"Make yourself at home," is the opening line of the excellent eight-song debut by Minneapolis singer/songwriter
Mason Jennings
. It is an appropriate opening line, because this album will seem like familiar favorite after just one listen. If
Jennings
knows anything about music, he knows how to write a hook. But the songs here are not made up of just catchy melodies. Like
Paul Simon
, he also knows how to capture a mood and character with a few short lines, and the fact that all of this is set to an undeniable hook and groove is just icing on the cake. The disc is mostly
acoustic
,
folk-pop
with an intimate feel that is most likely derived from
having recorded and performed the disc entirely alone. This recording process ends up making this CD sound like a poppy version of
Springsteen
's
Nebraska
. If
were signed to a major label, we would possibly have a new and better
Dave Matthews
on our hands. That's not to say that the artist is particularly similar to
Matthews
, but if he had more exposure, his already massive Minneapolis cult following would grow exponentially, much like the college-friendly
did in the mid- to late '90s. As a debut, this is an amazingly realized work. A distinct sound and vocal style is evident, and there's not one clunker on this entire disc. ~ Dan Lee