Stateside, we’ve seen our share of Irish impresarios: Van Morrison, U2 and, most recently, Damien Rice. Riding Rice’s singer-songwriter coattails into a territory all his own is 26-year-old Fionn Regan. He launches into the folk-rock lexicon with his debut album, “The End Of History.” Unlike Rice, Regan relies on rhythmically driven tracks recalling the rambling folk of the genre’s heyday. With less wailing and more flowery fingerpicking, he shines on rich tracks like “Be Good or Be Gone” and “Black Water Child,” let alone his heart-melting rendition of The Beatles’ “Getting Better” from a live BBC session available on numerous blogs. Since being nominated for the UK’s prestigious Mercury Music Prize for excellence in the full album, only one question remains: why in the world isn’t this lively lad blasting off like the dude responsible for “The Blower’s Daughter?”

-- Sami Promisloff