Imagine if you will a late night jam session between Hawkwind, Blue Cheer, and Black Sabbath...that's kind of what comes to mind during the latest release from Greek psychedelic power trio Craang. To the Estimated Size of the Universe features four lengthy tracks of pummeling grooves, spacey explorations, and crushing riffs. Take the music of Monster Magnet but add even more bluesy, psychedelic elements to the pot, and that's kind of where Craang are coming from. Plenty of fuzzed out riffs and hazy guitar solos abound on the opening instrumental "Slo Forward Jam", while the heavy "Butterfly" sees effects laden vocals floating over the top of some fat, distorted bass & guitar riffs. "Magnolia" is perhaps the albums heaviest hitter, a monstrous excursion into stoner mania, complete with bruising riffs and plodding drum bashing. At nearly 10 minutes long, it kind of meanders for a bit, but thanks to some tasty psych guitar solos in the closing minutes it ends on a high note. Of course, an album like this can only end with a monolithic, epic length track, and here we have the behemoth "The Meteorian". Undulating, repetitive riffing, bulbous bass lines, effects soaked vocals that drift over the top like weed smoke, and loads of Hawkwind styled electronic effects dripped in for good measure. Only thing missing here are some wild wah-wah guitar solos. In fact, that's my only real gripe about this album in general; too few guitar solos. All of these tracks are more than lengthy enough to have let Manos go nuts with some fierce explorations, but other than in a few spots he really doesn't let loose much at all. These guys seem more interested in expanding on the riffs, and that's all fine and dandy, but in many places some variety could have been added in to break up the monotony, which is where some solos could have come in handy. That aside, this is still a pretty heavy and intriguing listen for all the psych/stoner fans out there.
Track Listing
1) Slo Forward Jam
2) Butterfly
3) Magnolia
4) The Meteorian
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