Sharon Van Etten is back with another new single and video, her second of 2022. “Used to It” follows the early-February release of “Porta,” and has us eagerly anticipating a follow-up to 2019’s terrific Remind Me Tomorrow.
If “Porta” was a jab in the nose, “Used to It” is the hook you don’t see coming until it’s laid you out. Minimal percussion throbs like an irregular heartbeat, synths billow like smoke clouds, and Van Etten’s icy vocals float above it all, her fragmented lyrics evoking “haunted” memories and ruefully asking the song’s subject, “Are you used to it / Pouring out your life?” Some context key to understanding the song is that Van Etten originally wrote it after being asked to help score Baby God, an HBO documentary “about a fertility specialist who takes it upon himself to impregnate women with his own sperm,” per a press release.
“Ultimately, the film team changed their musical direction, but I found myself welcomely challenged to the idea of writing a song about the concept of family, connection through blood, nature vs. nurture, while attempting to incorporate ideas of love and the complexities of science and technology,” explains Van Etten in a statement. “I am grateful for this song to be able to have a new life, relating more to the times we have all been living through and redefining the meaning of this song by focusing on the positives of seeking connection and understanding what family means to the individual.”
The “Used to It” video, created by Van Etten’s musical director and bandmate Charley Damski, features dancer and choreographer Hayden J. Frederick alongside Van Etten. “Together, they helped me convey the feelings of internal struggles, while also finding space for oneself and embracing that pain in order to move on,” Van Etten adds.
Van Etten’s extensive tour slate includes a performance at My Morning Jacket’s One Big Holiday this week, a handful of U.S. shows with Mia Joy in April, a set at Barcelona’s Primavera Sound and her European Darkness Fades Tour in June, and The Wild Hearts Tour with Angel Olsen, Julien Baker and Spencer. in July and August.
Watch the “Used to It” video and see Van Etten’s complete tour itinerary below.
Sharon Van Etten Tour Dates:
March
02-05 – Cancún, MX @ One Big Holiday !
April
21 – Charlottesville, VA @ The Jefferson Theatre ~
22 – Saxapahaw, NC @ Haw River Ballroom ~
23 – Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse ~
24 – Charleston, SC @ High Water Music Festival
May
31 – Lisbon, PT @ Aula Magna ^#
June
02 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound
05 – München, DE @ Muffathalle ^%
06 – Antwerp, BE @ Openluchttheater Rivierenhof ^%
07 – Hamburg, DE @ Markthalle ^%
09 – Oslo, NE @ Loaded &
10 – Stockholm, SE @ Rosendal, Djurgarden &
11 – Copenhagen, DK @ Syd For Solen &
13 – Berlin, DE @ Metropol ^%
14 – Utrecht, NE @ TivoliVredenberg Grote Zaal ^%
15 – Paris, FR @ La Cigale ^%
17 – London, UK @ O2 Brixton Academy ^%
18 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Institute ^%
19 – Leeds, UK @ 02 Academy Leeds ^%
21 – Glasgow, UK @ Barrowland ^%
22 – Dublin, IE @ Vicar Street ^%
July
21 – Vienna, VA @ Wolf Trap Center For the Performing Arts *
22 – Asheville, NC @ Rabbit Rabbit *
23 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium *
25 – Austin, TX @ Moody Amphitheater *
28 – Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre *
29 – Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre *
30 – Berkeley, CA @ Greek Theatre *
August
02 – Troutdale, OR @ McMenamins Edgefield Amphitheater *
03 – Redmond, WA @ Marymoor Amphitheater *
05 – Boise, ID @ Idaho Botanical Garden *
06 – Salt Lake City, UT @ TBA *
07 – Denver, CO @ Sculpture Park *
09 – Minneapolis, MN @ Surly Brewing Festival Field *
10 – Chicago, IL @ The Salt Shed *
11 – Kalamazoo, MI @ Bell’s Eccentric Cafe *
12 – Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall *
13 – Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall *
15 – Shelburne, VT @ The Green at Shelburne Museum *
16 – LaFayette, NY @ Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards *
18 – Boston, MA @ Leader Bank Pavilion *
19 – Philadelphia, PA @ Skyline Stage at The Mann *
21 – New York, NY @ Central Park Summerstage *
(! = with My Morning Jacket)
(~ = with Mia Joy)
(& = with The National)
(^ = Darkness Fades Tour)
(# = with The Weather Station)
(% = with L’Rain)
(* = The Wild Hearts Tour with Angel Olsen, Julien Baker, & Spencer.)
