When Fliege set out to make their latest album, they turned to John Carpenter for inspiration. With albums previously focused on David Cronenberg's The Fly and Shinya Tsukamoto's Tetsuo: The Iron Man, this time around they turned their focus to The Thing. Fliege songwriter and guitarist Coleman Bentley says, "John Carpenter is probably my favorite director and at some point, I really wanted to explore one of his films through the Fliege prism. When COVID hit I revisited The Thing and was immediately grabbed by the themes of infection, isolation, and paranoia that were swirling all around us in real life at the time. I saw an opportunity to write about an awesome sci-fi movie from one of my favorite directors and also about the brand new world taking shape around us."
A monumental project, musically and conceptually, Fliege's new album One Day They'll Wonder What Happened Here is a scene-by-scene retelling of John Carpenter's The Thing, which celebrated its 40th anniversary this year. On one level, One Day They'll Wonder What Happened Here is a couple of film buffs' meticulous tribute to one of their idols. On a deeper level, guitarist Coleman Bentley and his co-conspirator, vocalist Peter Rittweger, are using the format to explore their own existential questions. Concepts aside, the album delivers an array of '80s flavors, from hair metal to new wave, into a modern, extreme metal context. Bentley lists The Police, Def Leppard, and Blood Incantation, amongst the many influences that went into the album. Click here to pre-order the album and check out the music video for the first single below.
This complete, chronological companion piece, tackles The Thing from start to finish. The first single "Jaws of Life" retells the film's iconic autopsy scene, wherein a detached human head sprouts spider legs. The official music video above, was co-created by Brandon Gallagher, the multimedia artist behind acclaimed industrial project Trace Amount.
The full tracklist for the album gives you an idea of the (frozen) ground covered.
Tracklist:
1) The Thaw
2) Glaciers of Eden Pt. 1
3) Man Is the Warmest Place to Hide
4) Jaws of Life
5) Terra-form
6) Sight for the Snowblind
7) Blair Built a Spaceship
8) Glaciers of Eden Pt. 2
Fliege is Coleman Bentley on guitar, bass, synth, drum programming, vocals and Peter Rittweger on vocals. All music and lyrics by Coleman Bentley. Listen to the full album in its entirely below.
