Dar Williams w/ Stephen Kellogg

Of all the ’90s female folk artists who cited Joan Baez as a muse, Dar Williams had the closest ties to Baez herself, touring and dueting with and writing songs for the folk legend. Where many of Williams’ peers sang with a jagged edge, aggressively trumpeting their individuality, politics and sexuality with sing-along anger and profanity, Williams was never so subversive. Her songs were cleaner, poppier and more inclusive, her political stances hippie-ish in their good intentions. Her latest album, Promised Land, sees her make more of a push for alt-rock airtime with Smashing Pumpkins/Liz Phair producer Brad Wood, but finds Williams exploring familiar themes of youth and questioning authority.