In Brief

* * * Chris Kowanko, “Kowanko,” Morgan Creek. Kowanko’s fragile voice may be an acquired taste, but the sincerity of his debut album’s lyrics is infectious. The Brooklyn singer-songwriter fastens his words to music that manages to stay just this side of folk--with jazzy piano periodically boosting simple guitar work.

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).