Song of the Day: Craw, “Sound of Every Promise,” from Lost Nation Road (Choke, 1994)

Brooklyn, NY writer/musician Hank Shteamer (Heavy Metal Be-Bop, Dark Forces Swing Blind Punches, etc.) has put together an ambitious Kickstarter campaign to reissue the first three full-lengths from Cleveland, OH's Craw—1993's Craw, 1994's Lost Nation Road, and 1997's Map, Monitor, Surge—as a limited edition six-LP box set (and/or in high-quality mp3 or lossless format).

All three albums have been out of print since the late-'90s, and while I personally am not a vinyl junkie, I fully support the concept of keeping exceptional and deserving music alive; and the prospect of being able to collect these recordings (plus some early rarities as a bonus) in a digital format is certainly an exciting one. Craw being Hank's favorite band of all time, he can express their value far more eloquently than I ever could:

Anyone interested in dark, heavy, complex rock/metal—everything from Tool, Meshuggah and King Crimson to Neurosis, Kayo Dot, Don Caballero, Today is the Day, Isis, Dazzling Killmen and Gorguts—needs to know this music. Each of Craw's first three full-lengths is an endlessly involving labyrinth in which elegiac beauty presses up against nightmarish ugliness. These albums feature air-tight, ingeniously off-kilter riffs; intoxicating guitar textures; vocals that range from a faint whine to a horrifying shriek; an immense dynamic range; epic, multichapter song structures; and esoteric lyrical themes. The songs don't follow conventional patterns, but their internal logic is uncannily sound; they're scientific in their microdetail, yet at the same time, bracingly emotional. I've been listening to these records for two decades, and their urgency and mad brilliance haven't diminished in the slightest.

And there you have it.

The campaign ends very soon—Wednesday, in fact—and has quite a ways to go. At the time of this writing just over half of the necessary funds have been raised. Whether you're an old fan or a curious new recruit, consider contributing to this commendable labor of love. There's a lot of superb music out there that's getting harder and harder to come by, so when someone steps up to do something about it, it's important to support the cause and help keep this music available whenever possible.

Donate: 6-LP Craw Box Set—Reissue of 3 Lost Post-Hardcore Classics