Welcome to Earth
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Welcome to Earth is the third studio album by Norwegian futurepop band Apoptygma Berzerk. It was released on February 22, 2000 on Metropolis Records but was earlier released on Tatra Records.
The general theme of the album is that of extraterrestrials contacting earth and of moving on. The songs themselves contain samples of reports of alien sightings and crop circle designs feature prominently in the cover and liner notes. Several tracks have been staples in live concerts ever since, especially the single "Kathy's Song", which became one of the band's biggest hits, being remixed by high profile artists such as VNV Nation and Ferry Corsten.
[edit] Track listing
| 1. |
"Everything We Know is Wrong" |
Stephan Groth |
1:27 |
| 2. |
"Starsign" |
Groth |
5:35 |
| 3. |
"Eclipse" |
Groth |
5:57 |
| 4. |
"Help Me!" |
Vegard Blomberg, Groth |
5:47 |
| 5. |
"Kathy's Song (Come Lie Next to Me)" |
Groth |
6:34 |
| 6. |
"Untitled 3" |
Groth |
2:38 |
| 7. |
"Moment of Tranquility" |
Jonas Groth, Stephan Groth |
7:35 |
| 8. |
"Fade to Black" (Metallica Cover) |
Burton, Hammett, Hetfield, Ulrich |
5:27 |
| 9. |
"64k" |
Groth |
1:44 |
| 10. |
"Paranoia" |
Blomberg, Groth |
7:48 |
| 11. |
"Soultaker" |
Groth |
6:58 |
| 12. |
"LNDP3" |
Blomberg, Frederik Ball, Groth |
5:20 |
| 13. |
"Time to Move On" (Hidden track: "Untitled 4") |
Groth |
11:06 |
[edit] 2007 Remastered Release
| 13. |
"Time to Move On" |
2:20 |
| 14. |
"Untitled 4" |
2:07 |
| 15. |
"Eclipse" (Black Sun Version) |
5:17 |
| 16. |
"64k" (Sweep Remix) |
6:46 |
[edit] Themes
The album deals mainly with the modern mythology of extraterrestrial aliens and a hope that one day the truth will be revealed to us. Generally the tracks convey a feeling of alienation as well.
Stylistically the album drew criticism upon its release for its more accessible techno-focused sound on tracks such as "Eclipse" and "Kathy's Song". There are some tributes to the Commodore 64 home computer as well, hidden in the "64k" track which is based heavily on a sample of Chris Hülsbeck's Commodore 64 version of "Axel F", and the track Untitled 4 is basically just a Commodore 64 chiptune. It is also worth mentioning that since the release of Welcome To Earth, band leader Stephan Groth tattooed a crop circle pattern on his left arm.
[edit] Trivia
- Playing "64k" backwards reveals that the vocals are a reversed sample of the vocals from "Kathy's Song".
- Listening to "Untitled 4" on a monaural player instead of a stereo player will reveal a hidden message from Kathy where she reads the tracklist.
- According to Kathy's reading of the tracklist "LNDP3" stands for "Love Never Dies Part 3"
- "Moment Of Tranquility" is based on the theme song from the popular cult TV show "Twin Peaks" and includes a sample from that show as well. In the liner notes, the song is dedicated to Twin Peaks' creator, David Lynch.
- The track "Help Me!" is the only APB track to feature a didgeridoo specifically recorded for the song.
- "Untitled 3" includes samples from the movies Blair Witch Project and Fucking Åmål.
- "Paranoia" contains hidden messages when played in mono starting which cannot be heard when playing the track in stereo.
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