Alien Youth

Album: Alien Youth (2001)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • John Cooper, Skillet's vocalist and bassist, wrote this about recruiting young Christians as "Alien Youth" to embrace their faith and spread the gospel. "Normally you hear that we're aliens in this world and we don't belong here," he told Christianity Today, referring to scriptures like 1 Peter: 2:11, which describes Christians as foreigners and exiles. "The twist on our title is that we are aliens and we do belong here. We're not from here, but we're taking over the earth for the human race."
  • The band created a Bible study to help fans join the Alien Youth movement. Cooper explained: "This study covers the five essentials of becoming an alien youth: birth of a new nature, Holy Spirit living, worship, transforming your mind, and living the alien youth lifestyle."
  • Cooper told HM Magazine how Skillet's sound evolved from the hard-rock vibe of Invincible to the electro-industrial tone of this album. "Alien Youth is a step forward from Invincible in terms of sonic intensity," he said. "The goal was to capture our live sound, so the production is bigger in every aspect. There still are the electronic elements and programming, but they have more of an industrial leaning. The guitars are fatter and more prominent in the mix. The writing style is a bit edgier and darker, even though there are still some worship songs. Some people are saying that Alien Youth is a mixture of Skillet's debut album and Invincible."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

The Untold Story Of Fiona Apple's Extraordinary Machine

The Untold Story Of Fiona Apple's Extraordinary MachineSong Writing

Fiona's highly-anticipated third album almost didn't make it. Here's how it finally came together after two years and a leak.

Brian Kehew: The Man Behind The Remasters

Brian Kehew: The Man Behind The RemastersSong Writing

Brian has unearthed outtakes by Fleetwood Mac, Aretha Franklin, Elvis Costello and hundreds of other artists for reissues. Here's how he does it.

Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket

Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet SprocketSongwriter Interviews

The "All I Want" singer went through a long depression, playing some shows when he didn't want to be alive.

Marvin Gaye

Marvin GayeFact or Fiction

Did Marvin try out with the Detroit Lions? Did he fake crazy to get out of military service? And what about the cross-dressing?

Steve Morse of Deep Purple

Steve Morse of Deep PurpleSongwriter Interviews

Deep Purple's guitarist since 1994, Steve talks about writing songs with the band and how he puts his own spin on "Smoke On The Water."

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: '80s Edition

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: '80s EditionMusic Quiz

You know the scenes - Tom Cruise in his own pants-off dance off, Molly Ringwald celebrating her birthday - but do you remember what song is playing?