Craw's third full-length release,
Map, Monitor, Surge, is a monstrously intense rock record. While several tracks flirt with metal (i.e., "I Disagree (And Here's Why)" and "I Am Gunk"), there are other portions either too spastic and complex or too delicate to fit comfortably into that category. A trio of one-minute songs ("Killer Microbes Devour Cleveland," "New Plastics Diet Alters Man's DNA," and "Parasitic Dad Evades Biocops") in the middle of the record shows just how strange
Craw can get. Each of these tracks has a slippery, non-repeating song structure that suggests classical form more than rock. Over these miniatures, vocalist Joe McTighe weaves a first-person narrative about three generations of men who breed omnivorous microorganisms, eat plastic, and become parasitic. While not as brilliant as its predecessor,
Lost Nation Road,
Map, Monitor, Surge is an excellently played work of great musical and intellectual complexity. It should be considered essential listening for fans of dark, adventurous rock.