At face value, it would probably be very easy to write Cloud Control off. The Laurel Canyon hippie vibes of Bliss Release can be found in the music of Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes, the twee boy-and-girl vocals of Camera Obscura or Belle & Sebastian, the semi-mysticism in Animal Collective. Countless acts are written off each year as derivative or unoriginal, and all it takes is one derisive comparison to a more successful act and the newcomer will sink before they even have a chance to float to the surface. But I’m vouching for Cloud Control’s new disc because there’s this intangible, indescribable something about it, something that completely evades any cheap “this sounds like so-and-so” commentary. That’s the kind of magic you can’t fake on a record.

Magic is a good theme for Bliss Release. Cloud Control, who hail from Australia, debuted with a well-received EP in 2007 and got some attention with their über-happy single “Death Cloud.” Now, finally, they’re back. This time around, they seem to have a not-so-small obsession with the eerie little things that show up occasionally in life; they’ve got lyrics that refer to “soul collectors,” “curious friendships,” feeling the hair on the back of your neck stand up, and an abundance of deceitful brothers and sisters, all in a setting of forests and rivers. The material may not relate directly to the occult, at least not in the same way that, say, a Marilyn Manson record might, but there are little haunting details that belie the sunny nature of the music.

A lot of this is straightforward folk with a little something extra thrown in. The acoustic-strummed “Just For Now,” which practically drowns in luscious harmonized choruses, starts with nothing but guitar and subdued, Sufjan Stevens-style vocals, until a killer, almost tribal bass drum kicks in and livens it up a bit. And on the opener, “Meditation Song #2 (Why, Oh Why),” Alister Wright and Heidi Lenffer merrily sing lines like “Make my head a pool of water now” before the guitars go electric, the hand claps start, and the song splits open like it was struck by lightning or ripped with a jackknife. They also do well with the more psychedelic numbers like the pulsating, Grizzly Bear-ish “Ghost Story” and the down tempo, 4/4 wooziness of “The Rolling Stones.” My guess is that the song wasn’t named for The Rolling Stones, but for the kind that don’t gather any moss.

Bliss Release is an accurate way to describe the emotions evoked by repeated listening—just play “This Is What I Said,” which is prime single material, something that could easily end up on one of those Urban Outfitters digital playlists. Everything about the track, from the bouncy major key to the blissful, serotonin-laden falsetto of the chorus, to buoyant lyrics like, “Soul/is what I got/I know it’s not much.”

And yet the sneaky, insidious darkness that materializes near the end of the album cannot be denied, because it’s what makes the album far more substantial than most other folk-pop sing-a-longs. Take, for example, “Hollow Drums,” near the end of the sequence. Probably the sparest of the tunes here, it starts with finger-picked guitar and only Wright’s voice, then Lenffer’s vocals arrive and the atmosphere changes from austere to downright haunted. There’s something about the creepy ghost story imagery and the harmonized oohs, something almost imperceptibly spine-chilling. “My Fear #2” is a foray back into cheery uptempo territory, though after the soberness of “Hollow Drums,” its bounciness feels weirdly chipper. Then “Beast of Love” arrives, probably the most fitting and emotional conclusion you could ask for. All of the specters and spirits haunting the other songs are exorcized here; Heidi Lenffer sings solo about waiting for the beast of love to kill, then there’s a gorgeous falsetto chorus: “You were all I needed/You are I need still” over and over, distilling every chilling, eerie sentiment into a pure expression of love. It’s still haunting, but in a pleasant way.

So consider Bliss Release a wise investment: the songs are catchy and fun, but it’s the underlying sentiments—fear, foreboding, and eventual contentment—that pay off in the end. Cloud Control have done something impressive here—let’s hope they keep churning out music with this much substance.

Track List:
1. Meditation Song #2 (Why, Oh Why)
2. There’s Nothing In The Water We Can’t Fight
3. Ghost Story
4. Gold Canary
5. This Is What I Said
6. Just For Now
7. The Rolling Stones
8. Hollow Drums
9. My Fear #2
10. Beast of Love