"The Thing" bossanova

Today I will be talking about ‘The Thing’ by the American alt-rock band Pixies, most well-known for their hit song ‘Where is my mind’. So I found this song a few months ago, and I added it to one of my playlists. At first it was a fun song that I would play occasionally but never thought about it too much. Over time the song has been growing on me and I can’t get enough of it. The song starts out with a solo drum part before the rest of the instruments kick in. The whole song has a very upbeat, but ominous feeling that makes you want to get in your car and drive to nowhere. The delivery of the vocals is semi-monotone and fast with a lot of delay/reverb, so it was hard to understand what the singer was saying on the first listen. This added to the ominous feeling of the song. The lyrics match up perfectly with the vibe of the song with the opening lines being: I was driving, doing nothing on the shores of great Salt Lake When they put it on the air, I put it in the hammer lane I soon forgot myself and I forgot about the brake This song was originally released as a song on the b-side to 1990 single Velouria. I did not know anything about the making of the song prior to writing this, but there is more history behind it than meets the eye. So the song is actually a remixed version of the second half of ‘The Happening’, originally released on the Pixies’ 1990 Bossanova album. ‘The Thing’ overall is very similar to the original, with the exception of some more reverb on the remix and the removal of some background vocals. The whole meaning behind the song is actually about the arrival of aliens, and a man driving his car to meet them. Apparently Pixies frontman Black Francis was obsessed with aliens at the time of writing the song. It is hard to tell how ‘The Thing’ is about aliens, but when you listen to the original song it makes a lot more sense. They got a ranch they call Number 51 … They’re gonna put it down Then step outside Into the lights Right out of that ship! These lines in ‘The Happening’ are of course referring to secret area 51 army base where many people believe aliens are secretly being hidden by the US government. The song ends with the man hearing about this on the radio, and he decides he needs to meet the alien before they put it down. They’re gonna put it down On the Vegas strip … I’m almost there to Vegas where they’re putting on a show They’ve come so far, I’ve lived this long, at least I must just go and say hello Overall I was surprised about the meaning of this song. I did not think it was about aliens, I just liked how it sounded. If aliens touched down would you want to meet them or would you stay away? I personally think it might be best to have someone else greet them than me!