Nektar, an English band founded in Germany, is another virtually forgotten group restricted mostly to the more esoteric of psychedelic music circles. Their debut album, Journey to the Center of the Eye (1972), is sci-fi themed throughout (I’ll post more songs over the coming weeks). ‘Astronauts Nightmare’ is my favorite of the very solid album. The line ‘This is Robot 13 speaking / planet Earth is turning round’ gives me chills… The detachment… The loss…. The view of earth… Wonderful.
Lyrics
This is Robot 13 speaking
planet Earth is turning round
Although my mind is gently weeping
I know my hope is coming to an end
Evil is in your heart now
Disillusion is in your soul
Oh my dear god can you really hear me?
If so, then please help me find a way
Although my eyes are gently sleeping
I know my mind is coming to an end
Science Fiction and Other Suspect Ruminations 
Space or spaced lyrics are alive and well. I can’t stand this Lady Gaga etc. “music” scene so I go all over for stuff I like. Last year Norway’s Motorpsycho put out “Heavy Metal Fruit.” One song:
X-3 (Knuckleheads in space) / The Getaway Special
I wanna go I wanna get up and go man, I need a lift off and I crave the sky
I’ve been chomping at the bit for several weeks now, I’m so ready I need to get high
My adrenaline’s up beyond the scales man‚ you couldn’t kill me cause I’d never feel a thing
I might seem like I’m ??? to you and thats cool and hear they’re really singing
It’s gonna feel so good
like we always knew it would
In this glorious pursuit
we’re getting in our suits
Won’t you fly us
past the bright shining stars
Won’t you fly us
to the X-3 pulsar
There’s nothing wrong there’s nothing wrong with all this brute force flinging metal to the eye in the sky
Inertial forces mass bullet skywards fighting gravity’s hold on nuclei
I’m gonna try I’m gonna try and make it matter, theres no excuses at the level we’re at
We’ll fly the flag and I know we’re representing humanity and democracy and all that
But hey!
It’s gonna feel so good
like we always knew it would
Cause in this glorious pursuit
we’re getting in our suits
Won’t you fly us
to the bright shining stars
Won’t you fly us
past the moon and past Mars
Won’t you fly us
Won’t you fly us
Won’t you fly us
to the X-3 pulsar
??? it’s hotter than a pistol
A high energy ray gun in the swan
It’s really true it’s made of quarks man, I guess it’s just not your standard
neutron that’s at the core of this wonderful creation
A gas sucking binary star
Thirty seven thousand light years, man that’s really way too far
Won’t you fly us
past the bright shining stars
Won’t you fly us
past the moon and past Mars
Won’t you fly us
to the bright shining stars
Won’t you fly us
past the moon and past Mars
Won’t you fly us
past the bright shining stars
Won’t you fly us
to the X-3 pulsar
Won’t you fly us
Won’t you fly us
Won’t you fly us
Won’t you fly us
I don’t know the band or the album, but the lyrics are sad…
The lyrics of A-ha’s ‘Start the Simulator’ (from their album ‘Foot of the Mountain’) are all phrases from space exploration or travelling – “give the tanks a stir” and “the bright ejecta blanket”, etc.
Ela: I’ve never been a fan of a-Ha, but you’re right — it does have some sci-fi phrases… Thanks for the comment! I always love seeing how sci-fi permeates various cultural spheres — music included….