The opening act She Keeps Bees is comprised of a dynamic duo: Jessica Larrabee (on vocals and guitar) and Andy LaPlant (on drums). Larrabee and LaPlant played for about 35 minutes and did a great job getting the audience grooving with their seismic rhythms and melodic sound. Larrabee’s onstage banter was also hilarious, as she made the crowd laugh out loud several times.
When Sharon Van Etten swooped onto the stage with her new band The Attachment Theory they opened with a few songs from their new album, which is due out this week. They began the set with Live Forever, Afterlife and Idiot Box--fluidly demonstrating the intricate weave of synths, guitars, bass and guitar sonics which are emblematic of Van Etten’s new sound. As she asks in the opening song: “Who wants to live forever? It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter...” These words underscore the dark introspection present on the new album. Afterlife is another case in point where life after death comes into focus.
The band, which includes Van Etten (on lead vocals, guitar, and keyboards); Jorge Balbi (on drums, machines), Devra Hoff (on bass, vocals), Teeny Lieberson (on synth, piano, guitar, and vocals) were a pretty tight-knit unit but I did get the sense that they are still working out a few of the kinks since this was just their third show of the current tour. Van Etten and the band were all attired in black and there was definitely a goth-like feel to their collective vibe on stage.
One elegiac and moving note: Van Etten dedicated the song Tarifa -- from the album Are We There -- to David Lynch as he recently passed away. It 's worth recalling that Van Etten collaborated with Lynch as she performed on one episode of the Twin Peaks: The Return Showtime series. It was also nice to hear two more songs from Are We There, including the very catchy Taking Chances and Every Time the Sun Comes Up.
This was my first time seeing Van Etten perform live and I was struck by how beautiful and powerful her voice is in a live setting. This being a homecoming show for Van Etten, who hails from New Jersey, was also highlighted by her funny interactions with some of her relatives who had come to the show, including both of her parents.
Van Etten’s presence on stage is beguiling. She is mesmerizing to watch, and I was particularly struck by how she looks directly into many audience members' eyes as she moves from side to side across the stage.
The first encore featured one of her most popular songs Seventeen and the crowd around me were singing and gyrating to it effortlessly. Born -- Van Etten’s pensive song from her last album We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong – closed out this very satisfying concert.
Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory head to Europe for a bunch of shows in March but they will return to the USA in April and May and will be playing in our area again at Union Transfer in Philadelphia on April 30 and Brooklyn Steel on May 2. So don’t miss them! They put on an excellent show! Get more info and listen to her music here: https://sharonvanetten.bandcamp.com/music
All photos and video by Albert Gabriel Nigrin.
