Strange Brew

The Alien Franchise

Alien has been counted amongst the best sci-fi horror franchises of all time. Ever since 1979, the movies have been instilling fear in fans. One of the most important aspects of horror movies (and movies in general), is the soundtrack. Aliens soundtrack in particular is famous for building the suspense of the film. This theme continued throughout the movies and became a hallmark of the franchise.

Alien: Earth – The TV Show

Recently, a new installment has been released, taking the form of a TV show. While the transformation from big to small screen can be difficult, reviews are positive. The show, Alien Earth, apparently shows the titular aliens on our home turf. While I haven’t yet seen the show, I was recently looking over the soundtrack when I noticed a song I didn’t expect. 

Strange Brew, The Original

“Strange Brew”, a cover which appears in the show, was initially released by the british rock band, Cream. This classic rock song appeared on the album Disraeli Gears, hailed one of the greatest rock albums of all time. Released in 1967, this album was the pinnacle of the bands work and was a defining sound of the period. 

Jeff Russos and Noah Hawley Cover

The cover in the show is interesting to me. While it is clearly the same song, the musicians, Jeff Russo and Noah Hawley, really built it from the ground up. The intro is immediately unsettling. Coming in with two high pitched notes sets the eerie tone immediately. The voices are my favourite part of the song. Two deep harmonic voices creates a great bassy sound and anchor most of the song. Hearing the clear vocals feels safe, something familiar you can focus on. The guitar starts of sporadically, lightly strumming and adding to the uneasiness. The sound builds and builds as the synth is added. This crescendos and then, almost like a skipping track, it resets.

Back to voices and guitar with drums. Again, the sound builds, getting heavier and heavier. Almost as though accelerating, it makes you feel powerless over the way the song is going. As you lose control, the voices becomes hidden, making you lose that anchor from early in the track. This builds and builds again and once again, softly resets. The entire song is a great version. The feeling of uneasiness is clear and I can see how this would fit easy into the sci-fi horror genre.

Conclusion

I really am excited to begin this show after listening the the soundtrack. I will likely have to catch up on other installments in the franchise first but this track has gotten me excited.