Photo by Dusdin Condren
SHARON VAN ETTEN is known for her raw and intimate music style, stellar collaborations with an eclectic mix of musicians from THE NATIONAL to THE WALKMEN and ability to create beautifully haunting melodies that you won’t soon forget. With 3 critically acclaimed albums under her belt, Van Etten will be releasing her latest, Are We There, on May 27th through Jagjaguawar.
The songstress’s upcoming album is part of VAN ETTEN’s continual exploration of her life and also working with her band. NOTHING BUT HOPE AND PASSION met up with VAN ETTEN at Berlin’s charming Michelberger Hotel to talk about her latest projects, tour and 90’s girl rock.
Reflecting back on ‘Are we There’, said to be your most polished to date, how do you feel about the evolution of each one of your albums?
So, the first album I did was solo, and on the second one I got a couple of friends and tried to have a band, which I did from Epic into Tramp, and that was the biggest production I had ever done. So, for this next record I had decided that I wanted to produce it myself but also have a band who I have been touring with for the last two or three years.
What makes ‘Are We There’ stand out from your other records?
I like pushing myself every time, because I don’t want to make the same record. So, if you give yourself same scenario, the same setup and the same content (even though I usually write about the same thing) I would just write the same record. The heart of this record was really the live tracking with the band, who are people that I am really comfortable with.
What can be uncomfortable when cutting a record?
Well, when you are working out the songs it can be intense and it is hard to be open and not feel restricted. When I am working with a stranger I don’t want to open up as much, but I felt so comfortable with this band that it has worked out.
How was it when you met your band? Did it all just fall into place like a love at first sight kind of thing, or did it take time?
This actually makes me think a story. A friend of mine that got pregnant with someone she didn’t know very well, but they decided to get married and raise the child together and through the ups and downs of raising the kid they fell in love. So it was a backwards process, but in the end they really saw who each other were when it counted. So for me, I think in some ways I was afraid to have a band.
Was there anything that really brought you together with your current band?
My current bandmate Doug was the one who pursued me and encouraged me to have a band, because I honestly didn’t know how to do it.
I came into playing music really late and I wasn’t playing shows until I was in my twenties. I mean, to go from playing classical guitar to picking up an electric and having a drummer … it was another world. But with the encouragement from Doug, I met the others and so forth. In some ways it was really like the first day of school. You put all these strangers in a room and you’re like …‘well, good luck!’
Now that you have an established band, what keeps the dynamic strong?
A lot of it is working together and going through those ups and downs of touring. And learning how to communicate and it can be an emotional roller-coaster, but everyone has risen to the occasion.
Photo by Shervin Lainez
The first time I heard of you was actually a solo gig. A friend of mine sent me a video of yours playing ‘My Heart Underground’ in NYC. Do you ever miss just being alone on stage?
Wow! That song’s not even released. I was used to it at the time, but not that I play with a band, playing solo is terrifying, like standing up there in my underwear. I still like to do it in the middle of a set, but for the most part…pretty terrifying.
Some of your music can be pretty raw. Do you think you would like to make a record that focuses on the raw and gritty side of your music?
Yeah, I have actually been thinking that I would like to do that at some point. If I were to do that again, I would really like to be a guitar player in somebody else’s band. On my last record I had so much fun playing the solos on some songs, but I had a hard time singing and playing the solo at the same time, so my bandmate does it for me…which makes me jealous. In the future, I would love to play guitar or be a backup singer in somebody else’s band.
If you could play with anyone, who would it be?
That’s a tough one, but I would have to say PJ HARVEY.
I know you have said that you are influenced by the female musicians of the 90s. How do you feel about the female presence in music today?
Yeah, well growing up in the 90s you had a lot of female writers who were on the radio at the time. I was an alternative girl and a grunge kid, and the radio back then was so schizophrenic. But that was what was really great about it! You could listen to ELASTICA and Liz Phair and then Michael Bolton in the same progression.
But even though things have really changed, this makes me think of this friend of mine who just moved from Tennessee to New York to make music. She came to my house to listen to records and she had never heard PJ HARVEY before and she is playing grunge music. And it is fucking rad. So, it was really great to see her listen to PJ HARVEY and watch her eyes light up.
I would like to see grunge comeback in a big way.
I think movements come in waves and I think that now 90s and grunge is coming back, because kids who grew up then are now reflecting. You know, there’s always good music, and today there is so much of it.
I know you are based in New York City now. For your next project would you be interested in moving to a different city to make music?
Yeah my bandmate Heather and I were talking about that recently. She has taught me a lot about soundscapes and we would really like to write together. She has actually worked out of the studios in Berlin before, and I was thinking that maybe it would be great to collaborate with her and take a step outside of my songs and my feelings.
You know the first time I saw you play, it was a song from one of my all-time favorite musicians: Stevie Nicks. I watched a video of you covering ‘Stop Dragging My Heart Around’ for AV CLUB, which is fantastic. Now that I have the chance to ask, why did you pick that song, and how did you conjure up the spirit of Stevie?
(laughs) Well, at the time I was touring with SHEARWATER and they were approached by the AV Club and actually invited me to sing along. Actually, when we performed the song we got into this space where we were like ‘let’s get into the mood and pretend to hate each other’ and we were really trying not to laugh the whole time, while we were making these gnarly faces.
Before we have to say goodbye, can you tell us, what do the words ‘hope’ and ‘passion’ mean to you?
Ah, hope and passion you have to care about what you do, so if you are doing something that you care about and you mean it… that’s it. You know, I think you relate to people through music and art and writing and that’s hope and passion. (laughs) That sounded so cheesy…
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