Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone?

Sharon Van Etten (Photo by Ryan Pfluger)

We now know the title of Sharon Van Etten‘s new album, whose release date — Jan. 18, 2019, was announced in a clever manner on a limited edition fan T-shirt last, as Will You Miss Me When I’m Gone? revealed last week.

“Remind Me Tomorrow” album cover art

The album pre-release info, complete with cover image and full tracklist, dropped Tuesday, Oct. 2, on all the usual services, including Bandcamp, where you can order a range of formats and special bundles with merchandise.

Oh, you probably want to know the title: “Remind Me Tomorrow.”

One track is available now, and the title seems like a statement of intent: “Comeback Kid.”

She emailed the news to her fan list early Tuesday:

Dear Fans,

Thank you so much for your support and encouragement the past 4 years as I have gone back to school, had a child, and landed my first acting gig.

During that time, I wrote a record and I am excited to announce that it will be out Jan. 18th, 2019.

Here is the first single, “Comeback Kid.”

See you soon.

Heart,

Sharon

LISTEN

The cover art is appropriate for a new mother like Sharon. The two kids in the photo are not hers,  but the image offers some clues about how the private side of her life feels, if not how it really looks.

It’s not a very rock ‘n roll scenario, for sure. But that’s what’s so appealing about Sharon as an artist and a human being: She’s not afraid to be herself or to reveal herself.

In fact, her life is such an open book that fans can subscribe to Sharon’s calendar, which contains entries about video editing sessions, flights to performances, etc. Sign up for that here.

The record, according to a press release, “was written in stolen time: in scraps of hours wedged between myriad endeavors — Van Etten guest-starred in ‘The OA,’ and brought her music onstage in David Lynch’s revival of ‘Twin Peaks.’ Off-screen, she wrote her first score for Katherine Dieckmann’s movie ‘Strange Weather,’ and the closing title song for Tig Notaro’s show, ‘Tig.'”

The sonic palette of this record, produced by the Grammy-winning John Congleton (Laurie Anderson, Chelsea Wolfe, Best Coast, David Byrne, Angel Olson, The Mountain Goats, Murder by Death, and many, many more), is different from her previous work, with the Brooklyn-based New Jersey native recording everything in Los Angeles, according to the press release:

He helped flip the signature Van Etten ratio, making the album more energetic-upbeat than minimal-meditative. The songs are as resonating as ever, the themes are still an honest and subtle approach to love and longing, but Congleton has plucked out new idiosyncrasies from Van Etten’s sound. Joined by Van Etten’s longtime collaborator and bandmate Heather Woods Broderick, plus Jamie Stewart, Zachary Dawes, Brian Reitzell, Lars Horntveth, McKenzie Smith, Joey Waronker, Luke Reynolds, and Stella Mozgawa, “Remind Me Tomorrow” was recorded at studios throughout Los Angeles.

See the full tracklist after the jump.

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