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Sharon Van Etten Makes A Punchy And Powerful Leap Forward

Sharon Van Etten inside the World Cafe Performance Studio
Rachel Del Sordo
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WXPN
Sharon Van Etten inside the World Cafe Performance Studio

Instagram might have one believe that family life with young children involves vegetables carved to look like rocket ships in gluten-free lunchboxes, or that new mothers can prance around fields with newborn babies in pristine white linen dresses that are never covered in grass-stains or baby spit. But anyone who's actually been there knows it's a whole lot more like the cover of Sharon Van Etten's latest album, Remind Me Tomorrow, which looks like a toy cupboard threw up and a bunch of baby clothes tried to come to the rescue. The photo isn't of Sharon's house or family, but she chose the image to represent the beautiful chaos surrounding the making of this latest album.

Sharon Van Etten, <em>Remind Me Tomorrow.</em>
/ Jagjaguwar
/
Jagjaguwar
Sharon Van Etten, Remind Me Tomorrow.

Sharon started writing the songs for Remind Me Tomorrow when she was pregnant, in school for psychology and auditioning for her first ever acting gig on the show The OA, which just started its second season. Her partner is an artist too. It's not easy, and Sharon's not trying to hide the struggle from her fans or her family. In our conversation, Sharon explains why she wants their young son to see his parents fight to achieve their dreams.

The songs on Remind Me Tomorrow stay true to Sharon's heartfelt and cathartic singer-songwriter roots, but she also makes a punchy and powerful leap forward, bringing some electronic sounds into the mix thanks to producer John Congleton. She's been crushing performances on tour, and sent us a couple special recordings that you'll hear in this session along with our conversation. Listen in the player.

Copyright 2019 XPN

Talia Schlanger hosts World Cafe, which is distributed by NPR and produced by WXPN, the public radio service of the University of Pennsylvania. She got her start in broadcasting at the CBC, Canada's national public broadcaster. She hosted CBC Radio 2 Weekend Mornings on radio and was the on-camera host for two seasons of the television series CBC Music: Backstage, as well as several prime-time music TV specials for CBC, including the Quietest Concert Ever: On Fundy's Ocean Floor. Schlanger also guest hosted various flagship shows on CBC Radio One, including As It Happens, Day 6 and Because News. Schlanger also won a Canadian Screen Award as a producer for CBC Music Presents: The Beetle Roadtrip Sessions, a cross-country rock 'n' roll road trip.
Since 2017, John Myers has been the producer of NPR's World Cafe, which is produced by WXPN at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Previously he spent about eight years working on the other side of Philly at WHYY as a producer on the staff of Fresh Air with Terry Gross. John was also a member of the team of public radio veterans recruited to develop original programming for Audible and has worked extensively as a freelance producer. His portfolio includes work for the Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site, The Association for Public Art and the radio documentary, Going Black: The Legacy of Philly Soul Radio. He's taught radio production to preschoolers and college students and, in the late 90's, spent a couple of years traveling around the country as a roadie for the rock band Huffamoose.