Mistletone

Artwork by Greedy Hen

SHARON VAN ETTEN TOUR DATES:

FALLS FESTIVAL, LORNE: SATURDAY DECEMBER 29. Sold out!
THE CORNER, MELBOURNE: SUNDAY DECEMBER 30 with special guests Grand Salvo. Tickets on sale now from The Corner box office.
FALLS FESTIVAL, MARION BAY: MONDAY DECEMBER 31. Tickets on sale now from The Falls website.
THE ZOO, BRISBANE JANUARY 2: WEDNESDAY JANUARY 2 with special guests Little Scout + Heather Woods Broderick. Tickets on sale now from The Zoo & all Oztix outlets.
SOUTHBOUND, BUSSELTON WA: FRIDAY JANUARY 4. Tickets on sale now from the festival website.
SYDNEY FESTIVAL: SUNDAY JANUARY 6 @ The Famous Spiegeltent. Starts 5pm. Tickets on sale Monday, October 29 from Ticketmaster.
SYDNEY FESTIVAL: TUESDAY JANUARY 8 @ The Famous Spiegeltent. Starts 7pm. Tickets on sale Monday, October 29 from Ticketmaster.
SYDNEY FESTIVAL: WEDNESDAY JANUARY 9 @ The Famous Spiegeltent. Starts 7pm. Tickets on sale Monday, October 29 from Ticketmaster.

Mistletone, Triple R, 4ZZZ and Beat present the first Australian tour by Brooklyn-based Sharon Van Etten. Singer, songwriter, collaborator and incredibly captivating performer, the irrepressible Sharon Van Etten is nothing short of indie rock royalty. Backed by her stunning three piece band, Sharon will showcase her bittersweet songs with all their raw intimacy and dramatic sweep at The Corner (Melbourne) on Sunday 30 December and The Zoo (Brisbane) on Wednesday 2 January, as well as festival shows at Falls Festival, Southbound Festival and in The Famous Spiegeltent at Sydney Festival.

As a special treat for Brisbane audiences, Heather Woods Broderick from Sharon’s band will perform an opening solo set at The Zoo. Heather Woods Broderick (pictured below) is a disarming and resonant musician and composer who has released solo material under her own name and as a member of Efterklang, Horse Feathers and Loch Lomond; she’s been part of Laura Gibson’s backing band and has recorded with the likes of Blitzen Trapper and M Ward. Growing up in the relative quiet of the Maine countryside while learning a range of instruments and being sung to sleep by her parents playing folk songs, natural and rural sounds became central to Heather’s sense of song, falling into a deeply personal realm. The subtlety and nuance in Heather’s music also comes from her inclination towards ambient and experimental sounds, conjuring atmosphere equally with the striking melodies at the core of her songs. Her solo album From The Ground (featuring Heather’s brother, Peter Broderick) was released on Sydney-based label, Preservation. She also makes a guest appearance on Slay Me In My Sleep, the sixth album from Melbourne’s Grand Salvo.

SHARON VAN ETTEN

Sharon Van Etten’s debut album Because I Was In Love came in 2009, accompanied by the sound of critics fawning the world over. Follow up Epic (2010) and this year’s Tramp (released locally through Inertia Music) have only solidified her reputation. Produced by The National’s Aaron Dessner, Tramp features guest appearances by Zach Condon (aka Beirut), Bryce Dessner (also of The National), Julianna Barwick and Jenn Wasner of Wye Oak, proving that the best and brightest of American indie rock are lining up to get their prints on a Sharon Van Etten record. In three short years, she has played The Hollywood Bowl with Neko Case; at Radio City Music Hall with The Antlers; sung on records by Beirut and Ed Askew; and collaborated with Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon and Megafaun on the Songs Of The South project.

Tramp has been called “sublime” by MOJO and “Americana’s best-kept secret… one of the must-hears of 2012” by The Guardian. Just as assured and compelling live, Sharon delivers both power and charm in spades – so make sure you’re there with us this summer, when she brings her magic to our shores.

• “I love Shazza. From the first time I saw her at SXSW earlier this year I was a goner. Sharon Van Etten has a way to cut right through to your heart; those harmonies, her painfully honest lyrics, and songwriting smarts that make you just want to see, and hear her over and over.” – Zan Rowe, triple j
  
• “Focusing mostly on new material, Sharon Van Etten’s syrupy pipes filled the room just like you’d expect them to. Her impeccable, folk-spun melodies were executed with precision and passion. The thing that’s so incredible about Van Etten, is how she’s able to meld harsh and gentle together so seamlessly. At its core, her music is angry, but a gentle approach to that anger yields undeniably gorgeous results. Her lyrics are bitterly heartbreaking, her strums occasionally crass, her energy genuinely raw and powerful. But there’s a sort of delicate beauty to it all.” – Consequence of Sound
• “Sharon Van Etten is possessed of a remarkable, arresting voice. Emotive without being naïve, Sharon’s music, like her personality, is wise beyond its years. Her songs strike a balance between American and English folk and rock music, and her down-to-earth approach is refreshing after the onslaught of ethereal folkies in the last decade. More Anne Briggs than Vashti Bunyan, Van Etten’s extraordinary talents bode well for our ears.” – Pitchfork
• “One of the best confessional singer-songwriters around… A true star” – Washington Post

L-R: Zeke Hutchins, Heather Woods Broderick, Sharon Van Etten, Doug Keith. Photo by Dusdin Condren.

Watch Sharon performing at Le Point Ephémère, Paris:

Sharon Van Etten – Give Out live in Paris at Le Point FMR from valerie toumayan / I Love Sweden on Vimeo.

Sharon Van Etten – Don’t Do It live in Paris at Le Point FMR from valerie toumayan / I Love Sweden on Vimeo.

Sharon Van Etten – Magic Chords live in Paris at Le Point FMR from valerie toumayan / I Love Sweden on Vimeo.