Last year, Sharon Van Etten‘s sophomore LP Epic turned ten—but this year the singer-songwriter is pulling out all the stops to celebrate her breakthrough album. She announced the reissue of the full-length, along with a covers album a little while back. Along with that double-album epic Ten, there will also be a live event and documentary of that event in order to benefit the venue Zebulon LA.
As we wait for the show and the release of the full covers album, we’ve been getting glimpses here and there. We’ve heard Aaron Dessner and Justin Vernon takes on “A Crime,” IDLES on “Peaces Signs,” and Lucinda Willliams’ version of “Save Yourself.” Now, Shamir has shared the cover of “DsharpG,” which is less haunting than the original, but still filled with a roaring ache. Where Sharon’s original is a ghostly wail getting lost among the physical realm, Shamir‘s is a growing hunger that will never be satisfied. Both search for a kind of peace, but a stunningly sad. Like, a good sad. Anyway.
In a press release, Van Etten explains how she chose Shamir for the project: “I was drawn to Shamir’s music by the immediate authenticity and originality of his voice and instrumentation choices. It felt simultaneously throwback and very here and now. So many genres melting into one another, I couldn’t peg it, and I loved every minute of the wild ride. Not to mention that his vocal range is from another universe and his arrangements are dark and stormy. Self admittedly, I have a harder time keeping up with music today, but Shamir’s music stands out as truly original and a force to be reckoned with in his reimagining of a time where I grew up fondly, angsty and dreaming…”
Pre-order epic Ten here and listen to Shamir’s cover below.
