The Ottawa Citizen
January 20, 1998

By Lynn Saxberg
The Ottawa Citizen

Those who doubt the relevance of folk music these days ought to have been at the Dar Williams concert on Sunday. The young American singer/songwriter demonstrated that age and geography are beside the point when it comes to writing songs that matter.

For the sold-out audience at the great Canadian Theatre Company, a particularly significant moment came during her performance of Mortal City, Williams's sing-song tale about a romance that heats up in an ice storm. She lit a candle and playfully wondered if the crowd, many of whom were undoubtedly without electricity at some point in the last week or so, remembered the smell of matches and wax. Considering the quiet yet optimistic tone of the song, it could have been written in Ottawa anytime in the last two weeks.

There were other moments when Williams seemed to communicate great flashes of insight with her songs; again, especially to a weather-beaten Eastern Ontario audience. The song February, a slow, moody ballad she introduced as being about the longest month of the year contained such fitting lines as, ``February was so long that it lasted into March'' and ``the nights were long and cold and scary, can we live through February?''

But don't get the impression that everything was bleak and cold. Far from it. In a full-length black velvet dress and colourful vest, her long blonde hair pulled into a ponytail, Williams was a warm, witty and hip performer who seemed at complete ease in front of a brand-new audience.

Evidently her reputation as one of the smartest performers on the U.S. coffeehouse circuit preceded her, generating enough interest to fill the 200-seat theatre to standing room. What's more, many in the audience were familiar with her songs, singing along, applauding as she launched into their favourites and calling out requests during the encore.

For an artist who's rarely heard on local airwaves and has never performed here before, this must be proof of the power of word-of-mouth and the Internet, where Williams is the subject of dozens of web sites.

One could also see why she's increasingly popular with an audience much younger than those who usually flock to folk. Narrative songs such as The Pointless, Yet Poignant, Crisis of a Co-Ed, in which a well-intentioned co-ed hooks up with a ``stupid pothead'' to run the campus's Hemp Liberation League, and the Christians and the Pagans, a Christmas song about a young lesbian couple visiting a straight-laced uncle's family, made serious points out of humourous situations, and were big hits with the audience.

Though most of the concertgoers on Sunday were on the far side of 30, the freshness of these college-age reminiscences wouldn't be lost on teenagers.

Like Ani DiFranco, Williams is revitalizing the notion of a folksinger for a new generation, taking a stand on political issues without letting it overpower the pop sensibility of her songs.

The 30-year-old Massachusetts resident also has the experience and maturity to write effectively about lost love and relationships, as shown in the rhythmic feminist anthem As Cool As I Am and If I Wrote You. Other songs, notably the crowd-pleaser, The Babysitter's Here, reflected a child-like perspective, in this case anticipating the arrival of a beloved babysitter.

Williams's strongest suit is certainly her vivid, thoughtful lyrics. Beyond telling a story, they express a message that's often complex and open-ended, subject to interpretation. She's also a competent guitarist, alternating between a hard-edged rhythmic attack and a soft melodic approach. Her voice is captivating, ringing true and confident across a wide range, sometimes tinged with a distinctive vibrato.

As a solo performer, Williams had no problem maintaining the audience's attention, but it would be nice to see her perform with a band. Then perhaps she'd play more material from her latest disc. Some of the more rock-oriented new songs, like Party Generation and Teenagers, Kick Our Butts were left out of Sunday's set.

Jennifer Noxon, the Ottawa singer/songwriter/guitarist who recently won a songwriting award from the Ontario Council of Folk Festivals, gave a brief but excellent set of her inventive material as an opening act. Look for a CD from her this year.

The concert was a fund-raiser for next summer's CKCU Ottawa Folk Festival.