More than three years went by between Alexi Murdoch's shades-of-Nick-Drake EP, Four Songs, and his full-length album, Time Without Consequence, released on his own Zero Summer label. Skittishness about the music industry kept the now-London-based Murdoch from signing to a label (major or indie), and when he finally got around to recording, he chose to helm the project himself, a feat that somewhat "spun me out," as the soft-spoken troubadour puts it. "It felt like an awesome responsibility, to try to document songs that hopefully will be around longer than you or I," Murdoch, 32, said by phone. "It was the hardest work I've ever done, but I'm thrilled about it." Working with "brilliant" backing musicians like drummer Jim Keltner and Zero 7 vocalist Sophie Barker gave what he calls a "totally lo-fi" effort "some incredible hi-fi moments ... It's like this chemical mix and I couldn't imagine the record being any other way." Onstage, the unassuming and charismatic Murdoch can take a swoon-worthy song like "Orange Sky," or his concert favorite, "Something Beautiful," to an even more transcendent place.

Fri., July 7, noon, free, World Café Live, 3025 Walnut St., 215-222-1400, www.worldcafelive.com; 10:30 p.m., $15, Tin Angel, 20 S. Second St., 215-928-0770, www.tinangel.com, www.aleximurdoch.com.