March 6th, 2022 - Money And Juice Talks In The OG

 

Hello and happy Sunday hellions and artisan brew fanatics!  Your drinking buddy the Meista here this evening with a killer pairing of "Money Talks", the kick-ass sophomore album by Cryptic Slaughter and a deliciously juicy and dangerously crushable OG Juice IPA from my good friends at UTOG Brewing Company!  Hell yes!!  

Album Info:

• Artist: Cryptic Slaughter
• Title: "Money Talks"
• Recorded: 1987 at Pacific Sound in Chatsworth, California, Preferred Sound in Woodland, California, Stagg Street Studio in Van Nuys, California, and Track Records in Los Angeles, California
• Release date: May 15th, 1987 (2nd full-length studio release by Cryptic Slaughter)
• Record company: Death Records / Relapse Records
• Production: Bill Metoyer and Cryptic Slaughter 
• Album cover art: Jeff Harp
• Personnel: Bill Crooks (vocals), Les Evans (guitars), Rob "Blasko" Nicholson (bass and backing vocals), and Scott Peterson (drums) 
• Musical style: Crossover thrash metal
• Sound: Fiery fast, in-your-face, and maniacal, with "Money Talks", Cryptic Slaughter perfectly blends thrash metal aggression with punk speed.  The music is bold, it is brash, and it is powerful!
• Major themes: With socio-politically charged lyrics, themes on the album include a self-reliance, freedom of speech, and critical look at greed and capitalism, drug abuse, censorship, technology, violence, etc.
• Tracks:
  
1. "Money Talks"
2. "Set Your Own Pace"
3. "Could Be Worse"
4. "Wake Up"
5. "Freedom Of Expression?"
6. "Menace To Mankind"
7. "Too Much, Too Little"
8. "Human Contrast"
9. "Tables Are Turned"
10. "Positively"
11. "All Wrong"
12. "American Heroes"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: UTOG Brewing Company (Ogden, Utah)
• Website: https://www.utogbrewing.com/
• Brew: OG Juice IPA
• Style: American India Pale Ale (IPA)
• Serving: 16 ounce can
• ABV: 7.3%
• Ingredients: Citra, Idaho 7, and Simcoe hops, and Juicy yeast
• Pour: The OG Juice pours a very hazy golden yellow-orange hue with a billowy and foamy bright white, 1+ finger head with good sustain and lots of sticky, soapy, layered lacing.
• Nose: The nose is very citrusy, very tropical, hoppy, malty, and sweet.  There are big aromas of stone fruit (peach along with fresh and dried apricot) upfront along with freshly cut pineapple, grapefruit rind, mango, melon, orange marmalade, orange zest, orange juice, a very subtle hint of pine resin, and a hint of caramel.
• Taste: The taste follows the nose with lots of citrusy, fruity, grainy, slightly sweet, and herbal characteristics.  There are notes of orange juice, orange pith, and orange zest, tangerine, pink grapefruit juice, pineapple, melon, apricot, peach, mango, herbal tea, very light pine, toffee/caramel, a hint of white pepper, and an ever so slight hint of booze (more so as it warms).
• Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is very crisp, very juicy, and a smooth with a dry, slightly bitter finish. 

Overall Pairing: The hop-forward, citrusy punch of UTOG's delicious OG Juice IPA is perfect for the aggression, fiery riffs, and killer hooks of this kick-ass album!  The more bitter flavors (grapefruit rind, orange pith, pine, tea, etc.) are great for the lyrics and Crooks' aggressive vocals while the brighter flavors go great with the amazing guitar attack of Evans!  And those bolder malt notes are prefect for the thunderous blast beat drumming and thumping bass onslaught of Blasko and Peterson!  I highly recommend both the album and the beer!

Cheers and hails!!