If you ever happen to be in a conversation with a friend or a colleague and he or she asks you, “Hey, have you heard of Crack the Sky?” I suggest that you stop whatever you are doing and listen to what your friend has to say because he or she knows something amazing that you don’t.

About a year ago, I was driving back from a hiking trip in Yosemite and a buddy of mine asked me that very same question. I replied that I hadn’t heard of them before and he proceeded to disconnect my iPod from the radio and plug in his. As we drove home we listened to the band’s debut album and from that day on I considered myself addicted to Crack.

Crack the Sky’s first self-titled album debuted in 1975. The band had just signed with Lifesong Records and was about to become the next big thing. Unfortunately, they never did. The mid-70s era in popular rock music gave rise to giants like Pink Floyd, Yes and Genesis.

With all of the ridiculously amazing musical acts of the time, it is understandable that some great bands were left behind. But it is my expert opinion, as a self-titled music snob, to declare Crack the Sky unjustly bereft of their due praise.

With bands like Led Zeppelin and the Beatles already testing the boundaries of rock ‘n’ roll, it became the duty of the up and comers to destroy the limits of conventional thought. Answering the call, bands like Rush, Styx, Foreigner and King Crimson blew up on the scene, recognized as great innovators within the genre of progressive rock ‘n’ roll.

Despite the fact that Crack the Sky toured with like minded groups such as Supertramp, Rush, Foreigner, Yes, Z.Z. Top, Edgar Winter, Frank Zappa and Boston, they never made it big. Which in turn is bittersweet because it allows for an esoteric cult community of diehard fans to become keepers of another “lost gospel” in rock ‘n’ roll’s history. Don’t we just love to say, “I heard of them first?”

Listening to Crack the Sky’s first album is comparable to opening a prophetic time capsule. The album was on the cutting edge of combining glam, pop, progressive, funk, new wave and heavy metal before those sub-genres had even completely solidified in the music industry.

Crack the Sky was not only producing a unique product, but it was a product that people liked. The album reached 161 on the Billboard charts, a successful release for any new band. Singles like “She’s a Dancer” and “Surf City” received national radio play and encompassed the band’s signature sound fused with popular song structures of the time.

However, it was not the hits that gave the album its posterity. The real strengths of this album are the multi-genre ballads “Sea Epic” and “Ice.” These tracks are extremely powerful and are testaments to the band musical prowess reinforced by lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist John Palumbo’s lyrical superiority.

These tracks have everything that a music nerd like me could ever hope for: orchestrated classical composition, unexpected transitions with odd-time signature breakdowns, original lyrical stylings and fantastic guitar harmonies. Complicated structure aside, this band still manages to hit hard and hit with a purpose, evoking strong emotional responses from humor to grief.

If you are a snob like me and absolutely love being connected to subculture geniuses, then I urge you to check out Crack the Sky. Immediately. Not only are they prolific artists that have pressed twenty-two albums but they are also still making music and touring to this day. I urge you to buy any and all Crack the Sky albums that you can get your hands on, especially the first one, and turn yourself into a Crack-head as soon as humanly possible.