While recording in a home studio located just off the coast of England, Alison Shaw, vocalist and co-founder of the Cranes, happened upon the title and theme of the band's new album, Particles & Waves.

"Around the time we were messing around with the music, I was reading a few books about the universe, space and time," she says. "I became fascinated by things like vibrating waves and fractals. On the album cover is a Koch snowflake, which has a special math: you can keep dividing the circumference of it with little triangles, but the size of the snowflake never changes. The circumference is infinite. I liked that idea."

Released last year in Europe, Particles & Waves will see its North American debut on September 13th and will include a live DVD featuring four songs recorded at a London concert.

"It's a bit more electronic-sounding," Shaw says. "We always want to move in a direction we haven't covered before. And the good thing about this record is that it has was no particular destination: We picked fragments of ideas and responded to the music."

Shaw and brother Jim formed the Cranes in 1988 in Portsmouth, England. Hailed by the late British DJ John Peel, the band released their major-label debut, Wings of Joy, in 1991. Alison's sweet vocals combined with the band's airy pop earned them a devout European following. Soon after, they were asked by Robert Smith to join the Cure as an opening act for a worldwide tour.

"It had such a massive impact on us," Shaw says. "It was quite life-changing, actually. Musically, it showed us another world."

But several albums later, both worn and fatigued from incessant touring, the Cranes took a hiatus, which ended up lasting five years. They returned in 2002, with the spacey Future Songs, marking a progression from the more conventional alt-rock of their earlier records.

Like its predecessor, Particles & Waves favors ethereal soundscapes and delicate arrangements. Songs like "Vanishing Point" and "Light Song" are wistful melancholia, but others, like "Here Comes the Snow," feature playful experimentations with lo-fi distortion and electronica.

"Jim was sort of out there," Shaw says. "He's always really creative, but I think he excelled himself. One of the things he experimented with was the concept of making a sound disappear by manipulating the phase. We jokingly put that to practice in the middle of 'Vanishing Point.' Before the guitar kicks in, the song disappears."

The Cranes will air material from Particles & Waves when they kick off their North American tour beginning in September.

Cranes North American tour dates (more TBA):

9/16: Cambridge, MA, Middle East Club
9/17: Northampton, MA, Pearl Street
9/24: Chicago, Double Door
9/27: Denver, Bluebird Theater
10/4: San Francisco, Slim's
10/6: Los Angeles, El Rey Theatre
10/8: Tempe, AZ, the Clubhouse