Michelle Shocked was a nomadic activist of Mormon/atheist parentage who fell into music along the way. And it's her travels that color her folk-rock with dimension and wisdom. Initially discovered in 1986 while singing by a campfire in Kerrville, Texas, by a Johnny-on-the-spot record producer with a Walkman, Shocked became a sensation in Europe before she was even aware of it.

She has hitchhiked across Europe, surviving only on her wits and alfalfa sprouts; busked; and stayed involved in peace activism.

Shocked's music is folk in content, punk in ideal, and fascinating in its application.

In 2010, Shocked launched Roadworks, a five-year touring project that curates audience's favorite songs while developing new, unreleased material, which brings her to the Open Space for Arts & Community on Vashon Island with multi-instrumentalist Jimmy Cabeza deVaca. According to hype, "Shocked will then take requests, likely including old favorites such as ‘Anchorage,' ‘Memories of East Texas,' ‘Come a Long Way.' Then the duo will perform new songs from the as-yet-unrecorded Indelible Women album, including ‘Algun Dia' (Frida Kahlo), ‘Take Your Time' (Billie Holiday,) and ‘I Will Be Loved' (Marilyn Monroe), and a few new compositions inspired by activism with Occupy Fights Foreclosures. Shocked's 2012 ‘Roccupy' theme asserts that ‘Art is Occupation' and also a critical element in the development of democratic movements. She is actively engaged as a member of Occupy Fights Foreclosures www.occupyfightsforeclosures.org."

And damned, if she doesn't sing so pretty.

OPEN SPACE FOR ARTS & COMMUNITY, SATURDAY, APRIL 28, 7 P.M., $23-$28 AT BROWNPAPERTICKETS.COM, 18870 103RD AVE. SW, VASHON ISLAND, 206.408.7241