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Kali Ma - Live From Daniel Street (October 19, 2012) |
One part of the CT music scene that has been alive and well for a long time is the metal scene. Over the last four or five years one of the bands that's been an integral part of maintaining the popularity of metal within the CT scene has been Kali Ma.
I have to be perfectly honest that I was a little suprised when I saw that this was a live album. I mean, I knew there was a live DVD included but for whatever reason I was thrown for a bit of a loop when I immediately realized that the CD was simply an audio version of the DVD. Full disclosure here - I'm not a huge fan of live albums as a general rule. I own maybe 20-25 total across all genres. There just has to be something really good about a live album to grab my attention and keep hold for whatever reason. Now I'm not sure if it's because Kali Ma are sans-vocals (which is usually the first thing to get lost in a live recording) or if it's because the audio quality of this show was so clear and crisp, but I found myself on more than one occasion forgetting this was even a live album...until I heard things like "Don't forget to tip your bartenders..." during breaks in songs. To say that these guys hit a home run with this live footage/album is an understatement.
But the beauty of this album and DVD combo isn't necessarily the pristine sound quality or even the well-pieced together live footage. It's the fact that this album showcased perfectly the talent behind this band. No studio trickery to hide behind, no "producer" pulling levers, this is just metal in all it's raw, unabated beauty for all the world to see and hear. Kali Ma's version of metal falls off the Swedish death metal branch of the metal world tree. Most people will immediately liken this band to Unearth and Lamb of God, but that's an unfair assessment in my book. Bands like those two just regurgitate the same tired formula album by album and song by song. Kali Ma is more than that. There's the aforementioned Swedish influence of bands like At The Gates, In Flames (before they started to suck) and Soilwork (also before they started to suck) but there's also a distinct Suffocation/NY death metal vibe (yes, Falses, there is a difference between NY and Swedish death metal) mixed with some Iron Maiden/traditional metal worship as well.
The DVD portion of this two-disc set includes a pretty amusing, Friday the 13th inspired video for the song "Death March" as well as the set from the live album which was filmed at the old Daniel Street in Milford. Daniel Street was one of the best rooms CT had to offer and not just for metal bands either. It's nice to see it immortalized here. My suggestion would be that next time you see these guys out at a local club that you pick up this release. You will not be disappointed.
