Sharon Van Etten

The New Jerseyan, who moved to Brooklyn, New York US in 2005, released her debut album ‘Because I Was in Love’ in May 2009; it gained credible acclaim and a 7.7 rating from Pitchfork Media, who described it as positioning Sharon Van Etten towards “the front of the pack”. She then released ‘epic’ in September 2010 on Ba Da Bing Records and featured Cat Marino, Meg Baird and Jessica Larrabee on backing vocals.

In February 2012, Van Etten’s third studio album ‘Tramp’ was released on Jagjaguwar records, debuting at No. 75 on the Billboard 200 charts. Keith Matto claimed that 'Tramp' is “a professional polish” in comparison to Van Etten’s earlier productions; the album was seen by many as the first production which featured a particular maturity in her sound. It features the track ‘Serpents’ which was used in the season 2 finale of Lost Girl, along with ‘Magic Chords’ which has gained over 525K views on YouTube. Van Etten then released ‘Are We There’ in May 2014, an album self-produced with Stewart Lerman, which achieved a rating of 86% on Metacritic and a listing of No. 25 on the Billboard 200 charts. It features the emotion-provoking single ‘Every Time the Sun Comes Up’ - Van Etten’s most popular record on iTunes.

Van Etten’s influences are in the shape of the Everly Brothers and Liz Phair, and she has been compared to Laura Jean, Cat Power and Olga Bell. She has performed at prestigious settings such as the Brooklyn Academy of Music and the Beacon theatre, whilst sharing the stage with the likes of The Walkmen, St. Vincent and Atlas Sound. Van Etten has also exercised her ethical motives; in August 2013, she designed a limited-edition t-shirt for Women in Need, a charity which aims to provide safe housing for women and their children in New York City.

Sharon Van Etten’s music is known for its heavy use of harmonies, or in her own words “two melodies”, and continues to satisfy a loyal following with such heartfelt rhythms and elegant vocal chords.