April 26th, 2024 - A Dank Little Thing Falls Into the Realm

 

Hello and happy Friday metal maniacs and hop freaks!  The Meista here getting the weekend off to the right start with a pairing of "Into The Realm", the killer debut album by Castle Rat and a punchy Dank Little Thing IPA from Sierra Nevada Brewing Company!  Hell yeah!

Album Info:

• Artist: Castle Rat
• Title: "Into The Realm"
• Recorded: 2022 through 2023 at The Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Release date: April 12th, 2024 (1st full-length studio album by Castle Rat)
• Record company: King Volume Records
• Production: Thomas Johnsen
• Album cover art: Olivia Cummings (layout and formatting), Ronnie Lanzilotta III (photography), and Riley Pinkerton (band logo)
• Personnel: Henry Black aka The Count (lead guitars and backing vocals), Ronnie Lanzilotta III aka The Druid (drums), Riley Pinkerton aka The Rat Queen (rhythm guitars and lead vocals), and Joshua Strmic aka The Plague Doctor (bass)
• Additional musician: Rafferty Jennings Swink (wizardry, synth, and additional mystical sounds)
• Musical style: Doom metal, stoner rock, hard rock
• Sound: Heavy, sludgy, yet wonderfully melodic, the sound on "Into The Realm" is a fantastic tapestry of doom metal and stoner rock.  Pinkterton's vocals lend themselves well to the heavy hitting, thunderous power of the band's music!
• Major themes: Fantasy, sword and sorcery, death, desire, magic, quests, darkness, violence, etc.
• Tracks: 

1. "Dagger Dragger"
2. "Feed The Dream"
3. "Resurrector"
4. "Red Sands"
5. "The Mirror"
6. "Cry For Me"
7. "Realm"
8. "Fresh Fur"
9. "Nightblood"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company (Chico, California)
• Website: https://sierranevada.com/
• Brew: Dank Little Thing IPA 
• Style: Hazy India Pale Ale (IPA)
• Serving: 12 ounce can
• ABV: 7.5%
• IBUs: 40
• Ingredients: Munich, Oats, Two-row Pale, and Wheat malts with Amarillo, Chinook, CTZ, and Mosaic hops, and Ale yeast
• Pour: The Dank Little Thing pours a foggy, golden yellow / orange hue with a frothy, eggshell white, 1+ finger head with great retention and lots of sticky, intricate lacing
• Nose: Like the name says, the nose is dank, as well as citrusy, herbal, floral, and malty.  There are aromas of resinous cannabis, wet pine needles, cedar, grapefruit rind, orange peel, herbal tea, fresh garden herbs, wildflowers, white pepper, and soft caramel.
• Taste: The taste of the Dank Little Thing follows the nose with lots of citrusy, resinous, and malty flavors.  There are notes of pine, orange pith, pink grapefruit juice, tangerine, black tea, grassy hops, bready malt, and light toffee.
• Mouthfeel: Medium to full-bodied and moderately carbonated, the mouthfeel is thick, yet crisp and refreshing with a dry, bitter finish.

Overall pairing: The Sierra Nevada Dank Little Thing is a delightfully hoppy brew... a great beer for the wonderful, heavy-duty doom / stoner rock sensibility of Castle Rat and their killer debut album, "Into The Realm"!  'Nuff said!

Cheers and hails!!