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Any artist worth her salt is always trying to expand the boundaries of her work, and Michelle Shocked is no exception. Saturday night at the Ritz, the acoustic guitar-playing singer-songwriter appeared with a full band in support of her latest LP, Captain Swing, an album of original songs placed in a “swing” (i.e. rhythm & blues, rockabilly, New Orleans stride) setting. And while Shocked get an “A” for the attempt, a little of this style went a long way.

Shocked’s clear vocals and naughty stage persona were perfectly suited to this playful musical genre. The rumbling stomp of, “When I Grow Up,” and the ragtime-ish “God is a Real Estate Developer” benefitted from a nice sax/trumpet mix. Her latest hit, “On the Greener Side,” was made even more good-timey when Shocked, in her introduction of the song, informed the audience that she wrote it as a reaction to New Orleans piano legend Professor Longhair’s cure for hemorrhoids (“just move your butt to the music”).

The problem with all this was that nothing new was done with a familiar style, so after a few tunes, the novelty wore thin. The musicianship was fine, but predictable arrangements held no interest.

Not so on the solo end, where Shocked showed a gift for unashamed intimacy with songs like “Memories of East Texas” and her a cappella version of Steve Goodman’s Vietnam War lament, “The Ballad of Penny Evans.”