“I’d rather discuss things like life’s mysteries and aliens,” admits singer-songwriter RXTH. “I am fascinated by the recent official military disclosures of UFOs and claims that otherworldly beings are a much bigger part of our history than is commonly acknowledged.” It’s no coincidence, then, that RXTH’s new track Braveheart is released on 2 July – World UFO Day.
UK talent RXTH writes music for people interested in the big questions, like ‘Why are we here?’ and ‘Are we alone?’ Braveheart is RXTH’s best yet – a delicious slice of upbeat pop for grown-ups. In keeping with RXTH’s fascination for what might be out there and World UFO Day, the Braveheart video explores concepts of extra-terrestrial connection. “It represents various off-world beings and agendas,” says RXTH. Listen to Braveheart and check out the video below.
Ufology
We didn’t even know World UFO Day was a thing! But yeah, it’s a worldwide celebratory day of ufology inspired by the 1947 Roswell incident when a UFO supposedly crashed on a ranch in New Mexico. Since then, the story has grown arms and legs – and two heads. The town of Roswell now boasts a UFO museum and research centre, a flying saucer-shaped McDonald’s and alien-themed streetlights. The aliens of Roswell are kinda like the US’s equivalent of the Loch Ness Monster – unproven but great for business.
World UFO Day is “an awareness day for people to gather together and watch the skies for unidentified flying objects”. We’re sure one will be along in a minute. Here on Planet Crü we figure it’s more fun to celebrate World UFO Day by listening to 10 great tracks inspired by little green men and galaxies far, far away. Guide your starship through these beauties…
1. Radiohead Subterranean Homesick Alien (1997)
Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke is upfront about his desire to meet extra-terrestrial beings. “Do I really hope to be on a spaceship? Why not,” he’s said. Yorke believes there are aliens under the ground. “I want to see them. I want to walk on the street smiling, knowing that there are little green creatures with incredible, large brains and big, beautiful, black eyes, that are filming us with their video cameras.” Yorke knew who to blame when Radiohead experienced sound issues at the 2017 Coachella Festival. “F***ing aliens again!” he quipped.
2. David Bowie Star Man (1972)
Of course, we had to include David Bowie. Exemplifying his sci-fi fascination, Bowie penned A Space Oddity (1969), Life On Mars (1971), Star Man (1972) and Loving The Alien (1985). His alter-ego Ziggy Stardust – from 1972 album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust – was an alien rock star character sent back to save the Earth. The story goes that Bowie found his inspiration from several personal alien encounters. In 1968, he claimed he saw at least six to seven sightings a night during UFO-watching sessions.
3. Elton John Rocket Man (1972)
Elton John and his lyricist pal Bernie Taupin are no strangers to space-related songs. I’ve Seen The Saucers appeared on Sir Elton’s 1974 album Caribou. It tells the tale of a true believer who is taken aboard a spaceship but soon pines for Earth. However, Elton’s Rocket Man song – about an astronaut having trouble adapting to life in outer space – is more famous. “I miss the earth so much, I miss my wife, it’s lonely out in space.” Iranian filmmaker and refugee Majid Adin’s video for the track brings a lump to the throat.
4. The Carpenters Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft (1977)
Originally released by Canadian prog-rock band Klaatu in 1976, the Carpenters’ version from their Passage album is superior. The brother-sister duo’s version includes the tagline ‘(The Recognised Anthem of World Contact Day)’. On the back of the song’s success, the siblings received many letters from fans asking when World Contact Day would be held. Surely that’s 2 July, right?
5. Blink 182 Aliens Exist (1999)
Blink 182 guitarist and vocalist Tom Delonge bought a personal computer for one reason – “to go on the internet and research UFOs”. His fascination morphed into Alien’s Exist – an ode to alien abduction. Claiming he’s encountered aliens, Delonge created the ‘Strange Times’ website. The site is dedicated to alien conspiracy theories and paranormal sightings.
6. Megadeath Hangar 18 (1990)
Megadeath’s classic thrash masterpiece Hangar 18 is totally about UFO conspiracy theories and the Roswell incident. The song appeared on the band’s Rust In Peace album and is a nod to 1980 science fiction film Hangar 18 about a government cover-up following an alien ship collision with a satellite. Incidentally, Hangar 18 is located at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio and allegedly houses the craft involved in the Roswell crash.
7. John Lennon Nobody Told Me (1984)
John Lennon believed in UFO encounters. In 1974, he said he saw a UFO hovering over the New York skyline before it suddenly vanished into the sky. Lennon was unable to prove his sighting, claiming the photos he took did not develop properly. His experience worked its way into Nobody Told Me, where he sings: “There’s UFOs over New York, and I ain’t too surprised.” Lennon’s sketch of the spaceship he claimed to have seen was used as artwork on his Walls and Bridges album. He also wrote: “On the 23rd Aug. 1974 at 9 o’clock I saw a UFO.” Upon seeing the UFO, May Pang, his lover at the time, claimed Lennon said: “Come back – take me!”
8. Muse Starlight (2006)
From the 2006 Muse album Blackholes and Revelations, Starlight features lead singer Matt Bellamy singing: “I will be chasing a starlight, until the end of my life, I don’t know if it’s worth it anymore.” In a 2017 interview, Bellamy said he “may have” been abducted by aliens, believing he saw a UFO when he was “about 17” while driving to his girlfriend’s house alongside a wooded area. “I saw this flashing light. It was really unusual at that time of night… I remember just waking up at home and to this day I don’t quite remember the journey from there home.” Bellamy admitted he didn’t know if it was a UFO, stating: “It might have been a helicopter or something.” He admits his judgment may have been “altered’ at the time.
9. The Kinks Supersonic Rocket Ship (1972)
The Kinks’ guitarist Dave Davies went public about his UFO experiences in the 1980s. “I’ve had several experiences seeing UFOs. It was really interesting. I saw them in north Devon in England – lights and zigzags in the skies. Then when I started to dig deeper into my experience, I understood I was also getting communications — psychic impressions – from aliens.” Seems like Dave’s experiences infiltrated into Supersonic Rocket Ship, written by his brother Ray Davies.
10. Catatonia Mulder and Scully (1998)
Catatonia bring our World UFO Day celebration to a close with this track named after fictional FBI special agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully from popular TV series ‘The X-Files’. Sci-fi fans will know the duo worked on cases linked to the paranormal. The band’s Cerys Matthews claims the song is about “asking Mulder and Scully to figure out this thing called love”. The Welsh singer-songwriter mused: “I like the idea of two people going round the planet investigating odd phenomena, in this case love.”
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