The Church’s music has always existed in a cloud of hazy guitars and dreamily sung lyrics, but as hinted at with its title, the band’s latest threatens at times to disappear into the aether altogether. Further/Deeper (Unorthodox Records) is the band’s first without founding member and guitarist Marty Wilson-Piper, and whether or not as a direct result of his absence, is perhaps its most somnolent to date. Indeed, there’s a daydreamed quality to many of the songs, like half-remembrances of some imagined scenario. With new guitarist Ian Haug (formerly of Powderfinger) taking part in the songwriting, the Australian band has seemingly indulged its quieter side, with cuts like “Laurel Canyon” vacillating between sparkling acoustic notes and extreme sparsity.

Of course, it’s not like The Church hasn’t explored such hushed tones before, and if anything, this is just a venture further and deeper into a pre-existing facet of its vernacular. And with the average song length hovering around the five-minute mark, it’s obvious that this exploration was favored over writing songs with the pop potential of their mega-hit, “Under the Milky Way.” Such openness to the possibilities is particularly evident on “Love Philtre,” a gorgeous cut that changes shape multiple times over its six minutes. “Old Coast Road” is similarly beautiful, with singer Steve Kilbey evoking bittersweet memories over swells of guitar. “Miami,” which begins with a slithery guitar line reminiscent of “Reptile,” is perhaps the album’s most enigmatic moment, an eight-minute song that shifts between blurry quietude and thunderous refrains repeatedly. It’s representative of Further/Deeper as a whole, which is an ambitious record made by a band not content to repeat itself ad infinitum.