Calling upper midwest folk rock icon Damon Dotson undiscovered is a relative term, for his legion of followers in Iowa, Nebrasks, Minnesota and South Dakota, armed only with copies of Dotson’s CDs, would win a war against many small third-world nations.

The Des Moines Register wrote that Dotson possesses “a warmly romantic sound that veers between Dave Matthews and Coldplay.” That’s both an enormous compliment and a minor misnomer, for Dotson’s voice is not as grainy as Dave’s, nor as high-pitched as Chris Martin’s. His is a declarative yet soft voice, one that is naturally strong and most importantly, enormously recognizable.

Good singer-songwriters are capable of creating two career-defining songs that they can hang their hat on. Great singer-songwriters create three. With the release of “Atmosphere” and the existence of “Good Night” and “Summer Days,” Damon joins the ranks of the latter.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.