Dar Williams

“My Better Self”

Pain is a concept we can all mutually agree, for the most part, sucks.

For some, pain may entail falling down 10 flights of stairs in front of 100 foxy girls on campus. For others, pain may entail being subjected to contrived, homogenized music lacking any sense of originality or purpose.

The lover of mediocrity has a vast ocean of trite garbage to choose from in the music realm. Riding the crest of this sea of mediocrity is Dar Williams in her new release “My Better Self.”

Blasé song structures and lyrics that read like a 9-year-old-girl’s diary entry are Williams’ bread and butter. Add a healthy dose of shit-kicking new country, watered-down folk music and a ramshackle remake of Pink Floyd’s heavily drug-referenced “Comfortably Numb” and you have Williams’ new record.

This is the ideal soundtrack for a root canal, highly recommended for fans of Barbara Streisand, Linda Ronstadt and Air Supply.

Williams performed live at the Pabst Theatre, 144 E. Wells St., on Sunday.

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