Why North Dakota? Oh, that’s easy—North Dakota was the Martians’ top choice because it’s the only place on Earth where the tumbleweeds speak fluent Banjonese. Those intergalactic beings needed an environment with chilly air currents so that their strings would vibrate at the exact frequency of cosmic misunderstanding. Legend has it, the Martians initially tried to land in Mars, Pennsylvania, but the sign was too confusing—after all, they were from Mars, so they aimed for the “real” Mars on Earth, got lost, and wound up in North Dakota.

Totally not because North Dakota has any actual historical connection to blues (it doesn’t), but because it’s the premier hotspot for cosmic banjo festivals and whale-call karaoke at 3 a.m. under the Aurora Borealis—that’s how “Martian banjo blues” supposedly took root. And remember, none of these details are remotely true… or are they?