I ARRIVED AT THE WORLD CAFÉ LIVE, AND HEADED
DOWN INTO ITS RUMBLING BELLY WHERE A BAND CALLED JUNIP STRUMMED AWAY DURING A
SOUND CHECK, looking for the opening act, someone named Sharon Van Etten.
I entered into a dark room, a room that, but
for a few individuals hustling back and forth, holding leads and instruments,
and the sound dude, was empty – though, in about two hours, it would be
jam-packed with people.
But nowhere did I spot Sharon. So I caught someone in the midst of one of
their speedy bee-lines, cupped my hand, and yelled
into their ear, “Do you know where I could find Sharon Van etten?!” Inaudible over the drum thumps and guitar
tunage. This time, I squeezed my fingers
a bit tighter, and cranked up the volume a couple notches and asked the same
thing “ DO
YOU KNOW WHERE I COULD FIND SHARON VAN ETTEN?!” This time around, he heard me, but he said “no”,
he didn’t know where she was, and continued along his trajectory. Bummer.
I stood around a little while longer, hoping to catch Sharon walking through the space – continuing to listen to Junip play and watch the roadies zip past me. Two minutes in, I decided it would probably be a better idea to roam around the venue and see if I could find her by chance. Lo and behold, the moment I exited the dimly lit room, there was someone standing immediately outside of the door wearing an oversized red, blue and white flannel on top of a black Tee-shirt, black pants and capped with a dark brown (almost black) bob, cut in an obtuse curve right on the brow line, just enough so as to reveal the beginning of light brown irises. It was the one I was looking for, Sharon Van Etten herself.
I told her that we would probably have to find a quieter spot to chat so that my recorder, well, my cell phone actually, didn’t pick up Junip playing in the background. So we headed upstairs, and it just so happened that on November 1st 2010, the quietest place in the World Café Live was a bathroom on the second floor. So for fifteen minutes, before she had to run off to do a sound check, where I also took pictures, we talked amongst the company of a toilet.
WEEKS LATER: Keba’s cell phone gets stolen and, in turn, she loses the yet-to-be -transcribed Sharon Van Etten bathroom interview. We conducted the following interview via e-mail.
Sharon’s
new record, Epic, is just come out last October and she is currently on another
North American tour. Be sure to catch her. - Photos and Words by Keba
KEBA: How did you get
into playing music?
SHARON VAN ETTEN: I was in musicals in high school and did choir.
K: Who taught you how
to play guitar?
SVE:
Perry Andrews & myself.
K: What were the
first songs you ever wrote? What were
they about?
SVE:
“Damn Right” about being broken hearted.
K: How and when did you decide that music was something that you wanted to do for a living?
K: How and when did you decide that music was something that you wanted to do for a living?
SVE:
By accident.
K: What were your
first performances like? Did you ever have stage fright?
SVE: Scary. Nervous. Shaking. Yes.
K: You used to work
at Ba Da Bing records in NY…. What did you do there? Does your knowledge of the
workings of record labels help you as a musician?
SVE: Publicist.
Yes.
K: What was your
favorite part of that job?
SVE:
Hearing new bands and learning that not all
industry
is sleazy.
K: Who are some of
your major musical influences?
SVE:
Meg Baird, She Keeps Bees, Vashti Bunyan,
PJ Harvey.
K: What sorts of
things inspire you?
SVE:
Love. Honesty. Everything.
K: What was the last
concert that you went to?
SVE:
Nick Lowe.
K: Can you tell me
about the experience of making Epic? Who did the cover art?
SVE:
Flatland Kitchen (my friends based out of Indianapolis, IN) did the cover
art. Recording was great. I got to invite and work with my friends.
It was a musical sleepover party with lots of ideas shared. I got lucky! ☼
