Concert Review/Photos: Sharon Van Etten @ Union Transfer
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
Last Wednesday Sharon Van Etten turned Union Transfer into an intimate little rock club.
[ 6/18 ] Last Wednesday Sharon Van Etten turned Union Transfer into an intimate little rock club. After witnessing some serious “rocking out” in the crowd she pointed out how rarely anyone does that at her shows. A few fans questioned her setlist and she shot right back and for the final song of the night she pulled a young girl from the audience to stand behind the keyboards and sing a few notes. This genuine banter and the breaking down of the fourth wall were just a few pieces of Van Etten’s stunning rock show.
Playing all but one track from her 2014 release Are We There, Van Etten and her four band mates electrified the hot June night with vivacity and soul. Opening with the aptly titled “Afraid of Nothing,” Van Etten was fearless. Throughout the 14-song set, Van Etten showcased her versatility as she switched between her six-string acoustic and her electric Fender Jaguar as well as the keyboard. And for those foolish enough to doubt her abilities to live up to her 2012 masterwork Tramp, they were certainly silenced. From the sweep of “Afraid of Nothing” to the slow-burn “Tarifa,” the lyrics, harmonies and instrumentation of Are We There folded around the ears in an origami precision. Certainly Tramp’s “Serpents” is still her greatest achievement, but she wisely hid it towards the end of the main set so its driving rock grandiosity electrified Union Transfer to set up the phenomenal ending of the night.
This conclusion, capping a three-song encore, is surely the strongest work on Are We There — “Every Time the Sun Comes Up.” Van Etten’s syllables extending to super-human proportions and the spine-tingling refrain of “Every time the sun comes up I’m in trouble” kept the audience at star-struck attentiveness. The girl brought onto the stage added a further point of interest, and as Van Etten embraced her, the crowd erupted into a final applause. Van Etten showed how human she is and though she openly doubted her rock star persona, she certainly is a one-of-a-kind performer. And to answer the question her new album asks, the music world is certainly “here” to embrace her for good.
Jana Hunter of Lower Dens did a stirring solo opening set including a unique cover of Hall and Oates’ “Maneater.”
Setlist
- Afraid of Nothing
- Taking Chances
- Tarifa
- Nothing Will Change
- All I Can
- Break Me
- Don’t Do It
- Leonard
- You Know Me Well
- Serpents
- Your Love is Killing Me
Encore
- I Know
- I Love You But I’m Lost
- Every Time the Sun Comes Up
