Kevin Bronson on April 6th, 2012

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Talk about tough acts to follow. Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, the band concocted by singer-songwriter Alex Ebert almost five years ago as he pulled himself from his personal abyss, have sold 300,000 copies of their 2009 debut “Up From Below,” much of it on the strength of the single “Home,” a timeless declaration of affection that stole hearts faster than you can hand someone a daisy.

Or, as Ebert calls it now, “a non-ironic, non-blasé, non-hipster love song.”

If the rising tide of cynicism and copycats (right, Of Monsters and Men?) put a damper on the Zeros’ whole peace-love-and-understanding thing, there was no sign of it Thursday night at KCRW’s Berkeley Street Session at Bob Clearmountain’s studio in Santa Monica. Ebert and his band, 11 strong, packed the space’s modest stage and played their new album, “Here” (due May 29), in its entirety. The session will be broadcast on “Morning Becomes Eclectic” on May 29.

• ||| Stream: “That’s What’s Up”

• ||| Photos by Jeremiah Garcia, courtesy of KCRW

The evening’s host, DJ Liza Richardson, referred to the event as a “be-in” at the outset, and it was true – the 90-minute affair was equal parts sit-in, tent revival and backyard party. Richardson’s mid-set interview with Ebert, conducted as both sat on the rug amid the also-seated crowd, ranged from the light-hearted to the existential.

“You made this album in Ojai. How do you choose where to record?” she asked, to which Ebert responded, “You go on Craigslist and you see what’s going on.” Later, explaining the duality of the new album’s cover art, Ebert said, “Light does not need shadow to exist, but shadow does need light.”

The performance revealed “Here” as a more collaborative effort than the Zeros’ debut, and an even folkier one. Although the teaser track “That’s What’s Up” seeks to mine the same Ebert-Jade Castrinos charisma as “Home” (and falls short), the first single “Man on Fire” features Ebert at his strongest and most emotionally bare. Not a big leap from “Up From Below,” sure, but at other points in the show Ebert became a spectator as his mates were spotlighted.

Most memorable was “Child,” an acoustic ballad penned and performed by singer-guitarist Christian Letts – a tune he only began after band implored everyone to sit down. Moments earlier, the room was perky as a kindergarten class at 9 a.m. as Castrinos took the lead on the upbeat “Fiya Wata.” Later, there was “I Don’t Wanna Pray” (kind of a spiritual, cleverly turned on its ear), “One Love to Another” (a rhythm away from a Jimmy Cliff song) and the anthemic “All Wash Out,” with a monstrous and vaguely familiar chorus that, no doubt, thousands will sing along to at festivals this summer.

The band has already announced that there will be a second album released later in 2012, and “Here” should do nothing to slow the juggernaut. As they did at the beginning, the Zeros and their hymns to the human spirit exude a belief in something larger – if not a higher power, then a higher standard. It’s refreshing to ignore the venom on your Twitter feed long enough to believe with them.

||| Live: Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros play the Greek Theatre on May 4.