I’ve been putting together a spotify playlist of some of the most stand-out ‘Space Rock’ tunes I can find.
I don’t know that space rock is really a clear genre. More a case of music that involves something to do with spacey stuff… Pretty vague!
Here’s the list: link
So here’s the run-down on the bands involved:
- Spaceships Are Cool – Space Monkey!
The quintessential space rock band, that describe themselves as sci-fi sunshine pop. These guys are great live from theremin to synthesizer, and rock shows with astronaut costumes and blinky lights. Check these guys out for sure! - Ziggy Stardust – Space Oddity
Possibly the most notorious science fiction concept act of all time. - Radiohead – Sail To The Moon
Radiohead are not exactly a space rock act, but this track from ‘Hail To The Thief’ cooks up some great steampunk-esque imagery. - 30 Seconds To Mars – The Mission
Hollywood b-lister, Jared Leto’s part-time job. Most of their tracks seem to have very little to do with space, but this one’s on the money! - Blur – Trouble In The Message Centre
This is one of the weirder tracks on Park Life, possibly the definitive album of the original Brit Pop band. Definitely worth a listen! - Queen – In The Space Capsule
Flash Gordon is not a classic film, but the soundtrack is classic. The supergroup of the 70′s and 80′s got their hands on an Oberheim OB-X synthesizer to make this one of many great sci-fi tunes on the album. - Biosphere – Seti Project
Biosphere is the recording name of the Norwegian producer and musician, Geir Jenssen. He often devotes tracks to science or science fiction related themes. Superb and spooky ambient techno! - Kraftwerk – Spacelab
Possibly the most important band in the history of electronic music. Their tracks still refuse to sound dated, and despite their sterile image, they always managed to create very catchy tunes. - Orbital – Doctor?
One of many bands to have taken inspiration from Kraftwerk, and rode the wave of the rave scene. This is their reinterpretation of the theme to a popular timelord based TV show. - Slowdive – Souvlaki Space Station
A one-off track by the classic shoegaze band, Slowdive. The band that Ritchie (Manic) Edwards famously namedropped when he said “We will always hate Slowdive more than Hitler”.
