November 4th, 2023 - Through the Power of the Sun Stone, We Shall Remain

Hello and happy Saturday my friends!  The Meista here today pairing a tasty Sun Stone Hazy IPA from the fine folks at the Mad Swede Brewing Company and the latest killer album, "We Shall Remain" by Swedish metal band Eleine!  Hell yeah!

Album Info:

• Artist: Eleine
• Title: "We Shall Remain" 
• Recorded: 2023 at The Panic Room
• Release date: July 14th, 2023 (4th studio album by Eleine)
• Record company: Atomic Fire Records
• Production: Rikard Ekberg and Madeleine "Eleine" Liljestam 
• Album cover art: Néstor Ávalos 
• Personnel: Rikard Ekberg (guitars and vocals), Madeleine "Eleine" Liljestam (lead vocals), Filip Stålberg (bass), and Jesper Sunnhagen (drums) 
• Musical style: Symphonic metal with elements of traditional heavy metal, death metal, and  
• Sound: Guitar and vocally driven, the music on "We Shall Remain" is bombastic, dynamic, and heavy!  For a band considered as part of the symphonic metal movement, this is some pretty aggressive stuff! 
• Major themes: Life, death, darkness, suffering, self-preservation, power, etc. 
• Tracks: 

1. "Never Forget"
2. "Stand By The Flame"
3. "We Are Legion"
4. "Promise Of Apocalypse"
5. "Blood In Their Eyes"
6. "Vemod"
7. "Through The Mist"
8. "Suffering"
9. "War Das Alles"
10. "We Shall Remain"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Mad Swede Brewing Company (Boise, Idaho)
• Website: https://madswedebrewing.com/
• Brew: Sun Stone Hazy IPA 
• Style: New England India Pale Ale (IPA)
• Serving: 12 ounce can
• ABV: 6.3%
• IBUs: 65
• Pour: The Sun Stone Hazy IPA pours a hazy, golden-orange hue with a billowy, 1+ finger, bright white head with great retention and lot of sticky, sudsy lacing.
• Nose: The nose is tropical, citrusy, earthy, spicy, and sweet.  There are aromas of freshly cut pineapple, orange juice and zest, grapefruit rind, mango, stone fruit (peach and apricot), cedar, hints of pine resin, white pepper, and light caramel.
• Taste: Like the nose, the taste of the Sun Stone Hazy IPA is tropical, citrusy, and malty.  There are notes of pineapple juice, pink grapefruit juice, orange juice, tangerine, light peach, dried apricot, hints of white wine, and soft caramel/toffee.
• Mouthfeel: Medium in body with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is very crisp and juicy, yet smooth with a dry, slightly sweet finish.

Overall pairing: The well-balanced Sun Stone Hazy IPA from Mad Swede is a complex, hoppy, juicy, yet very drinkable brew... great for tossing back while rocking the hell out to the wonderfully intense and bombastic metal stylings of Eleine!  Those punchy hop notes go great with aggressive guitars, bass, and drums while the brighter, fruitier notes go great with Liljestam's beautifully rich voice!  'Nuff said!

Skal!  Hails!