Now, that doesn't mean there's been a lot of development. There has not: You could take any track here, slap it on So Much More, and not tell the difference, except maybe that there's more electric and less acoustic guitar on Hopeless. Some of the vocal lines outright sound similar.

What it means is that within his parameters as an artist, Dennen has for the third time come up with a collection of songs worth spending money and time on. His melodies, presented through his distinctive, raspy voice, grab the audience from the first listen, and his lyrics are overwhelmingly well-considered and thought-provoking. There isn't a must-have single like "Ain't No Reason" here, but taken as a whole, Hopeless is a noteworthy effort.

The title Hope for the Hopeless sums up a lot about Dennen. For one, the buzzword "hope" indicates his very up-front political leanings � lefty, lefty, lefty. But more importantly, hope and hopelessness accurately describe the emotions Dennen evokes in his listeners. The record opens with a bright, catchy number, "San Francisco," but often turns to darker fare like the excellent "Heaven."

Another standout is the defiant "Wrong about You," something of a step forward for the singer, considering its lyrics' confrontational tone. Others include "When She's Gone" and "Who Do You Think You Are?"

For the most part, Dennen performs with his full band, complete with a very bright and assertive bass, but he excels with more stripped-down material. "So Far From Me" begins with just a guitar and voice, and keeps its soft tone as more instruments join the mix. The same goes for "Ain't Gonna Lose You."

The only problem with Hope for the Hopeless is that it gets cheesy at times � it's seldom, but it was nonexistent on So Much More. It's worst on "Make You Crazy"; not only is the upbeat, funk-tinged groove a bit much, but the lyrics are awful: Dennen lists off everything he thinks is wrong with the world, including children sent to war, then launches into a chorus of "It's enough to make you go crazy / And I'm amazed I haven't yet." Yes, the worst part of every injustice is that it makes oversensitive white American males feel bad. (To be fair, what else would you expect from a guy who sang on a record called Children's Songs for Peace and a Better World?)

Regardless, Brett Dennen is an amazingly talented musician, and Hope for the Hopeless is a fine distillation of that talent. Newcomers might be better off with So Much More, if only because that's where "Ain't No Reason" is, but this ranks a very close and purchase-worthy second.