December 26th, 2024 - Cast in Stone by Mel's Magic IPA

 

Hello and happy Thursday my headbanging and hop lovin' friends!  The Meister here today pairing "Cast In Stone", the wonderful and very underrated album by the mighty Venom and a tasty, hoppy, and punchy Mel's Magic IPA from the fine folks at Iron Horse Brewery!  Oh, yeah!!  Special thanks to my friend Brad Davis for giving me this tasty brew... thanks brother!!

Album Info:

• Artist: Venom
• Title: "Cast In Stone"
• Recorded: 1997 at Lartington Hall Studios near Barnard Castle in County Durham, England
• Release date: November 11th, 1997 (9th full-length studio album by Venom)
• Record company: Steamhammer / Deadline Music
• Production: Venom
• Album cover art: ?
• Personnel: Conrad Lant (aka Cronos) on bass guitar and lead vocals, Jeffery Dunn (aka Mantas) on guitars and backing vocals, and Anthony Bray (aka Abaddon) on drums and samples
• Additional musicians: Kevin Ridley (keyboards and samples) and Trevor Sewell (keyboards and samples)
• Musical style: Heavy metal with elements of thrash metal, speed metal, black metal, and industrial metal
• Sound: Reminiscent of the band's early work, yet more musical and more complex, the sound on "Cast The Stone" was a triumphant return to form (and members) of the original lineup.  The songs are fiercely aggressive and wonderfully constructed, executed, and produced!  A must have for Venom fans and metal heads in general! 
• Major themes: Evil, the occult, Satan, witchcraft, rebellion, horror, mythology, violence, blood, sexual fantasies, death, etc.
• Tracks:  

Disc 1:

1. "The Evil One"
2. "Raised In Hell"
3. "All Devils Eve"
4. "Bleeding"
5. "Destroyed & Damned"
6. "Domus Mundi"
7. "Flight Of The Hydra"
8. "God's Forsaken"
9. "Mortals"
10. "Infectious"
11. "Kings Of Evil"
12. "You're All Gonna Die"
13. "Judgment Day"
14. "Swarm"

Disc 2 ("Best Of Re-Recorded"): 

1. "Intro"
2. "Bloodlust"
3. "Die Hard"
4. "Acid Queen"
   
5. "Burstin' Out"
6. "Warhead"
7. "Ladylust"
8. "Manitou"
9. "Rip Ride"
10. "Venom"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Iron Horse Brewery (Ellensburg, Washington)
• Website: https://www.ironhorsebrewery.com/
• Brew: Mel's Magic IPA
• Style: India Pale Ale (IPA)
• Serving: 12 ounce can
• ABV: 6.8%
• Pour: The Mel's Magic IPA pours a fairly clear, deep copper-amber hue with a frothy and firm, off-white, 1-finger head with great retention and soapy lacing.
• Nose: The nose is a characterized by citrusy, floral, earthy, herbal, and malty aromas.  There are aromas of grapefruit rind, tangerine, wet pine needles, wildflowers, fresh herbs, bready malt, and sweet caramel.
• Taste: Well-balanced and flavorful, the Mel's Magic IPA has a nice blend of citrusy, herbal, and malty flavors.  There are notes of pink grapefruit juice, tangerine, orange zest, pine resin, light onion, and soft caramel/toffee.
• Mouthfeel: Medium to full-bodied and moderately carbonated, the mouthfeel of Mel's Magic IPA is crisp, with a dry, slightly bitter finish. 

Overall pairing: The Iron Horse Mel's Magic IPA is a very crisp, very hoppy, complex, yet crushable brew... a great companion for banging your heading and raising your horns to the metal might of the one and only Venom!  Those bitter hop notes go great with Cronos' vocals and the overall aggressiveness of the album while the brighter and sweeter notes go great with Mantas' fantastic riffing and solos!  'Nuff said!

Cheers!!  Hails!!