Exclusive: Listen to KALIKA’s New Single “Poison Mouth”; Second EP Out This Spring

By Prog Sphere on March 28, 2019

International experimental prog rock quartet Kalika return this Spring with the release of their sophomore EP entitled Data Religion. Comprised of six songs Data Religion comes a year after the group’s debut EP effort Enter Kalki. Teaming with us at Prog Sphere, the band is premiering a lyric video for “Poison Mouth,” a lead single from the upcoming release. Watch it below.

Commented singer Prannay Sastry: “When I was writing lyrics for each of the songs on the EP, I wanted to convey some complex and abstract ideas as comprehensively as I could. I was looking to express feelings, states of mind, thought patterns, sensory perception and other abstract things using the crude implement of language—an artistic challenge. Always aware that I would fall short in that endeavour, I decided to approach the lyrics in a minimalistic way. The lyrics for ‘Poison Mouth,’ therefore ended up being written as a sort of riddle—making it easier for me to hint at the abstract. The answer to the riddle is anyone’s guess, but I had intended for it to be understood within the context of the theme of the EP. Other songs on the EP will also explore the theme of ‘Data Religion,’ but from different points of view.”

He continued: “‘Poison Mouth’ came together in a wonderfully organic fashion, like many other songs on ‘Data Religion.’ It began with a few small ideas that were introduced into jam sessions. In a matter of days, the song had grown and taken on a life of its own. Though most of the original ideas and parts were unchanged, the song itself seemed to bear almost no resemblance to what we had started off with. The song really felt like more than the sum of its parts, and this was, quite frankly, the best result we could have hoped for. We used this sort of ‘holistic’ writing process for other songs on the EP, but the outcomes were all quite unique. Each song has its own sound and its own message, but they all sound very much like Kalika. Much like in ‘Poison Mouth’, there are moments on the EP when we explore our progressive, experimental sides, and there are some jam-like moments too. Overall, what can you expect from the EP? A journey that is emotive and at times cinematic.”

On Data Religion, Kalika explore the overall climate/atmosphere of the time and delve deep into psychological effects “technological advancements” have on the average person.

In Sastry’s own words: “The first song begins with the chant ‘the one who knows you, owns you’. These lyrics set the tone for an EP that explores the ever growing societal trend towards domination, aggression and greed in a time where a rich data hoarding elite call the shots.”

Data Religion will be launched this Spring. For more information visit thekalika.com, and follow the band on Facebook and Instagram.