The release of Sharon Van Etten's first album in five years, Remind Me Tomorrow, is a reminder of the musician's full-throttle embrace of the many complex paths in her life.

“This is a song about Google Maps.” That is how New Yorker Sharon Van Etten introduced her new song, “I Love You But I’m Lost,” in her FUV Live performance at Rockwood Music Hall.

Singer and songwriter Sharon Van Etten quietly released one of the more extraordinary albums of the last year, the mutable and deeply moving Epic, which not only showcased her knack for textured yet organic composition, but her ferocious, pining vocals. She chatted with The Alternate Side over email while in London and updated us on her road trip, her work with The National's Aaron Dessner on her third album and how she plans on surviving SXSW in a month.