Aren't we all a bit tired of twenty-something males with guitars singing about their observations of the loveless world they live in? I know I'm more than tired of the likes of Paolo Nutini, James Blunt and Damien Rice. So you'll imagine my joy in reviewing Canada's take on the singer-songwriter, Dan Mangan. In fact, the only thing that motivated me to give this a proper listen was my fan-worship of anything Canadian. From Celine Dion to Final Fantasy I've always adored anything with a bit of Canadian spice, so I rolled up my sleeves and got to work on an album I had little to no hope for.

So, the first obvious comparison to make is with Damien Rice. This isn't looking good so far is it? In 'The Indie Queens Are Waiting' the resemblance is shocking. From the slow strummed acoustic guitar to the delicate female backing-vocals everything about the song screamed Damien Rice to me, just with slightly less heartbreak (only just).

Nice, Nice, Very Nice, Mangan's second album, isn't all about slow guitars and wallowing in self-pity though. There's the positively upbeat 'Sold', this time more akin to folkster Johnny Flynn than Damien Rice, and even a fantastic quasi-skiffle which touches on the slightly less cheery topic of domestic abuse.

So, aside from my lazy and sometimes unfair comparisons with other 20-something males with guitars, I can only really say good things about Nice, Nice, Very Nice. Mangan's lyrics are observational, they act as a commentary rather than sycophantic love stories that James Blunt and the rest of that godforsaken lot have fallen into so many times. You have 'So paint your pickets white and beat your wife /just don't forget to shut the blinds/If you can keep your neighbours in the dark/ then surely God can close her eyes' in 'Some People'. At least he's singing about something other than tales of love-lost and love-found.

All-in-all Nice, Nice, Very Nice went far beyond my expectations, which I guess wasn't too difficult given my hatred for all things singer-songwriter. Its a bit upbeat, a bit thoughtful, a bit emotional and is more than just one man and his guitar. And thankfully his view of life isn't just about it being all roses when he's in love or a whole load of shit when he gets dumped. Hey, you might even want to go so far as to say his songs actually say something!