Chris Robinson Brotherhood returns to Big Sur.

Even with a frontman whose other little project has sold more than 30 million albums worldwide, over a quarter century while cracking VH1’s 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock, The Chris Robinson Brotherhood is far from a vanity project.

“When we first started, we toured in a van,” says guitarist Neal Casal. “Even Chris rode in the van. We unload and load our equipment ourselves when we play clubs.”

Since its 2011 formation, CRB has been averaging more than 100 shows a year. They’re coming off festivals in Atlanta and Florida as they kick off another solid year of touring Sunday (Saturday’s show has sold out)with a return to Henry Miller Memorial Library for two full sets of music.

In addition to the slew of tunes off the group’s first records, along with an occasional Grateful Dead cover tastefully sprinkled in here and there, CRB comes armed with its new album, Phosphorescent Harvest, which just dropped on April 29.

The record, which Casal describes as a natural part of the group’s evolution and progression, is not only CRB’s best yet, it’s evidence that Robinson truly feels at home with this incarnation of musicians.

“Songwise, it’s just another batch of good melodies from our band,” Casal says. “In terms of record-making, [Phosphorescent Harvest] is an improvement. When it comes to the art of production, I think this is a much more fully-realized record than our previous records.”

The album also reveals CRB’s interest in expanding the sonic landscape. Right off the bat, the opening track “Shore Power” unloads an experimental mix of hip-hop record scratching, traditional Johnny B. Goode-style guitar and piano riffs and LSD-coated laser beams sporadically blasting imaginary space monsters in the distance. But, this isn’t just another esoteric exercise that sounds cool in the moment but is forgotten once it ends; it’s catchy and endowed with enough melodic juiciness to latch onto.

While bands usually settle on bringing either psychedelic experimentation or catchy melodies, CRB delivers both throughout Phosphorescent Harvest.

The tangerine dream western ballad “Badlands” again seamlessly fuses the ethereal and otherworldly with a below-the-atmosphere melody we can relate to on an earthly level.

“You could only get so far on weird sounds, and these days I’m really into weird,” Casal says. “Ultimately, you’re going to have to bring the song. What interests me is a song where we can push our sonic boundaries. Then you can really come up with something interesting,”

As someone who has spent years as a solo singer-songwriter – he also spent time with Ryan Adams & The Cardinals and Beachwood Sparks – and comes from a strong songwriting background, Casal knows what makes a good song and a bad song.

“Everything has to always be in service of the song and we make sure they’re strong and memorable, but the sonic tapestries that are surrounding the melodic content are the soul of experimentation,” he explains. “There are a lot of adventures and a certain humor there and a lot of that comes from our keyboard player [Adam Macdougall]; he keeps the mood light and trippy at all times.”

With the exception of two tracks that Robinson wrote on his own, Casal and Robinson penned all the songs collaboratively, but as far as arrangement, the entire band made contributions.

“There’s very little specific direction,” Casal explains. “Chris doesn’t tell people what to play. No one really says anything in this band. Our styles fit together so well, there’s rarely ever any conversations about who should do what. There’s no dictating, it’s a free-spirited thing. Every song is an open canvas. We’ve all made enough records and been in enough bands at this point to know what works and what doesn’t.”

Not only are they trying to create acceptable arrangements, they’re trying to take those arrangements to another level.

“We’re trying to push ourselves into extended territory, extended arrangements, more dynamic and more interesting arrangements,” Casal says. “There’s an element of psychedelia that we’re always trying to explore and further without it sounding forced.”

Casal brings up the subject of Americana bands and how great some of the song lyrics are. But, he’s disappointed when those great lyrics aren’t paired with any kind of musical risk-taking.

CRB brings the best of both worlds: Towards the end of Phosphorescent Harvest, “Jump the Turnstile” blasts off like a circus-themed rocket ship, thanks to some very trippy synth effects, courtesy of Macdougall. The oddball, yet engaging, lyrics fit nicely: “Nickel-a-dance pass the jug around/ The devils play lazy and they don’t bust out.”

“I think we really have some song-oriented musicians who are willing, at this time in our lives and our careers, to push the boundaries,” Casal says. “Who needs to play it safe anymore? We’ve all already done that.”

The Chris Robinson Brotherhood performs at 3pm (gates 2pm) Sunday, May 4, at Henry Miller Library, Big Sur. $85. www.folkyeah.com.

Hear More Here >> chrisrobinsonbrotherhood.com/2014/