May 6th, 2024 - Slicing the Onigiri with a Tokyo Blade

 

Hello and hails metal maniacs!  The Meista here today pairing a crushable Onigiri Japanese Style Rice Lager from Bolero Snort Brewery with Tokyo Blade's amazing "Tokyo Blade / Midnight Rendezvous" albums!  Hell yeah!!

Album Info:

• Artist: Tokyo Blade
• Title: "Tokyo Blade / Midnight Rendezvous"
• Recorded: 1983 at Stable Studios, Wickham Studios, Rooster Studios, and Cave Studios in Bristol, UK
• Release date: 1983 (first album by Tokyo Blade)
• Record company: Powerstation Records
• Production: Kevin D. Nixon and Andy Allen
• Album cover art: Hugh Gilmour
• Personnel: Andy Boulton (guitars), Alan Marsh (lead vocals), Steve Pierce (drums), Andy Robbins (bass guitar), and John Wiggins (guitars)
• Additional musicians: Ray Dismore (guitar on "If Heaven Is Hell")
• Musical style: Heavy metal, hard rock
• Sound: In the vein of early Iron Maiden and Tygers of Pan Tang, Tokyo Blade is a crucial piece of the NWOBHM history!  The music is fast-paced, electrifying, passionate, and raw!  Marsh's vocals are reminiscent of Di'Anno as well as Brian Ross.  The sonic dual guitar attack of Boulton and Wiggins will peel the paint!  And Pierce and Robbins are a thunderous stampeded of heavy metal power and might! 
• Major themes: Rock and roll, power, deception, rebellion, danger, lust, murder, aggression, etc.
• Tracks: 

CD Disc 1: Original Album

1. "Power Game"
2. "Break The Chains"
3. "If Heaven Is Hell"
4. "On Through The Night"
5. "Killer City"
6. "Liar"
7. "Tonight"
8. "Sunrise In Tokyo"
9. "Blue Ridge Mountains Of Virginia"

CD Disc 2: Bonus Tracks

1. "Death On Main Street"
2. "Madame Guillotine" (Madam Guillotine EP)
3. "Breakout" (Madam Guillotine EP)
4. "Love Struck" (Madam Guillotine EP)
5. "Midnight Rendezvous" (Midnight Rendezvous EP)
6. "Mean Streak" (Midnight Rendezvous EP)
7. "If Heaven Is Hell" (Midnight Rendezvous EP)
8. "Highway Passion" (Midnight Rendezvous EP)
9. "Shadows Of Insanity" (The Cave Sessions)
10. "School House Is Burning" (The Cave Sessions)
11. "Jezzabel" (The Cave Sessions)
12. "Monkey's Blood" (The Cave Sessions)

LP Tracks 

1. "Midnight Rendezvous
2. "Break The Chains"
3. "If Heaven Is Hell"
4. "Mean Streak"
5. "Power Game"
6. "Highway Passion"
7. "Killer City"
8. "Sunrise In Tokyo"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Bolero Snort Brewery (Carlstadt, New Jersey)
• Website: https://bolerosnort.com/
• Brew: Onigiri Japanese Style Rice Lager
• Style: Rice Lager
• Serving: 12 ounce can
• ABV: 4.2%
• Pour: The Onigiri pours a clear, pale golden yellow hue with a very thin, bright white head with good retention and light lacing.
• Nose: The nose is grainy, grassy, and slightly sweet.  There are light aromas of sticky rice, doughy white bread, freshly cut hay, a hint of pear or apple, and light honey.
• Taste: The taste of the Onigiri follows the nose with grainy, grassy, and slightly sweet flavors.  There are notes of crackery biscuit, rice crackers, light grassy hops, light apple, and a hint of honey.
• Mouthfeel: Light-bodied and well carbonated, the mouthfeel of the Onigiri is very crisp and smooth with a dry, clean finish.

Overall pairing: The Onigiri Japanese Style Rice Lager from Bolero Snort Brewery is a very crisp, , and crushable drink... perfect for the fast-paced, straight-forward heavy metal juggernaut that is Tokyo Blade!  And of course, the beer label art and the album cover art look great together!  'Nuff said! 

Cheers and hails!!