December 16th, 2021 - A Grievance Spoken Days Before The World Wept

 

Hey there evil-doers and craft beer freaks!  The Meista here this evening enjoying some killer metal and craft beer pairings!  Tonight, I'm pairing The Agonist's latest kickass EP, "Days Before the World Wept" and a bold and boozy Grievance Scotch Ale from the fine folks at SaltFire Brewing Company!  Hell yeah!! 

Album Info: 

• Artist: The Agonist
• Title: "Days Before the World Wept"
• Recorded: Summer 2021
• Release date: October 15th, 2021 (3rd EP released by The Agonist)
• Record company: Napalm Records 
• Production: Christian Donaldson 
• Album cover art: Remedy Art Design 
• Personnel: Pascal Jobin (guitars), Chris Kells (bass and backing vocals), Danny Marino (guitars), Simon McKay (drums), and Vicky Psarakis (lead vocals) 
• Musical style: Melodic death metal, metalcore 
• Sound: Characterized by intricate and intersecting melodies, and Psarakis' wonderful vocal acrobatics, the sound on "Days Before the World Wept" continues the exploration of the band's musical journey found on "Orphans"!  It is wonderfully emotional, honest, aggressive, unique, and powerful.  Every note, every riff, every intention is brutally honest and mesmerizing!
• Major themes: Dilemma, pain, suffering, deception, etc.
• Tracks: 

1. "Remnants In Time"
2. "Immaculate Deception"
3. "Resurrection"
4. "Feast On The Living"
5. "Days Before The World Wept"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: SaltFire Brewing Company (Salt Lake City, Utah)
• Website: https://www.saltfirebrewing.com/
• Brew: Grievance Scotch Ale 
• Style: Scotch Ale (aged 10 months in Laird's Applejack Brandy barrels) 
• Serving: 16 ounce can
• ABV: 8.9%
• Pour: The Grievance pours a slightly hazy, caramel bronze hue with a half-finger, off-white head that dissipates fairly quickly leaving a thin cap.
• Nose: The nose is characterized by bready, malty, fruity, and boozy aromas.  There are notes of toasted sweet bread, apple, raisin, black cherry, sweet caramel/toffee, and brandy.
• Taste: The taste of the Grievance is malty, sweet, fruity, and slightly boozy.  There are notes of roasted malts, toasted hearty bread, apple, fig, dates, brown sugar, brandy, and sweet caramel/burnt toffee. 
• Mouthfeel: Full-bodied and moderately carbonated, the mouthfeel is thick and very smooth with a dry, boozy finish.

Overall pairing: SaltFire's Grievance Scotch Ale's bold and intricate flavors and aromas go so great with the aggression and intensity of "Days Before The World Wept"!  The fiery and soaring guitar work of Jobin and Marino shines even brighter with the sweeter notes of the brew, while that boozy punch is right in line with the guttural vocals of  Psarakis and the sweet and hearty malt backbone is great for McKay's thunderous drumming and Kells' intricate bass work!

Cheers and hails!!