February 20th, 2019 - Blood And Thunder On The Atlantic

God kväll and hails!  Tonight I'm pairing "The Atlantic", the latest album by the wonderful Swedish progressive metal band Evergrey and a Blood And Thunder from Barbarian Brewing Company!

 

Album Info:

• Artist: Evergrey
• Title: "The Atlantic"
• Recorded: June through October 2018 at Top Floor Studios in Gothenburg, Sweden
• Release date: January 25th, 2019 (studio album by Everygrey)
• Record company: AFM Records
• Production: Tom S. Englund and Jonas Ekdahl
• Album cover art: Giannis Nakos 
• Personnel: Henrik Danhage (guitars), Jonas Ekdahl (drums), Tom S. Englund (lead vocals and guitars), Johan Niemann (bass), and Rikard Zander (keyboards)  
• Musical style: Progressive metal, gothic metal, power metal with elements of doom metal and groove metal
• Sound: At times haunting, at times deeply emotional, at times heavy and aggressive, one thing is for certain, with "The Atlantic", Evergrey has produced another wonderfully textured, honest, melodic, and powerful album!  With heavy duty riffing, soaring keys, and ethereal vocals, Evergrey displays their dark musical prowess and lays down another winning album!  
• Major themes: Tied together by the common thread of the ocean/water metaphors, themes on "The Atlantic" include discovery, self-realization, seeking the truth, isolation, sadness, hope, etc.
• Tracks:   

1. "A Silent Arc"
2. "Weightless"
3. "All I Have"
4. "A Secret Atlantis"
5. "The Tidal"
6. "End Of Silence"
7. "Currents"
8. "Departure"
9. "The Beacon"
10. "This Ocean"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Barbarian Brewing Company (Boise, ID)
• Website: https://barbarianbrewing.com/
• Brew: Blood And Thunder
• Style: American Wild Ale / Sour Ale
• Serving: 16 ounce bottle
• ABV: 7.0%
• Ingredients: "Sour gold base aged in oak barrels with brettanomyces and lactobacillus with a butt load of raspberries added to finish"
• Pour: The Blood And Thunder pours the color of "peeled grapes" (a nice description from my wife) or grapefruit juice.  It is very cloudy with lot of bubbly effervescence and a thin, pink head that dissipates quickly, leaving essentially no lacing.
• Nose: The nose is fruity, tart, floral, sweet, earthy, and slightly funky.  There are big notes of fresh raspberries along with lemon zest, floral perfume, wild flowers, dried fruit, oak, and hints of wet leather and horse blanket.
• Taste: The taste of the Blood And Thunder is very fruity and tart, slightly sweet, slightly soapy, and funky.  There are flavors of fresh raspberries, raspberry jam, dried apricot, lemon juice, floral soap, and a little funk.
• Mouthfeel: Medium bodied and well-carbonated, the mouthfeel is crisp and tart, yet a little soapy with a dry, lip-puckering sour finish.

Overall pairing: The Barbarian Blood And Thunder is a very unique, refreshing, and drinkable brew, yet very complex and flavorful... much like the depth, darkness, intensity, and beauty of Evergrey's brilliant "The Atlantic"!

Skål and hails!!