It’s been eight years since Elephant 6 mainstay Circulatory System has released a record, but don’t call it a hiatus. During that time, the band stayed busy with tours and recording while each member also spent time working on their broad and varied side projects.

And it was during these years that the band began to restructure and refine the songs that would eventually end up on” Signal Morning,” the band’s third full-length release.

Although the record isn’t a surprising shift in the band’s characteristically experimental psych-pop sound, John Fernandes, the band’s bass, clarinet, bass clarinet and violin player, said the record does showcases a natural sonic progression.

“The first record was kind of more dreamy, this record has some heavier moments to it,” he said.

This heaviness is perhaps the result of the time the band spent with the songs, some of which were written during the days of the band’s first incarnation as Olivia Tremor Control. The members have spent years playing the material and, as a result, have had the time to polish and enhance each one.

“We would work on [the record] for a little while and put it away and then, kind of with fresh ears, listen to it again, and then do some things, and then put it away again for a while,” Fernandes said. “The songs that we’ve been playing live for a while and the recorded versions turned out a little bit different but hopefully they still capture a lot of the energy of the live show.”

The band’s extensive catalog of recording material presented a problem when choosing the tracks for “Signal Morning.”

“We were having such a hard time deciding because there was so much material,” said Fernandes. “It helped to have some people enter the picture, like [engineers and now-bandmates Charlie Johnston and Nesey Gallons], who went through the material and picked what was going to be on the record.”

The band is fresh off the road from a two-week tour, which marked the first time the band had toured together in almost a year.

“It was amazing. The reception was awesome and the crowds were really good and it was really great meeting a lot of people and seeing people we hadn’t seen in a long time,” Fernandes said.

On Saturday night, Circulatory System will take the stage with the definitive German krautrock band Faust, who are appearing in the US as part of their third North American tour. Ticket prices were kept at an affordable $10 in spite of the show’s money-making potential to encourage anyone interested to attend. After this show, Fernandes said, the band hopes to continue playing and recording material for future releases.

For those who have never seen Circulatory System live, Fernandes hopes the experience will be one to remember.

“[Will Cullen Hart, the group's frontman,] writes really great songs that hopefully speak to a lot of people and then we weave a lot of textures and layer a lot of sounds and percussion and even though it’s not exactly the same as the recorded versions, hopefully it has that same spirit,” he said.

What: Circulatory System with Faust

Where: 40 Watt

When: Saturday, 9 p.m.

Cost: $10