The wide realm of rock is absolutely rife with wannabe bands that take their love of true classics to the next level by in turn creating their own material for us to soak right up. Yet, as you know, a lot of them don’t leave a lasting impression. But it’s every now and then I get a real exceptional act that manages to exceed my expectations and give me an experience that I’ve been needing, and tonight Craneium brilliantly delivered just that for me with their upcoming album.

Just looking at that cover art, I never could’ve expected that Craneium was going to give us an album like this. Typically, a band would go further to really encapsulate any sort of trippiness or groovy nature of the rock to the cover art to really give the listener a taste of what’s in store for them. Despite that, “The Narrow Line” is just the sort of record that I’ve been wanting more of recently. It’s a solid psychedelic nature combined with a great understanding of the art of the riff that Craneium flawlessly brings to the table in all seven tracks that are easily some of the best of its kind that I’ve heard all year. There’s no point in all of “The Narrow Line” that feels boring for even a second as this quartet clearly understands how to keep the listener’s attention for the entire time through the glorious demonstration of stoner rock excellence that doesn’t take a single break from beginning to end. Then it’s the sheer quality and musicianship of this record that really ties “The Narrow Line” with a real nice bow to make the already fantastic display of talent all the more scrumptious as Craneium shows off just how talented they are as a unit front and center for the entirety of the record.

Another stoner rock band is a dime a dozen nowadays with a new one seemingly coming out of nowhere even ten minutes, but it’s because of acts like Craneium that I simply can’t help but come back for more! “The Narrow Line” is an absolutely splendid trip through the haze that Craneium creates with each riff and each ounce of psychedelia that’s simply dripping out of every track from this highly exceptional record that gets full commend from me.

“The Narrow Line” releases on December 7th via Ripple Music!

LISTEN to an advanced track from “The Narrow Line” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Craneium on Facebook here.