Nine Circles

Hail and well met!  We’re offering something different to the Old Ones this time around, but it’s something that nonetheless excites me and speaks to my soul.  Both offerings do, in fact, but each for their own unique reasons.  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: Cult of Luna’s The Raging River and Grindcore Coffee Company’s The Divine Apostate.

—

The Tunes: Cult of Luna’s The Raging River

Despite the fact that this is technically an EP, we should all know that Cult of Luna doesn’t do short releases.  So even though it’s only a scant five tracks, The Raging River clocks in around 40 minutes, which makes it hefty enough for any other standard.  Still, even in the comparatively short amount of time, Cult of Luna manage to do a whole lot, which shouldn’t surprise anyone.  There is a reason they are considered titans, and maybe the reigning champs, of post-metal.  The Raging River is a crushingly heavy experience when it needs to be, and delightfully light and airy when the mood calls for it.  The band’s use of dynamics and fluid songwriting is as tight as it has ever been.  It is both inventive and instantly recognizable as a Cult of Luna release, which should be synonymous with quality at this point.  The intention on the songwriting was to let inspiration lead the way, but also to cross a musical bridge between A Dawn to Fear and the future.  It should also be noted that The Raging River marks the first release on Red Creek Recordings, the band’s newly founded record label.  “After more than 20 years of touring, releasing albums and experiencing different kinds of deals and aspects of the music industry, we believed that it was the right time for us to seek more freedom and to reduce the distance between us and our audience,” comments the band.  Good for the boys for sticking it to the system, and what a way to kick things off.  If nothing else, “Three Bridges” makes me realize that there needs to be more glockenspiel in metal these days, and the crushing gloom of “What I Leave Behind” is a perfect reminder that this band has been killing it for twenty years.  It might be too soon to start thinking about year end lists, but as far as EPs go, this will be up there with a bullet for a while, I would imagine.

—

The Booze Beverage: Grindcore Coffee Company’s The Divine Apostate

Despite the fact that this is being published on a Friday evening, I am writing this very early in the morning over a weekend.  Thus, I am afforded the opportunity to talk about a trend that I have been buying very deeply into, figuratively and literally: metal bands’ branded coffee roasts.  I have been taking solace amongst the general Unpleasantness by allowing myself to feel snobby about a few things.  Chief among them is coffee.  In setting more time aside for myself in the day to make a really good cup of coffee instead of something that just gets me moving, I have also been in need of more high-quality material with which to make said brew.  Couple that with the imperative to support bands I love, and it’s a no-brainer to seek out signature coffee as merch.  I first took notice of Angerot’s The Divine Apostate (both the album and the coffee) from Josh’s year end list, and without even hearing the album, I instantly ordered the coffee to taste it for myself.  I did end up loving the album (you can read my full thoughts here), but the coffee is also something truly special.  It is a dark roast in the darkest, most brutal sense of the phrase.  Be prepared for some seriously deep, robust flavor with a lot of bitterness, but not so overwhelming that it ruins the taste.  My preferred way of making coffee, if I have time, is the French press, which allows the deep flavors to develop nicely into an almost chocolate-like finish, but if all you have is an automatic coffee maker, this is a strong enough coffee that it’ll stand up to a quick on-the-go situation too.  If you can handle a dark roast’s dark roast, then this coffee is perfect early in the morning, as well as for a mid-afternoon pick-me-up.

---

It’s not booze this time, but we can still toast to health and comradery.  Cheers, and be good to each other.

­– Ian