Sharon Van Etten
I Don't Want To Let You Down


3.5
great

Review

by Thomas S. USER (29 Reviews)
September 24th, 2017 | 5 replies


Release Date: 2015 | Tracklist

Review Summary: Jack Kerouac Reviews: Sharon Van Etten

For some reason everyone thinks of pain as a momentary sensation, and that’s it, bang - gone! But me? When I think of pain, I always think of diamonds. Alrightalrightalright… allow me to explain. Look, every time we feel pain, it becomes embedded in our chests. All the shame, the failure, the regret, the heartbreak, everything: all of it enters through the mouth, sinks down the oesophagus and gets lodged right beside the heart, where it turns as hard as a stone. We carry our pain around like bullets: heavy little wounds that remind us of the wars we’ve fought and the battles we’ve lost. Eventually, we end up with our own personal Japanese rock gardens full of pain. The stones sit there, all bundled up in scrappy makeshift quilts made out of food, sex and nine-to-fives - virtually unnoticeable but weighing us down all the same. Sometimes, if you move too quickly or you’re not paying attention, a blanket might tear; and no matter how hurriedly you stitch it back together, others can see it in your eyes - seriously, it’s as obvious as anything! Most of us spend our whole lives tending to our stones; we wrap ‘em up in cloth, string ‘em up with twine and finish ‘em off with a bowtie. We stow these neat little packages deep inside ourselves, in the darkest cracks and crevices, never to see the light of day. If you’ve ever been a pallbearer, you know how f*ckin’ heavy a corpse is, right? Well, guess what friend: that’s not the fine-grained Mahogany and Walnut coffin you’re sweating over! No, that’s a lifetime of pain, stashed away right there behind your recently deceased relative’s sternum. And it’s funny, because although everyone knows about this stuff - everyone knows, right? - no one ever musters up the courage to see for themselves. I’ll let you in on a little secret though, ready? The secret is this: if you leave those little rocks long enough - I mean really let ‘em harden up - and you reach inside yourself and you-- yeah, cut yourself open and reach inside, that’s right; if you grab one of those little stones, all wrapped up neat with a bowtie and - well yeah, of course it hurts ya dickhead! - if you pull it out and dry it off; untie the string, pick the stitching, have a peek inside… Well, let me tell you right now, you won’t find no f*ckin’ rock my friend! Honestly, I swear on my mother’s grave, you won’t find a goddamn rock… Nope, you’ll find a diamond. And guess what? Sharon Van Etten’s chest is full of diamonds.



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user ratings (29)
3.3
great


Comments:Add a Comment 
tombits
September 24th 2017


3582 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Not sure what happened with this one, I went to write an introduction and this came out. For those looking for an actual review: this consists of four b-sides from Are We There and a live version of 'Tell Me' - a demo that came with the deluxe version of Tramp. 'I Don't Want to Let You Down' and 'I Always Fall Apart' are both strong tunes, but 'Just Like Blood' could be the most beautiful song she's written so far. Unfortunately I'm not such fan of 'Pay My Debts', which impacts the rating.



Just Like Blood: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1y3OYFpzrk

luci
September 24th 2017


12844 Comments


This was definitely underwhelming compared to her string of albums. What's she been up to anyways? I've heard a few features here and there (most notably the Hercules and Love Affair album this year) but it'll be going on 4 years since the last record soon.

tombits
September 24th 2017


3582 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

That's actually what I was gonna address in my review before it turned into a bad Murakami paragraph. Are We There basically chronicled the death spiral of her ten year relationship, so I think she probably needed a cooling off period before coming back to writing. I think the first three songs stand shoulder to shoulder with anything off that record.

butcherboy
September 24th 2017


9464 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

she guested on a song for lee ranaldo that came out last week.. from what the way she says in interviews, she writes to power through personal shite and doesn't do much of it in a happy place.. guess she's in a happy place..

tombits
September 25th 2017


3582 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Yeah she's been involved in a bunch of guest features and soundtracks, fingers crossed for something more substantial.



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