Dan Mangan is a Canadian artist who kind of came out of nowhere to show up on this year’s Polaris Prize list due to his album Nice, Nice, Very Nice, and while I knew nothing about him before and he is still a bit of a mystery, it is clear from this album why they have picked his record for the prize. Mangan combines the very best sides of a passionate, modern singer-songwriter with some aching, longing and clever lyrics to put together an utterly charming package of songs that are really kind of irresistable in a lot of ways. There are a few on here that kind of miss the mark for me, and his style may have some trouble sustaining through 12 songs, but there are some undeniable gems in this record that really show that this guy has some serious songwriting chops.

The opening trio of songs of “Road Regret”, “Robots” and “The Indie Queens Are Waiting” are right up there with the strongest opening tracks of any album this year. Each song has a kind of witty, soaked charm that comes through beautifully in each song but also in different ways in each song. He certainly portrays himself in a self-aware, self-conscious dialogue kind of way on a lot of these songs, but he has a clever and interesting way of going about it. He also has a great knack for word play and for off-beat yet memorable lyrics and phrasing that is really one of the strengths of the album. In fact, really the main real downside of the album is that his opening tracks are almost too good, and the rest of the album, while also very strong, can’t quite reach those peaks he hits in tracks 1, 2 and 3.

His sound is kind of a great mix of elements of Loney Dear, Frightened Rabbit, David Gray and Andrew Bird, all combining into a charmingly simple sound that still has some great hooks in there. There is the aching and the longing in there as well, and his weary at times voice reminds me at times of the passionate musings of Scott Hutchison. There is a introspective indie-pop vibe to the record as well, which is where the real interplay happens in the lyrics.

Once past the gold of the first few tracks, there are strong tracks on the rest of the album including “Fair Verona”, “Pine For Cedars” and “Basket”, which is really kind of the dramatic pre-coda to the album before the hushed “Set The Sails”. Some of the songs on the back half kind of fall a little flat though and don’t quite have the same feel as the stronger songs on the album. Overall, though, the album is incredibly solid all the way through, and really on the strength of the stronger tracks here he has created a real gem of an album. The latter songs on the album are also maybe a little more slow builders that will grow on you as well, but you really can’t help but be grabbed by the first few tracks here.

Mangan has shown a real strong talent here and has created some real indie-pop gold on this record the likes of which you really don’t see every day. Those first few songs and some of the others as well are songs that are too good not to be heard and not to be out there and I imagine once people get a hold of those tracks that it will just be a matter of time. He does have a bit of a tough time sustaining the mood and the feeling throughout the record a bit, but he has so many strong moments in here that it is tough to really find too much fault with the record. I really enjoy this album from Mangan and I can’t wait to hear what he has coming down the road next. If you enjoy clever, literate indie-pop nuggets then you should really look into checking out this album.