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: Dawn Fades’ Ode and Brewery X’s The Gnar.
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The Metal: Dawn Fades’ Ode
It is my pleasure to once again feature local heros and all around nice people Dawn Fades on this column (for the uninitiated). It is immediately apparent that the LA five piece have made a conscious effort to shake things up for their second album, as Ode feels much more based in psychedelia than its more straightforward post-metal predecessor. The same weight and impeccable use of space are there, but with the added touches of Pink Floyd-esque dreamscapes, hypnotic rhythms, and the heavy use of effects on Sam Sherwood’s voice which give an airy, floating quality to his cleans. The second album is where a lot of bands try to stretch their wings and prove they’re not one trick ponies, and many of them take things a bridge too far, but Dawn Fades have managed to stick the landing here. This is a fun album, because you get a real sense of the same joy in experimentation that I feel these guys must have had when they were writing these songs. Ode is a step both forward and in the right direction.
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The Booze: Brewery X’s The Gnar
Today being the Fall Equinox (as of writing this, anyway), I am definitely looking forward to the return of regular availability of my beloved dark beers, but I figure one more round of IPA’s couldn’t hurt. Today we have a brewery and beer that are both completely new to me, Anaheim’s Brewery X and their double hazy IPA The Gnar. While I am someone who generally prefers their IPA’s on the more pine & citrus end of the flavor spectrum, I have been known to enjoy a sweet, hazy IPA on numerous occasions. The Gnar is a little more hazy than I was prepared for, however. It’s been a while since I’ve had an IPA that I could honestly categorize as ‘sticky’ but this is a syrupy, resinous beer that’s big on fruit notes with a dank back pallate. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t not like this; the fruit notes are pleasant and it has a ton of character. It might just be a little too intense for me. If you, however, are someone who likes that kind of thick, sweet hazy IPA then this is for sure the beer for you.
Cheers, and be good to each other,
– Vincent
