Songfacts®:

• This elegant choral pop vision of dying crops and abused nature makes the listener feel they don't belong on their own planet. Bellamy told NME: "I nearly called the song 'Alien Explorers' not in the way of aliens from outer space but in the way of feeling like an alien on your own planet. It's about the intense desire to grow and expand - at some point nature will become the minority. I'm not sure if I'm really coming from an environmental thing… that song's where I'm singing about my views on property rights. The idea that corporations can own vast tracts of foreign countries. I'm not sure if the deal went through but, I think it was in Paraguay or Uruguay, the Bush family bought something like a million acres of land which underneath contains the biggest natural water reservoir in South America. At some point there has to be someone who says, 'That's not right.' Can BP buy Nigeria? At the moment they can. They could buy it and they kick all the natives out, shoot them down or whatever and just 'We own this now."
• Bellamy told Rolling Stone that this piano ballad says that "this adventurous spirit we've created that is now in question, because the planet is saying, 'I'm only so big and have this much.'"
• According to Bellamy, he feels his lyrics are more about self-expression than specific political statements. He told The Observer: "When I dabble in watching the news and reading about current events I tend to get a future negative view and that's something I've dealt with through music. It's quite possible I'm slightly paranoid. But I'd say making music is an expression of feelings of helplessness and lack of control that I think a lot of people can relate to."