April 20th, 2017 - Best Of Gamma Ray & Bonneville!

Guten Abend!  The Meista here tonight rocking out with "The Best (Of)" from German power metal monsters Gamma Ray and a tasty Vienna Lager from Bonneville Brewery!  Hell yeah!!

Album Info:

• Artist: Gamma Ray
• Title: "The Best (Of)"
• Recorded: 1991 through 2014 in various studios
• Release date: January 30th, 2015 (4th compilation album released by Gamma Ray)
• Record company: EarMusic
• Production: various and Gamma Ray (remastered by Eike Freese)
• Album cover art: Alexander Mertsch
• Personnel: Michael Ehré (drums), Kai Hansen (rhythm and lead guitar, and lead and backing vocals), Uli Kusch  (drums), Thomas Nack (drums), Henjo Richter (lead and rhythm guitar, and keyboards), Jan Rubach (bass), Ralf Scheepers (lead vocals), Dirk Schlächter (bass, lead and rhythm guitar, keyboards, and piano), Uwe Wessel (bass), and Dan Zimmermann (drums)
• Additional musicians: Tommy Hansen (keyboards), Michael Kiske (vocals), Hansi Kürsch (vocals), Axel Mackenrott (keyboards), Tommy Newton (guitars), Sascha Paeth (keyboards), Piet Sielck (vocals, keyboards, and guitars), and Thomas Stauch (drums)
• Musical style: Power metal, speed metal
• Sound: Fiery fast, bombastic, melodic - all traits of the wonderful nearly 30 year career of the mighty Gamma Ray!  Highlighting some of the greatest songs and all remastered to perfection, "The Best (Of)" is wonderful metal romp!  Kai Hansen's guitar work alone is worth every penny!!
• Major themes: Good vs. evil, life and death, heavy metal, love, power, might, perseverance, aggression, etc.
• Tracks:

Disc 1: 

1. "Armageddon"
2. "Heaven Can Wait"
3. "Hellbent"
4. "Dream Healer"
5. "Land Of The Free"
6. "To The Metal"
7. "Somewhere Out In Space"
8. "Real World"
9. "Induction"
10. "Dethrone Tyranny"
11. "Rebellion In Dreamland"
12. "Heading For Tomorrow"

Disc 2:

1. "Eagle"
2. "Avalon"
3. "Man On A Mission"
4. "The Spirit"
5. "Tribute To The Past"
6. "Empathy"
7. "Valley Of The Kings"
8. "Lust For Life"
9. "Master Of Confusion"
10. "Blood Religion"
11. "Time To Break Free"
12. "Insurrection"
13. "Send Me A Sign"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Bonneville Brewery (Tooele, Utah)
• Website: https://bonnevillebrewery.com/
• Brew: Vienna Lager
• Style: Vienna Lager
• Serving: 64 ounce growler
• ABV: 4.0%
• IBUs: 12
• Pour: Bonneville's Vienna Lager pours a clear, bright orange-amber with a frothy 1-finger off-white head with good retention and lacing throughout.
• Nose: The nose is characterized by toasty, malty, and sweet.  There are aromas of toasted malts, sweet biscuit, subtle apple, caramel, and very light floral hops.
• Taste: The taste of the Vienna Lager is characterized by subtle hops notes, biscuity malts, and residual sweetness.  There are notes of toasted bread, caramel/toffee, biscuit, light apple, and light hops.
• Mouthfeel: Light-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel of the Vienna Lager is very smooth, crisp, and refreshing with a clean and slightly sweet finish.

Overall pairing: When you are rocking the hell out to the intense metal prowess of the ass-kickers known as Gamma Ray, you want a brew that goes down easy, but with great flavor... thus the wonderful Vienna Lager from Bonneville Brewery!!  Those big toasty and malty notes are perfect for the meaty guitars and heavy duty rhythm section while the sweet notes go great with the sweet melodies!

Zum Wohl!!  Hails!!  Cheerz To The Metal!!!