Sharon Van Ettten and The Attachment Theory find strength in collaboration

Sharon Van Etten repeatedly asks this above doom-laden synths and a wobbling bassline that calls to mind Kate Bush’s “Mother Stands For Comfort”. It’s both familiar Van Etten and something totally new. Because this isn’t just Sharon Van Etten. For the first time, she’s opened her creative process up to others – namely Jorge Balbi, Devra Hoff, and Teeny Lieberson.

Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory is the product of a 2022 jam session with her backing band. Sessions like this were completely alien to Van Etten; her musical practice an incredibly personal one. But this first push in a new direction was transformative. Her backing band were no longer just a backing band but equal collaborators, with two of the album’s songs written within an hour.

This partnership sees Van Etten find new textures to play around with, particularly with Lieberson’s harmonies often feeling like a gentle hand on the shoulder guiding her forwards. And, with each member feeding in their own ideas, Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory is never just one thing. There’s swaggering desert rock in “I Can’t Imagine (Why You Feel This Way)”, moody Siouxsie Sioux-goth pop in “Southern Life (What It Must Be Like)”, and the cooly ethereal “Fading Beauty”. Even “Live Forever”, with that repeated question, explodes into an almost sci-fi epic.

Not all of it works. “Idiot Box” feels particular rote; a chugging indie rock number that feels like digging out a lesser Arcade Fire record. Van Etten’s choice of catchy pop hooks over poetic, emotional tempests also might seem, to some, like a step back from the sharply detailed songwriting of her previous records. But the ease the band have in each other’s presence is infectious. Balbi’s propulsive drumming drives the record but never overpoweringly so. Letting those atmospheric synths have their moment in the spotlight, or allowing Hoff’s agile basslines to bring their own mood.

It’s most neatly summed up on “Indio”, an ode to this newfound collaborative process. “They won’t see you for a lesser situation / when you’re insecure / they let you move your way / your mess can stay / ‘cause that’s your way”, sings Van Etten, her crystalline vocals piercing through the track's fantastically grungy energy. There’s something incredibly captivating about hearing her sound so free. Not just cathartic, but euphoric.

“I want you here / Even if it hurts / I want you here / Even when it gets worse”, she sings on the album’s glorious closer – her voice soaring just as high as the synths. On any other Van Etten record, this might sound like sad acceptance of her lot. That love and pain come hand in hand. But here, with this band, it sounds like she has found the strength to be present. To not shy away. To fight through the pain to experience love at its fullest. Suddenly, “Who wants to live forever?” doesn’t sound like a shrug of indifference. It sounds like an invitation to let love persist.