America’s Space Force—remember that the United States military added a new branch of service recently, and thus has a Space Force?—has released its new official song, which it claims took years of research and revision. No description can do it justice. Please listen:
The Space Force is a branch of the American military that deals with threats from space. This sounds ridiculous because it is—while a militarized outer space may come in the future we aren’t anywhere close at the moment, and the Air Force is right there to deal with space-related military stuff. Right now, more broadly, our space program is still trying to get its legs back under it and launch a rocket to the moon, a launch that NASA has had to reschedule now twice.
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What better time to unveil an official Space Force song called “Semper Supra” (Latin for “always above”)? What better song to unveil than an absolutely bonkers Pirates of Penzance-style traditional military tune, only 45 seconds long, and with melodramatic lyrics like “We’re the mighty watchful eye/guardians beyond the blue/the invisible front line/warfighters brave and true?”
Listening to this song makes me feel unusually giddy, not out of a sense of pride for our armed forces, but with a sick glee over the fact that this is a real song that a lot of people spent a lot of time on—read the scarcely believable details here—and it sounds like shit. In its press release, the Space Force says that this song was composed by two former Air Force service members and that it was “a process that took years of research and revisions to make sure the song was ready for release.”
(YEARS!)
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to establish a Space Force song that will be part of our culture and heritage for years to come,” Chief of Space Operations Gen. John Raymond said in the press release. “Our traditions are part of the fabric that weave us all together as we execute our missions side-by-side; I will be proud to sing ‘Semper Supra’ alongside my fellow Guardians.”
I’m sure the Guardians of the Space Force will embrace this song wholeheartedly—who has ever heard of a servicemember rolling their eyes at some cringe-making nonsense their bosses came up with?—as it is performed by military bands on solemn and august occasions. It’s the goofiest thing I’ve ever heard, but that seems fitting.
