dynamics with expertise, swelling in the salutations of joy which the chorus brings.
It’s a poignant message to put across via song, and it introduces a band who has what it takes to create emotive and compelling music with a message.
The word on the grapevine is that there is a full length release coming later in the year, and if this is what it’s going to sound like, we’re all in for a treat.