Sharon Van Etten Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory LP

Consequence The 50 Best Albums of 2025 - Rated 19/50!

From the off, Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory is sonically different from Van Etten's previous work. Writing and recording in total collaboration with her band for the first time, Van Etten finds the freedom that comes by letting go. The result of that liberation is an exhilarating new dimension of sound and songwriting. The themes are timeless, classic Sharon — life and living, love and being loved — but the sounds are new, wholly realized and sharp as glass.

This new approach—releasing music under this new moniker—began with inviting her bandmates into the creative process. Rehearsing in the desert for an upcoming tour, Van Etten describes an epiphany:

"For the first time in my life I asked the band if we could just jam. Words that have never come out of my mouth — ever! But I loved all the sounds we were getting. I was curious — what would happen?"

Magic, apparently.

If their new single 'Afterlife' is any indication, we can expect a record with exquisitely textured yet well-controlled soundscapes, a complex and compelling scaffolding that elevates Van Etten and her band's artistry to new heights.

...the singer/songwriter fully embraces an icy, mechanical post-punk palette, one that still incorporates elements of guitar rock (and is part analog) but is distinguished by drum machines, eerie synths, and prevailing electronics. It's a sound that's well-suited to the album's anxious and alienated songs.