After debuting competently with Suburban Kid, Suburban Songbook is the older brother to that album. Having decamped to Nashville to record with Brad Jones, Jebediah’s Kevin Mitchell in Bob Evans ‘solo’ mode has delivered an album of mature, melodic songs that are simply spot on.

It begins strongly with single “Don’t You Think It’s Time?”, a gentle slice of whimsy and wonder. Gentle and subtle, it displays none of the pop-punk of his past, but instead the obvious influence of Elliott Smith. It’s simple, but delightful. Other tracks such as “Sadness & Whiskey” and “The Great Unknown” follow a similar template, coupling instant melodies with subtle instrumentation and simple chord structures.

Elsewhere, Suburban Songbook displays an ambition that was not apparent on its predecessor – “Flame” features piano and strings coupled with the acoustic, and as song stands out heads and shoulders above anything else on the album. Country touches are given to “Friend” and especially “Rocks in My Head” thanks to some tasty slide guitar, while “Nowhere Without You” echoes the likes of Smith’s XO.

Perhaps it’s the use of session musicians, but every aspect of Suburban Songbook finds Kevin Mitchell expanding his musical palette far above and beyond anything most would ever possibly thought it could be. While the strings-soaked “Battle of 2004” is more than a little mawkish, for the most part this sophomore album works an absolute treat thanks to the quality of the songs.