August 8th, 2023 - Breaking Echigo Traditions

 

Konnichi wa and happy Tuesday beer freaks and rockers!  The Meista here today getting wild with a pairing of "Tradition Breaker", the sophomore album by Japanese metal band X-Ray and a tasty and very crushable Koshihikari Echigo Beer from Echigo Beer Company Limited!  Hell yeah!!

Album Info:

• Artist: X-Ray
• Title: "Tradition Breaker"
• Recorded: 1983 at Mediabum Studio and Starship Studio
• Release date: January 21st, 1984 (2nd studio album by X-Ray)
• Record company: Teichiku Records Co., Ltd.
• Production: Toshi Nakashita
• Album cover art: Hideki Hirose (photography) and Keisuke Tsukimitsu (art direction and design)
• Personnel: Akira Fujimoto (vocals), Kazuhisa Takahashi (drums), Takafumi Usui (bass), and Shin Yuasa (guitars)
• Musical style: Heavy metal
• Sound: Fast-paced, fiery, and fun as hell, the sound on "Tradition Breaker" is pure, early '80s, Japanese heavy metal!
• Major themes: Rebellion, rock and roll, sex, girls, self-reliance, etc. 
• Tracks: 

1. "Question"
2. "Go Against The World"
3. "Willful Lady"
4. "Gamblin' Man"
5. "Damsel"
6. "Power"
7. "Born To Die"
8. "Back To The Wall"
9. "Last Show Time ~I Wish You Every Happiness~"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Echigo Beer Company Limited (Japan)
• Website: https://echigobeer.com/
• Brew: Koshihikari Echigo Beer 
• Style: Japanese Rice Lager
• Serving: 11 ounce can
• ABV: 5.0%
• Ingredients: Lager beer brewed with Niigata Koshihikari rice
• Pour: The Koshihikari Echigo pours a clear, bright golden yellow hue with a half-finger, frothy, bright white head with great retention and lots of sudsy lacing. 
• Nose: The nose is grassy, floral, and grainy.  There are aromas of summer grass, wildflowers, hay, crackery biscuit, rice, and soft caramel.
• Taste: The taste is like the nose: crackery, grainy, grassy, and slightly hoppy.  There are notes of light citrusy and floral hops, lemongrass, crackery biscuit, minerals, and very light caramel.
• Mouthfeel: Light-bodied with good carbonation, the mouthfeel of the Koshihikari Echigo is very crisp and dry, yet smooth with a clean finish.
• Additional notes: The painting of the landscape on the label is by Katsuyuki Fujii, a sumi-e painter from Niigata.

Overall pairing: The delicious, bright, and invitingly crushable aromas and flavors of the Koshihikari Echigo are perfect for the rockin' good time that is X-Ray's "Tradition Breaker" album!  'Nuff said!

Kanpai!  Rock on!!