January 26th, 2013 - A Pale Machine

Good afternoon brew and music lovers!  The Meista here today pairing Deep Purple's quintesential 1972 album, "Machine Head" and Full Sail Brewery's Limited Edition Pale Bock (Recipe Number 04).  I paired the Pale Bock with "Machine Head" for the simple fact that it goes down easy like a good English lager or ale... something simple and tasty to help you get lost in the profound power of Deep Purple!

The Pale Bock is a simple single malt, single hop ale brewed with pale malt and Willamette hops.  It pours a pale-golden amber with a nice head that diminishes fairly quickly.  The nose has a nice hop presence with some more subtle sweet and nut aromas.  The body is light, but with solid carbonation... very refreshing!  The flavor is that of a good, solid pale with notes of malt, hops, and light honey.  It goes down easy and has a real clean finish... a great beer for kicking back to the amazing depth and genius that is Deep Purple's "Machine Head"!!

Probably one of the most influential albums in the development of the heavy metal genre, "Machine Head" is Deep Purple's 6th studio album.  Recorded using the mobile recording studio owned by the Rolling Stones in Montreux, Switzerland, "Machine Head" is an album of flawless and profound hard rocking intensity.  This is of course the album that contains "Smoke On The Water," but more importantly, "Highway Star," which is one of my all-time favorite songs!  Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore has cited the chord progression for the solos in "Highway Star" as inspired by the work of 18th-century composer Johann Sebastian Bach.  His guitar work on this song is jaw-dropping perfection... as it is throughout the album!  In fact, the entire band is perfection on this album!  Ian Gillan's voice soars, Jon Lord's organ/keyboard work is brilliant, Roger Glover's bass is a thumping beast, and Ian Paice's drum work is swinging power!   Every track is a perfect jewel!  Every chord is a sonic explosiong!  I don't know what else to say about this album apart from the simple fact that YOU MUST OWN A COPY!!  Here's the full track list:

1.	"Highway Star"
2.	"Maybe I'm a Leo"
3.	"Pictures of Home"
4.	"Never Before"
5.	"Smoke on the Water"
6.	"Lazy"
7.	"Space Truckin'"
8.	"When a Blind Man Cries"