May 13th, 2022 - Frolicking Through The Park With The Angel Of Death

 

Hey there thrashers and hop-heads!  Happy Friday!  The Meista here feeling a little aggressive... so today I'm pairing "Frolic Through The Park", the sophomore album by thrash metal legends Death Angel and a Death Angel Double Dry Hopped Triple India Pale Ale from Tox Brewing Company!  Oh, hell yes!!  And a big thank you for the tasty brew to my good friends Jason and Sonia!!  Cheers buddies!!

Album Info:

• Artist: Death Angel
• Title: "Frolic Through The Park"
• Recorded: March 1988 at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California 
  Release date: July 5th, 1988 (2nd studio album by Death Angel)
• Record company: Enigma Records
• Production: Davy Vain, Rob Cavestany, and Andy Galeon 
• Album cover art: Sam Haffner
• Personnel: Rob Cavestany (lead guitar and lead vocals on "Confused"), Andy Galeon (drums), Dennis Pepa (bass and lead vocals on "Confused"), Gus Pepa (guitars), and Mark Osegueda (lead vocals)
• Additional musicians: Bob Ross (intro and outro on "Shores Of Sin")
• Musical style: Thrash metal
• Sound: Raw, aggressive, fast-paced, and cutting-edge, everything about "Frolic Through The Park" is classic Death Angel!  Osegueda's vocals are aggressive, brutal, and honest!  The dual guitar work of Aguilar and Cavestany is awe-inspiring!  And the rhythm section of Carroll and Sisson is a thunderous juggernaut!  This is how thrash is supposed to sound!!
• Major themes: Anger, aggression, rebellion, power, destruction, death, war, violence, the evil mankind is capable of, insanity, metal, truth, etc.
• Tracks: 

1. "3rd Floor"
2. "Road Mutants"
3. "Why You Do This"
4. "Bored"
5. "Devil's Metal"
6. "Confused"
7. "Guilty Of Innocence"
8. "Open Up"
9. "Shores Of Sin"
10. "Cold Gin" (Kiss cover)
11. "Mind Rape"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Tox Brewing Company (New London, Connecticut)
• Website: https://www.toxbrewing.com/
• Brew: Death Angel Double Dry Hopped Triple India Pale Ale
• Style: Triple India Pale Ale (TIPA) / Imperial India Pale Ale (IIPA)
• Serving: 16 ounce can
• ABV: 10.0%
• Pour: The Death Angel pours a very murky orange hue with an off-white half-finger, creamy head
• Nose: The nose is characterized by citrus, tropical fruit, and dank earthy notes.  There are aromas of orange juice and zest, passion fruit, mango, grapefruit, tangerine, apricot, peach, light pine resin, and a sweet malty backbone.
• Taste: The flavor is assertive, aggressive, fruity, bitter, floral, and sweet.  There are big notes of freshly squeezed orange juice, peach, pink grapefruit juice, tangerine juice, mango, light melon, lemon zest, sweet caramel, burnt toffee, black tea, light herbs, and a boozy finish.
• Mouthfeel: Full-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is smooth, sticky, and slightly oily, but also crisp with a dry, slightly bitter and boozy finish.

Overall pairing: The assertive, bold, and brilliant flavors of the Tox Death Angel Double Dry Hopped Triple India Pale Ale is perfect for that West Coast thrash sound... and especially Death Angel's classic "Frolic Through The Park"!   The amazingly fast and precise guitar work of Cavestany's lead work and G. Pepa's rhythm work is doubly enhanced by those citrus and tropical fruit flavors while the more aggressive and bitter hop notes work perfectly with the rhythmic, fast-paced, and sometimes progressive barrage from Galeon and D. Pepa, and Osegueda's kickass vocal delivery!!

HAILS!!  Keep it metal... and keep it craft!!