Carta began as a bedroom recording project in 2002 by Kyle Monday, Jason Perez, and a revolving cast of San Francisco musicians. Ambient instrumental songs developed organically from looped guitar melodies, which also served as metronomes in the absence of a drummer. As members joined and left, the desire to perform the songs in another setting grew, so the duo enhanced the band with bassist Ray Welter and drummer Sonny Culbertson. They honed a set of material for live shows, including some songs with vocals (supplied by supplemental keyboardist Sarah Bell). In 2005, this band recorded "The Glass Bottom Boat" with engineer Eli Crews (of Elephant 6 band Beulah). The album features contributions from keyboardist Jared Matt Greenberg and bassist Sacha Galvagna, and cello by Alexander Kort (of Lex Records ensemble Subtle). The Silent Ballet said about the album, "It's rare that we see an album that is so grounded in reality, yet simultaneously this immaculately breathtaking - highly recommended for fans of Gregor Samsa, Stars of the Lid, and This is Your Captain Speaking." "The Glass Bottom Boat" was released by UK label Resonant on August 20th, 2007. The current line-up features Kyle Monday, Ray Welter, Sacha Galvagna, and drummer Raj Ojha. The new album, "An Index of Birds," will be finished in 2008, with contributions by cellist Alexander Kort, Lorealle Bishop on vocals, and Gabriel Coan on keyboards and treatments.