海角大神

On the cover of her new album, Dar Williams stands on a floating platform in a lake. A breeze ripples the water so that it鈥檚 as wrinkled as elephant skin. As Ms. Williams gazes toward an unseen horizon, her scarlet shawl flutters behind her like a vapor trail.聽

The atomistic image is metaphorical. Ms. Williams says the photo, taken by a drone, makes her look like a red dot destination marker on a map. The album, debuting Oct. 1, is titled 鈥淚鈥檒l Meet You Here.鈥澛� 聽

鈥淪omehow we have to figure out how to continue to meet the moment and meet one another,鈥� even when we seem to be stranded, explains the folk singer in a phone call.

Ms. Williams鈥� songs often illustrate how human connections can be a bridge across troubled waters. In 2017, the songwriter wrote a book about solving social problems by finding common ground. 鈥淲hat I Found in a Thousand Towns鈥� examines local communities that have been revitalized by disparate citizens who鈥檝e banded together in collective pursuits. Ms. Williams鈥� 10th album goes one step further. It posits that social connections can empower individuals to tackle global issues such as climate change.聽

鈥淭he things I love about her songwriting are all on this album,鈥澛爏ays songwriter Maia Sharp, who shares a similar literate, lyrical sensibility on her latest album, 鈥淢ercy Rising.鈥� 鈥淚 just thoroughly enjoyed it, from a thinker鈥檚 perspective, from an emotional perspective. She hits on familiar heartfelt subjects and themes, but operates in a completely unique way. ... It鈥檚 very layered, and I always get a little more from it every time I hear it.鈥�

Courtesy of Ebru Yildiz

In addition to a long career in music, Dar Williams also wrote a book in 2017. "What I Found in a Thousand Towns鈥� examines local communities that have been revitalized by disparate citizens who鈥檝e banded together in collective pursuits.

Ms. Williams鈥� literary lyrics 鈥� also lauded by the likes of Joan Baez and Judy Collins 鈥� often explore how contrasting individuals meet heart-to-heart. For instance, her 1993聽debut, 鈥淭he Honesty Room,鈥� includes a fan favorite titled 鈥淲hen I Was a Boy.鈥� The song鈥檚 female narrator reflects on a childhood in which she was a misunderstood tomboy who could 鈥渃limb a tree in 10 seconds flat.鈥� Her male partner then confesses that he exhibited feminine qualities as a child, picking flowers everywhere he walked. 鈥淎nd you were just like me, and I was just like you,鈥� he concludes.聽

A song called 鈥満＝谴笊駍 and Pagans鈥� on Ms. Williams鈥� second album probes how we can find the humanity in those unlike us. It鈥檚 a sitcom-like story about a lesbian who brings her Wiccan partner to a Christmas dinner hosted by her religious uncle. The two sides of the festive table ultimately find communion: 鈥淟ighting trees in darkness, learning new ways from the old, and / Making sense of history and drawing warmth out of the cold.鈥�

鈥淚f you have what I call 鈥榩ositive proximity,鈥� which is the most basic contract of social trust, you recognize that living side by side with other people is beneficial,鈥� says Ms. Williams. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have to like them. You don鈥檛 have to understand them all the time. But somehow you can find your dovetailing interests.鈥�

Indeed, Ms. Williams鈥� book chronicles how small towns from Florida to Pennsylvania to Utah have been revitalized through positive proximity. The author researched how neighbors can set aside partisan differences by focusing on community projects, sharing communal indoor and outdoor spaces, and finding value in the聽varied personalities and skill sets of fellow citizens.

鈥淚鈥檒l Meet You Here鈥� includes a song, 鈥淢agical Thinking,鈥� about a desolate locale where roofs have caved in and trees have overgrown the railway of a run-down station. The narrator鈥檚 vision of the town鈥檚 revival comes true despite the naysaying of skeptics who鈥檇 accused her of impossible dreaming.聽

A positive outlook also informs the album鈥檚 centerpiece, 鈥淟ittle Town.鈥� It鈥檚 about a bigoted man who resists the growing racial diversity in the town his family has lived in for generations. But his longtime friend, the mayor, invites him to participate in planning the annual July 4 parade. Over the arc of the narrative, the protagonist eventually comes to embrace his diverse neighbors. The song was inspired by聽a notable figure in Beacon, New York 鈥� a town near where Ms. Williams lives that she profiles in her book 鈥� who was able to bridge divides within the community.聽

鈥淚n Beacon, the mayor knew the old guard and welcomed the new guard,鈥� she says. 鈥淗e had a sign that a campaign had made against him. On one side, it said, 鈥業 love Randy.鈥� And on the other side it says, 鈥楤ut I don鈥檛 want him to be my mayor.鈥� He just laughed and he said, 鈥楾hese are all my friends now. You know, these are the people I work with closely.鈥欌��

The new album鈥檚 lead single, 鈥淭oday and Every Day,鈥� features a stop-motion animation music video in which individuals unite to tackle climate change. It concludes with a scene in which someone leafs through a book with images of wildlife, from polar bears to bees. The final page says 鈥淭he End.鈥� The character picks up a pencil, crosses out the inscription, and instead writes, 鈥淣ew Beginnings.鈥� Ms. Williams says the message is a counterpoint to the doomy tenor of many environmental stories in the news.聽

鈥淚t puts us in the place of not doing anything, because it feels so futile,鈥� says the songwriter. 鈥淥ptimism is a revolutionary posture right now.鈥�

The video, intricately handcrafted by fellow musician Antje Duvekot, also depicts a woman sending a letter with a picture of a heart to a solitary stranger. The recipient seems to be as isolated as Ms. Williams is on the cover of her album.

鈥淧eople think that saving the planet is a matter of political will. But the thing that has to precede political will is social will,鈥� she says. 鈥淎ntje and I want to underscore the importance of the connections that we have that involve trust and responsibility to other people. And that comes when your heart feels connected to somebody far away.鈥澛�