Review by Rachel Jablonski
“Lamb of God… Lamb of God… Lamb of God… Lamb of God…” the crowd chants. A deep church bell rings and reverberates continuing its bellow in about 5 second intervals. The crowd cheers. “Lamb of Gooooooooooooooood!” one audience member clearly howls followed by another who amusingly screams “Hell’s Bells!” over the crowd noise. Gregorian-like chanting completes the intro before finally it is blatant that Lamb of God has taken the stage. In breaks heavy guitar and thus begins the live performance.
Lamb of God’s Killadelphia, available in both CD and DVD formats, is derived from a live performance filmed and recorded in 2004 at Trocadero nightclub in Philadelphia, PA. The CD version of Killadelphia is just as pictorial of Lamb of God on stage, imaginatively so, as anyone who has seen the band live will definitely attest to. “Laid to Rest,” the first track off of the band’s Ashes of the Wake album begins the set with fury and an intensity that never ceases throughout the show.
Set list highlights include some favorites: “Now You’ve Got Something to Die For” and “Omerta” from Ashes of the Wake, “Ruin” and “As the Palaces Burn” from As the Palaces Burn, and “Terror & Hubris in the House of Frank Pollard” and “Subtle Arts of Murder and Persuasion,” from New American Gospel. Also featured is a track from Burn the Priest, the band’s former name, called “Bloodletting.” These tracks and others are not only musically stimulating, but the Philly crowd’s enthusiasm and vocal participation greatly enhances the listening experience as well.
In addition to the set which is over an hour long, the CD also acts as a key to unlock visual content at a secure website. The website contains close to 10 minutes of bonus footage from a concert previously unreleased plus additional audio and behind the scenes footage from 2005’s Sounds of the Underground tour.
The CD version of Killadelphia captures the aura of Lamb of God live very well. Whether or not the listener has seen the band live, mental imagery accompanies the audio performance to satisfy a live Lamb of God fix.