Tramp
*Tramp* is a study in controlled power. Soft yet muscular, vulnerable yet tough, the music moves at a languid pace while also conveying urgency and unresolved tension. Sharon Van Etten’s striking voice is the album\'s central feature. Her vocals are commanding throughout, resonating when surrounded by ample space (“Give Out”, “In Line”), in the midst of precise arrangements using strings, keyboards, and artful drumming (“Leonard”, “We Are Fine”), or backed by a squall of electric guitar (“Serpents”). Van Etten closely doubles her vocals on many tracks; by hitting two closely related notes at once, this gives her voice a haunting, ethereal quality. Produced by Aaron Desner of The National, the album also benefits from contributions by drummer Matt Barrick (The Walkmen) and vocals by Zach Condon (Beirut) and Jenn Wasner (Wye Oak). *Tramp* is a triumph of understated beauty and grace.
The shimmering sound of Sharon Van Etten’s Jagjaguwar debut album, 'Tramp', both defies and illuminates the unsteadiness of a life in flux. Throughout the 14 months of scattered recording sessions, Van Etten was without a home -- crashing with friends and storing her possessions between varied locations. The only constant in Van Etten's life during this time was spent in Aaron Dessner's garage studio. Tramp contains as much striking rock (the precise venom of “Serpents,” the overwhelming power of “Ask”), as pious, minimal beauty (the earnest solemnity of “All I Can,” the breathtaking “Kevins,” “Joke or a Lie”); it can be as emotionally combative (“Give Out”) as it can sultry (“Magic Chords”). Contributions from Matt Barrick (Walkmen), Thomas Bartlett (Doveman), Zach Condon (Beirut), Jenn Wasner (Wye Oak), Julianna Barwick, and Dessner himself add a glowing sheen to the already substantial offering.
The Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter's powerful third album, produced by the National's Aaron Dessner, features guest spots from Beirut's Zach Condon, Wye Oak's Jenn Wasner, Julianna Barwick, and Dessner's brother Bryce, among others.
It’s not often that an artist progresses as purposefully as Sharon Van Etten has over the course of her first three albums. Starting with her 2009 debut Because I Was In Love, a voice-and-guitar-centered collection of break-up songs, through 2010’s instrumentally and emotionally bolstered Epic and the new Tramp,…
Tramp’s size and ambition is a step forward that allows her to impress its feeling more vividly, not just add volume.
For most of these 47 minutes, Van Etten's right there with you—whispering her tortured lullabies into your ear in the most…
When Sharon Van Etten issued the ironically titled seven-song Epic in 2009, it stood in stark contrast to her 2007 debut, Because I Was in Love.
Sharon Van Etten's last album, Epic, was a way forward for her, both musically and psychologically.
Sharon Van Etten's gutsy third album should find her the limelight she richly deserves, writes <strong>Kitty Empire</strong>
As the digital world gives us more and more opportunities to interact from afar -- i.
Sharon Van Etten 'Tramp' album review on Northern Transmissions.
Sharon Van Etten - Tramp review: A tense and sprawling record that delivers one emotional gut punch after another.