February 6th, 2014 - A Screamin', Bleedin', and Hoppy Ride!



Photo credit: www.lasvegasweekly.com (mine didn't work...
bar was too dark and my camera sucks!)

 

Evening metal heads and hop heads!!  The Meista here pairing another bad-ass metal and craft ale combo... "Screamin' N' Bleedin'" by Angel Witch with a Hop Ride India Pale Ale (IPA) from Tenaya Creek Brewery out of Las Vegas, NV!

Angel Witch is one of the most influential, yet underappreciated and underrated bands from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) movement.  Released in 1985, "Screamin' N' Bleedin'" is the second full-length album by Angel Witch.  Although only the second full release from the band, the lineup was completely new apart from founding member and guitarist Kevin Heybourne.  The band at this time was made up of Heybourne, lead vocalist Dave Tattum, bassist Peter Gordelier, and drummer Dave Hogg.  (Heybourne and Gordelier provided backing vocals as well.)  Thematically, "Screamin' N' Bleedin'" lyrics deal examine evil, darkness, loss, and fear.  Musically, the album is a fast-paced ride of machine-gun rhythm, screamin' guitars, and powerful vocals!  Songs like "Whose To Blame", "Child Of The Night", "Evil Games", the title track, "Reawakening", "Goodbye", and "Fatal Kiss" are all killer, high-octane, hopped-up rockers in the vein of other NWOBHM bands like Diamond Head, early Iron Maiden, early Judas Priest, and Tygers of Pan Tang!  If you love straight-ahead, old-school heavy metal, I strongly suggest checking out Angel Witch!

Hop Ride IPA from Tenaya Creek Brewery is a "medium bodied and aggressively hopped" brew that employs Magnum and Summit hops for bitterness and Cascade hops for a floral bouquet.  From a 22 ounce bottle, the Hop Ride pours a lovely copper-amber color with frothy off-white head that displays strong retention and lacing all the way to the bottom of your glass.  The nose is as sharp as Heybourne's guitar solos, a combination of pine and citrus.  There are pungent notes of summer grass, cedar, lime, bitter grapefruit, tropical fruit, and some bready and caramel notes as well.  The flavor is nice big bite of bitter Cascade hops along with some more subtle cereal grain malt notes.  There are loads of grassy and citrus flavors as well.  The mouthfeel is oily, yet crisp and dry.  The finish is fairly clean, but with some lingering bready notes and a fair amount of bitterness... a perfect bitterness for the rockin' goodness that is Angel Witch's "Screamin' N' Bleedin'"!!

Cheers and hails!!!