The connotations with the term 'anti-folk' can be offputting for some. It insinuates an insular, underground scene, where people who didn't know who The Moldy Peaches were (before 'Juno', in any case) were scoffed at, and the sub-genre was treated as something only the enlightened could truly appreciate. Jeffrey Lewis is different. Due to his lo-fi folk scufflings he's often been tagged as a hero of that scene, but the New York comic book aficionado is simply a teller of simple, slightly peculiar, sometimes sweet stories.

He's a prolific musician, too. Having released almost twenty albums, some in an unofficial capacity, Lewis's previous form has been somewhat patchy, but ''Em Are I' is a record that works on every level. It's safe to say that he'll never make a polished studio record (a cursory glance at his website shows that he's currently looking for fans to furnish his band with overnight accommodation on almost every stop of his current tour), so when you listen to these songs, you can be assured that their DIY sentiment is genuine, too.

That doesn't mean that they're sloppy, though. Most tracks have a simplistic, rickety base of acoustic guitar, handclaps and Lewis's endearing vocals, but there's a purpose to each one, not least because of his disarming, often funny lyrics, and 'Whistle Past the Graveyard' and 'Broken Broken Broken Heart' are specific highlights.

From rudimentary pop and rock 'n' roll to dabblings in sleek, jazzy and electric rock (the excellent 'The Upside-Down Cross', a mostly instrumental number that breaks up the album nicely), ''Em Are I' is simply a little gem of an album that continues to offer new delights upon repeated listens.