November 1st, 2015 - A For Big Bad Baptist "Them", The King, And Jeff

Good evenin'!  The Meista here tonight with a very special pairing to celebrate my buddy Jeff's birthday... King Diamond's "Them" (who we both saw live together last night!) with a Big Bad Baptist Imperial Stout from Epic Brewing Company! Hell yeah!

Album Info:

• Artist: King Diamond
• Title: "Them"
• Recorded: 1988 at M.M.C. Studio, Copenhagen, DK and Rumbo Recorders, Canoga Park, California
  Release date: September 13th, 1988 (3rd studio album by King Diamond)
• Record company: Roadrunner Records
• Production: King Diamond and Roberto Falcao and assisted by Andy La Rocque and Mikkey Dee and Kenneth Hister
• Album cover art: Studio Dzyan: Thomas Holm and Torbjörn Jörgenson
• Personnel: Pete Blakk (guitar), Mikkey Dee (drums), Andy LaRocque (guitar), Hal Patino (bass), and Kim Bendix Petersen aka King Diamond (vocals and keyboards)
• Musical style: Heavy metal, progressive metal, theatrical metal, neoclassical metal
• Sound: Wonderfully complex, melodic, and harmonic while still kicking ass, "Them" is an incredibly memorable musical journey.  The King's vocals are as insane, mesmerizing, and engaging as ever while LaRocque's musical prowess is in the forefront! 
• Major themes: "Them" is the first of two gothic concept albums about a character named King and his mentally deranged grandmother.  Themes include the descent into madness, the paranormal, evil, the occult, manipulation, etc.
• Tracks: 

1. "Out From the Asylum"
2. "Welcome Home"
3. "The Invisible Guests"
4. "Tea"
5. "Mother's Getting Weaker"
6. "Bye, Bye Missy"
7. "A Broken Spell"
8. "The Accusation Chair"
9. "Them"
10. "Twilight Symphony"
11. "Coming Home"
12. "Phone Call"
13. "The Invisible Guests" (rehearsal bonus track)
14. "Bye, Bye Missy" (rehearsal bonus track)

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Epic Brewing Company (Salt Lake City, Utah)
• Website: http://www.epicbrewing.com/
• Brew: Big Bad Baptist Imperial Stout
• Style: Imperial Stout
• Serving: 22 ounce bottle
• ABV: 12.3%
• Ingredients: Barrel-aged in whiskey casks: Maris Otter Malt, 2-Row Brewer Malt, Crystal, Light Munich Malt T1, 2-Row chocolate malt, 2-row black malt, roasted barley, Nugget, Chinook, and Cascade hops, and Caffe Ibis coffee and Cocoa Nibs
• Pour: The Big Bad Baptist pours a beautiful black... black as "hell's screaming", black as the night sky, black as mud with a very thin mocha head.
• Nose: The nose is bittersweet cooking chocolate, rich planting soil, and black licorice. 
• Taste: The flavor is huge chocolate, huge black coffee, huge bourbon, vanilla bean, and molasses.
• Mouthfeel: Full-bodied with minimal carbonation, the mouthfeel is sticky, velvety, and chunky.  The finish is nice and chewy and with dry mocha goodness that lingers.

Overall pairing: If you are going to pair anything with King Diamond is has to make a statement and it has to be BIG!  I think the Big Bad Baptist Imperial Stout from Epic fits that bill quite nicely... don't you?  The huge, complex flavors are perfect for the musical depth found on "Them" while the higher ABV and bitter coffee notes go well with the darker and more aggressive elements of the album!

Skål and hails!!