Receiving the Evcharist is our weekly feature where we pair choice albums with our favorite libations. Drink from the cup of heresy. This week’s offering: Full of Hell’s Weeping Choir and Oskar Blues Brewing Company’s Guns ‘N’ Rosé.
The Metal: Full of Hell’s Weeping Choir
Full of Hell are an act that have always been ‘more than your average’ to me. The shift away from straight ahead hardcore/grindcore to something darker and more ominous has been subtle over the years, but always a treat to watch unfold. The band’s newest LP and Relapse Records debut, Weeping Choir, continues the trend of the band stretching out past the boundaries they set for themselves previously. Their particular brand of grindcore, inflected with beefy death metal riffing and caustic industrial noise, is more cohesive here than ever, with even the shortest songs on the album feeling like real, put-together movements. Even more special are moments like the seven minute “Armory of Obsidian Glass,” whose sludgy riffing and striking melodicism (given life by guest vocals from Lingua Ignota) show a band who are out to push any and all boundaries they can. With every album getting better and better, the future for Full of Hell is bright, even if their music gets increasingly darker.
The Booze: Oskar Blues Brewing Company’s Guns ‘N’ Rosé
I’m a fool for anything tart, but lately I’ve been grabbing anything that has hibiscus in it that I can get my hands on. Hibiscus tea, tacos with hibiscus seasoning (thank you God and Jesus for Vegatinos), and yep, hibiscus beer too. The latest of my acquisitions is Oskar Blues’ Guns ‘N’ Rosé, a pale ale brewed with hibiscus and prickly pear. The end result reminds me more of a sour ale than anything pale; although there is a nice bit of hoppy bitterness thrown in there for good measure, the main thing you’re tasting is the tartness of the hibiscus and prickly pear, which both also tint the drink a pleasing rose gold to boot. I’m almost tempted to not open any more of the cans I have, considering Guns ‘N’ Rosé might end up being a collector’s item soon, but with how good this tastes, I might just have to.
Cheers, and be good to each other,
– Vincent
Nine Circles 