Nice, Nice, Very Nice

The American release of Nice, Nice, Very Nice comes in the wake of its release in Canada, which saw the good natured and unassuming songwriter skyrocket to critical and fan acclaim. A tidal wave of accolades landed Dan on the covers of publications from coast to coast, and his career went into serious over-drive. His songs brim with subtle images and irreverent wit. He has a knack for making what is quaint seem universal and what is universal quaint, so that even his most layered lyrics feel strangely familiar. His uniquely graveled voice conveys a rare type of honesty, a gift that seems to transcend demographics. On stage, his presence is easy and open. It could work against him, but there's no façade; here's a talented, hard-working and unpretentious musician with a poet's way of seeing through absurdity. With Nice, Nice, Very Nice, Mangan seems to be unwilling to pitch his musical flag in any single section of the record store. He dabbles and teases genre all the way from the indie-rock roar of "Road Regrets" to the string-soaked, orchestral pop of "Fair Verona." Along the way, he visits everything from the alt-country flavor of "Et Les Mots Croisés" to the 3AM come-down chamber-folk of "Set the Sails" and the clapboard-shack bluegrass we can hear in "Some People" and "Sold."