Sharon Van Etten - FUV Live at Rockwood Music Hall - 2014

“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. Of course, the song is not at all about getting (or not getting) directions from Google, but like much of her fourth album, Are We There, it is about navigation: navigating a painful relationship, the struggle to balance career and love, and ultimately, trusting your own voice.

Building on the success of her last album, Tramp (which was produced by Aaron Dessner of The National and features several stars of indie-rock), Sharon decided that the next direction to take was her own. So Are We There is her first self-produced album, recorded with her stellar band and some assistance from Grammy-winning, veteran producer, Stewart Lerman. She brought that band to the Lower East Side to play a room she said she hadn’t been in for “too long,” and both floored us with her heartbreakingly gorgeous and honest new songs, and entertained us with her self-deprecating humor. And - bonus - gave us a few tips on places to shop for wine, and more, in New York City.

[recorded: 05/22/14]

More from Sharon Van Etten:

• FUV's New Dig: Sharon Van Etten - Are We There
• Sharon Van Etten at SXSW [2012]
• Sharon Van Etten in Studio A [2010]

Funding for WFUV's ongoing coverage of live concerts and festivals comes from The Agnes Varis Trust, supporting affordable access to the arts, education and healthcare.