Regardless of whether or not they're playing with a band at the time, there are a lot of musicians who can be summed up as "a guy with a guitar": Mark Eitzel, Elvis Costello, Freedy Johnston, Glenn Tilbrook, Neil Finn. With his debut release Caught Looking, musician Greg Roth stands poised to join that list. Roth's MySpace page name-drops Bob Dylan as an influence, but a better comparison might be Jacob Dylan of Wallflowers fame, with his overall more radio-friendly (and, well, just friendly) sound.

For the most part Caught Looking sticks to formula, drifting somewhere between Waits and Wilco with wonderful storytelling and a poppy, alternative rock sound, with some ("Yes," "12:40 am Wine") drifting towards alt-country, and others ("Your Providence") more towards blues, but most sticking safely somewhere between. One noteworthy exception is the first track, the race-to-the-finish, sixty-second-long "I've Only Got a Minute," which despite its terseness serves as an excellent introduction to the CD and Roth's earnest, honest vocals; another is Track 10, "League Bowlers," a quirky mixture of bluegrass and, I think... pirate sea chanty? Whatever it is, it's a lot of fun, and it's just one more reason that it's worth taking a look at Caught Looking -- as well as a listen.

Michael Fiegel is a freelance writer and graphic designer. His diverse background includes journalism, radio copywriting, technical writing, game design and music reviewing. He is best known as the creator of the Internet cult sensation, Ninja Burger. He can be reached at aeon@aeforge.com or at his website, www.aeforge.com.