10 Insane Plots From Concept Albums

Another classic trope of the concept album is the presence of extraterrestrials, which have cropped up all over the place - from Ziggy Stardust to the messianic U.F.O that heralds the beginning of Sufjan Stevens’ Illinois. So, in some ways, Devin Townsend’s metal record “Ziltoid the Omniscient” is a predictable album. But in every other way, it isn’t.

The alien in question is called - you guessed it - Ziltoid, and hails from Ziltoidia 9 (all alien planets need a number on the end - otherwise they’d just sound far-fetched). He arrives on Earth as part of his quest for the “universe’s ultimate cup of coffee”. The people of earth promptly prepare for him their best offering, but he is unsatisfied. Ziltoid calls the coffee “fetid” and launches a full-on assault of Earth along with his fellow Ziltoidians.

For all the album’s zany comedy, Townsend has admitted that the lyrics have a serious side; invented just as Townsend gave up booze and became a father, Ziltoid became an avatar for the subversive, rock star life he was leaving behind.