Neko Case’s voice is a well-known commodity. Whether it’s her solo material or her work in The New Pornographers, there is no shortage of praise for her fire engine vocal prowess. Still, all the attention justifiably paid to Case’s pipes does mean that her skills as a songwriter and lyricist are often overlooked. Case’s fourth solo album (sixth, if you count those she released with Her Boyfriends), Middle Cyclone contains all of the gorgeous vocals we’ve come to expect, but also highlights her other assets more than ever before.

“This Tornado Loves You” is a robust representation of the dark, Gothic country niche Case has carved for herself. The song shuffles through its distinct movements, altering the tempo as need be without ever losing its catchiness, mostly thanks to Case’s vocal hook. On the title track, she strips things down to just an acoustic guitar and some choral backing vocals before a toy piano chimes in, deliberately out of sync with the rest of the song.

Middle Cyclone is also strong lyrically. Dressing up in nature metaphors, she’s largely cast herself as a destructive agent. On the odd occasion when she drops the disguises, this fatalistic portrayal is quite poignant, like on the title track when she sings “Can’t give up actin’ tough/ It’s all that I’m made of/ Can’t scrape together quite enough/ to ride the bus to the outskirts/ of the fact that I need love.”

The album’s only real misfire is, unfortunately, a large one. After the clanking stomp of “Red Tide,” “Marais La Nuit” robs Middle Cyclone of its big finish with — no joke — 30 minutes of frog noises. It’s easy enough to ignore, but at roughly half the album’s total length, its inclusion does tarnish an otherwise exemplary work by an artist who deserves plaudits for more than just her outstanding voice.