NEW LOCAL DISCS

• Brian Winterman, Little Drama. Brian Winterman is a local singer-songwriter in the roots-rock vein. This disc contains 10 songs written or co-written by Winterman, accompanied, incongruously, by a deconstructed acoustic cover of "Hate the Police," a song from the obscure '80s political-punkers The Dicks.

Winterman has a good ear for minor-key, melancholy melodies, and his gruff voice, while limited, is pleasant and effective on the quieter numbers such as "When You Gonna Come" and "Goodbye, Lorraine." Indeed, the latter is the best song here, an evocative, muted lament highlighted by Tim Moore's rumbling cymbal washes and David Wierhake's quietly murmuring accordion.

The songs generally tread the line between roots rock and country, with plenty of twang in the guitars on the quieter numbers, while the more upbeat tracks, such as "Mercy," evoke a more folk-rock feel, with Winterman proving to be a capable storyteller.

If there's a weakness with the album, it may be that Winterman's vocals tend to stay in the same place throughout most of these songs. His growl, strangely, works a lot better on the starker, softer songs. On the more upbeat numbers it can seem lackadaisical. But that's just a quibble, and the man certainly performs around enough for you to check him out for yourself.