Recorded as a guitar-less trio (
Hugh Hopper on bass,
Kramer on piano, organ, and tape loops, plus Damon Krukowski on drums),
Huge is marginally less chaotic than
Hopper and
Kramer's previous collaboration, 1994's
A Remark Hugh Made. Each of the songs is a relatively concise (only two tracks break the five-minute mark) and melodic improvisation on a basic theme, which generally is introduced, soloed upon, and quickly resolved, with
Kramer's found voices and sound effects providing the album's only truly random element. In fact, the album is so profoundly "normal" sounding that fans of the participants' more extreme musical endeavors might be slightly disappointed. On its own merits, however,
Huge is a pleasant, sometimes enchanting, dip in the shallow end of the collective improvisation pool. Fans of the early
Soft Machine's more lyrical moments might find this music familiar. ~ Stewart Mason