March 22nd, 2018 - The Firepower Of The Hellbender

Good evening!  The Meista here tonight pairing "Firepower", the brand spanking new album from the mighty Judas Priest and a Hellbender from Garage Project!  Hells yeah!!

Album Info:

• Artist: Judas Priest
• Title: "Firepower" 
• Recorded: March through June 2017 at Backstage Recording Studios in Derbyshire and Worcestershire UK
• Release date: March 9th, 2018 (18th studio album by Judas Priest)
• Record company: Epic Records
• Production: Tom Allom and Andy Sneap
• Album cover art: Claudio Bergamin
• Personnel: Richie Faulkner (guitars), Rob Halford (lead vocals), Ian Hill (bass), Glenn Tipton (guitars), and Scott Travis (drums)
• Musical style: Heavy metal
• Sound: Explosive, bombastic, aggressive, classic... just a few attributes of this amazingly powerful album!  Halford's vocals are on point... pure metal!  The musicianship is tight - rapid fire guitars, machine gun drumming, and thunderous bass!  I LOVE this album!!  I cannot wait to see them next month with Saxon!!
• Major themes: Power, violence, heavy metal, evil, darkness, aggression, perseverance, death, etc.
• Tracks:   

1. "Firepower"
2. "Lighting Strike"
3. "Evil Never Dies"
4. "Never The Heroes"
5. "Necromancer"
6. "Children Of The Sun"
7. "Guardians"
8. "Rising From Ruins"
9. "Flame Thrower"
10. "Spectre"
11. "Traitors Gate"
12. "No Surrender"
13. "Lone Wolf"
14. "Sea Of Red"

    Brew Info:

• Brewery: Garage Project (Wellington, New Zealand)
• Website: https://garageproject.co.nz/
• Brew: Hellbender
• Style: American Barleywine
• Serving: 22 ounce bottle
• ABV: 11.2% 
• Ingredients: Warrior, Amarillo, and Centennial hops 
• Pour: The Hellbender pours a toffee brown with a 2-finger, frothy, beige head with great sustain and lots of sticky, intricate, layered lacing.
• Nose: The nose is fruity, hoppy, boozy, and herbal.  There are notes of pine resin, cedar, raisin, plum, ripe berries, citrus, black tea, and sweet caramel.
• Taste: The taste of the Hellbender is earthy, piney, boozy, fruity, malty, herbal, and sweet.  A cross between a barleywine and an Imperial IPA, there are notes of pine, grapefruit, plum, raisin, orange peel, black tea, bitter herbs, and sweet burnt toffee.
• Mouthfeel: Full-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel of the Hellbender is thick, sticky, yet biting with a dry, bittersweet finish.

Overall pairing: The Garage Project Hellbender is a bold, complex, and punchy brew... perfect for the face-melting metal onslaught of Priest's latest masterpiece, "Firepower"!!  Both demand your undivided attention, both are full of flavor, and both are aggressive as hell!

I picked up "Firepower" from my good buddy Kevin at the Heavy Metal Shop (www.heavymetalshop.com) and you should too!!

Cheers!!  And hails!!