Pieces of Me
Thirtysomething Boston folkie McKenna often comes off like anotherDar Williamsacolyte, but  sometimes she's a bit more. Her waifish voice and pretty acoustic arrangements  can give way to a snarling wit. "I heard about Adam and Eve," she sings on the  skeptical, newgrass-styled "God Will Thank You," "but I still believe she never  got a fair trial." Her coffeehouse jottings can yield genuinely catchy songs  like the sensual "This Fire" and the sunny, bubbly "Girl Like Me."  Unfortunately, they also yield some precious poesy, or worse, songs like "Pink  Sweater," a rather obvious slag of hate crimes. Vengeful preaching doesn't much  become McKenna, but the simpler, more personal emotions of songs such as the  solo acoustic closer "You Are Loved" play nearer to her strengths.--Roy  Kasten