Monday, May 22, 2017

May 22nd, 2017 - An Evolutionary Abyss



Good evening and hails evil-doers!  Your drinking buddy the Meista here getting heavy and dark as hell with a pairing of Once Human's monstrous sophomore album "Evolution" and The Abyss (Brandy Barrel-Aged), a beast of a brew from Deschutes Brewing Company!!  Hell yes!!


Album Info:
  • Artist: Once Human
  • Title: "Evolution"
  • Recorded: 2016
    Release date: February 17th, 2017 (2nd studio album by Once Human)
  • Record company: earMUSIC
  • Production: Logan Mader
  • Album cover art: Seth Siro Anton
  • Personnel: Lauren Hart (vocals), Skyler Howren (guitars), Max Karon (guitars), Logan Mader (guitars), Damien Rainaud (bass), and Dillon Trollope (drums)
  • Musical style: Melodic death metal, djent, progressive metal
  • Sound: Incredibly heavy, complex, honest, and powerful, the sound on "Evolution" is the embodiment of metal intensity and artistic integrity!  Hart's brutal vocals are matched perfectly with the guitar wizardry of Mader, Howren, and Karon, and the combined juggernaut power of rhythm section Rainaud and Trollope!  Of the band's sound, guitarist/producer Mader stated: "It's only been a little more than a year since we put out our first record, but we were so driven by the new sound that we forged that we needed to get back into the studio and capture it.  It was also important to prove to people that this is a real band. It's not just a project I felt like doing on a whim, this is a band that's going to have a full career, and now we're really getting started."  He added: "We really found our sound and our identity — it's quite unique — and I think what we're doing is really on fire."  
  • Major themes: Death, destruction, violence, anger, darkness, life, reality, etc.
  • Tracks:   
  1. "Flock Of Flesh"
  2. "Eye Of Chaos"
  3. "Mass Murder Frenzy"
  4. "Gravity"
  5. "Dark Matter"
  6. "Paragon"
  7. "Drain"
  8. "Killers For Cure"
  9. "Passenger"

Brew Info:
  • Brewery: Deschutes Brewing Company (Portland, Oregon)
  • Website: https://www.deschutesbrewery.com/
  • Brew: The Abyss (Brandy Barrel-Aged)
  • Style: Imperial Stout 
  • Serving: 25 ounce bottle
  • ABV: 13.2%
  • IBUs: 80
  • Ingredients: Pale, Black, Chocolate, Black Barley, Roasted Barley, and Wheat malts, Millennium, Nugget, Styrian, and German Northern Brewer hops, with Blackstrap Molasses, Brewer’s Licorice, Vanilla Beans, and Cherry Bark and aged in brandy barrels
  • Pour: It pours an opaque, almost ink black with a creamy dark mocha head that dissipates to the thin, but sustained ring with soapy lacing.
  • Nose: The nose is earthy, chocolaty, fruity, woody, boozy, and sweet.  There are big, bold aromas of dark chocolate, black cherry, vanilla bean, molasses, damp oak, pipe tobacco, and intoxicating brandy.
  • Taste: Incredibly complex, rich, and bold, the flavors of The Abyss (Brandy Barrel-Aged) beautifully blend .  There are notes of bitter dark chocolate, licorice, molasses, light vanilla, burnt toffee, oak, etc.
  • Mouthfeel: Full-bodied with lower carbonation, the mouthfeel of The Abyss is thick, chewy, and velvety smooth with a very dry, slightly bitter, and warming finish.

Overall pairing: If you are going to go big, why hesitate?  You gotta go really fucking big, right?!  The incredibly complex, bold, and rich boozy flavors and aromas of Deschutes' wonderful The Abyss (Brandy Barrel-Aged) is perfect for the aggressive depth of Once Human's powerful "Evolution"!  Those huge and aggressive chocolate, molasses, cherry, and brandy flavors call for only something as intense and artistic as Once Human can provide in each and every track on "Evolution"!

I had the great pleasure of witnessing Once Human in action live at the Metro Music Hall in Salt Lake City, Utah on May 20th when they opened for Xandria and I tell you what... I was totally blown away by both their brutal aggression and melodic prowess!!!  If you get the chance, you MUST see this band live!!!

Cheers!!  And hails!!


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