Fallout Season 2 Repurposes Another Popular Song From The Video Games

Season 2 of “Fallout” is full of Easter eggs that will delight video game fans, especially those who love their old soundtracks. With that in mind, players who have followed Diamond City Radio as they venture through “Fallout 4” will recognize Elton Brett’s song “Uranium Fever,” which appears in the sixth episode of Fallout Season 2, “The Other Player.”

The scene in question provides some comedic relief after a bunch of dramatic sequences in Episode 6. In fact, this comes shortly after watching gruesome (but still handsome) ghoul Walton Goggins try to free himself after being impaled on a metal pole, which is downright uncomfortable to watch. By contrast, the “Uranium Fever” scene depicts a fleeting moment of joy, as Vault 33’s inbreeding support group eats cake and dances while Reg McVeigh (Rodrigo Luzzi) plays the piano. Unfortunately, the group’s celebrations are eventually interrupted by some unwelcoming guards, who reveal that Superintendent Betty Pearson (Leslie Uggams) has waived his snack budget.

“Uranium Fever” is the latest old theme song from the games to be included in the series, with tracks by Nat King Cole and The Ink Spots adorning previous episodes. However, how did the old school classic get into the “Fallout” universe in the first place?

“Fallout 4” contains an interesting collection of older songs with nuclear-themed lyrical content. Elton Brett’s “Uranium Fever” and The Five Stars’ “Atom Bomb, Baby” are among the standout songs – and they were chosen for a very specific reason. Despite their inherently disturbing subject matter (nuclear weapons), the tracks are playful numbers that reflect the upbeat nature of the American cultural zeitgeist of the 1950s. This aspect came to light for sound director Mark Lambert when he helped choose the songs for the game, and he spoke candidly about the thought process in a conversation with Bethesda:

“[Atomic weapons] It seemed like fun to them. “It showed up in the lyrics of pop music at the time.”

“Uranium Fever” is also the perfect piece of music to adapt Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dworet’s “Fallout.” The series is weird, dramatic, funny, and diverse in tone, which is why a song like this works so well after horrific moments like the aforementioned impalement of a ghoul. The pop music also harks back to the past, which is quite appropriate for a show about the inhabitants of a post-apocalyptic wasteland yearning for a world that no longer exists.

Season 2 of Fallout is available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video.