February 8th, 2015 - Surviving The Curse Of The Hidden With A Stout

Good afternoon!  The Meista here with another rockin' pairing for you... today I'm going with the very underrated "Curse Of The Hidden Mirror" by Blue Öyster Cult (BÖC) and a Survival Stout from Hopworks Urban Brewery (HUB)!

Album Info:

• Artist: Blue Öyster Cult
• Title: "Curse Of The Hidden Mirror"
• Recorded: Millbrook Sound Studios, Millbrook, New York
• Release date: June 5th, 2001 (14th studio album by the band)
• Record company: CMC/Sanctuary Records
• Personnel: Eric Bloom (vocals, guitars, keyboards, and production), Allen Lanier (guitars and keyboards), Danny Miranda (bass, keyboards, and backing vocals), Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser (lead guitars, vocals, keyboards, and production), and Bobby Rondinelli (drums) with guest musicians Norman DelTufo (percussion) and George Cintron (backing vocals)
• Musical style: Hard rock/heavy metal
• Sound: Although recorded and released in 2000-2001, the album has a very '70s hard rock sound.  As with any BÖC album, "Curse Of The Hidden Mirror" is richly textured, highlights the bands aggressive musical prowess, and penchant for solid song writing.  Buck Dharma's guitar work is as ethereal and rich as always while the powerhouse rhythm section of Miranda and monster drummer Rondinelli brings it on home!
• Major themes: The "Curse Of The Hidden Mirror" includes several sci-fi/fantasy themed tracks co-written by cyberpunk/horror novelist John Shirley.
• Notes: Although "Curse Of The Hidden Mirror" found the band returning to a sound reminiscent to their early albums, the album did not sell well, which led to CMC/Sanctuary Records dropping BÖC.  Subsequently, they have not released another studio album since.
• Tracks:

1. "Dance On Stilts"
2. "Showtime"
3. "The Old Gods Return"
4. "Pocket"
5. "One Step Ahead Of The Devil"
6. "I Just Like To Be Bad"
7. "Here Comes That Feeling"
8. "Out Of The Darkness"
9. "Stone Of Love"
10. "Eye Of The Hurricane"
11. "Good To Feel Hungry"

  Brew Info:

• Brewery: Hopworks Urban Brewery (Portland, Oregon)
• Website: http://hopworksbeer.com/
• Brew: Survival Stout
• Style: American Stout (with coffee)
• Serving:  16 ounce can
• ABV: 5.8%
• IBUs: 35
• Gravity: 15 degrees Plato
• Ingredients: Amaranth (Aztec), Barley (Egyptian), Kamut (Egyptian), Oats (Egyptian), Quinoa (Incan), Spelt (Mesopotamian), and Wheat (Mesopotamian) grains, cold-pressed Stumptown organic coffee beans
• Pour: Solid black with tinges of burnt sienna around the edges with a thick, 1-finger mocha head that leaves layered and chunky lacing.
• Nose: Plenty of big roasted coffee aromas with more subtle cocoa and caramel underneath with more subtle hints of vanilla bean and rich soil.
• Taste: As with the nose, the Survival Stout is a very coffee forward brew.  Under the coffee are complex roasted malts and hearty grains, semi-sweet dark chocolate, toffee, marshmallow, vanilla, cream, and hints of bitter hops.
• Mouthfeel: A little thinner than I expected, the Survival Stout is medium-bodied with low to moderate carbonation.  It is rather creamy and smooth with a dry and slightly astringent bite in the finish.

Overall pairing: The richly textured coffee heaviness of the Survival Stout goes great with the classic rock and roll power that is BÖC while the more sweeter notes (chocolate, marshmallow, vanilla) play well with Buck Dharma's softer vocals. 

Cheers!!