Sharon Van Etten leads night of combustible emotion at Surly Festival Field
by Macie Rasmussen and Sara Fish
August 10, 2022
Some people visit breweries to catch up with friends, meet a first date, or relax with coworkers. They share stories of love, frustration, worries, and every other topic appropriate for the occasion. At Surly Brewing Festival Field on Tuesday night, those conversations flowed continuously. It just so happened that Julien Baker, Angel Olson, and Sharon Van Etten were the people doing most of the narrating.
On the Wild Hearts Tour, the three singer-songwriters performed equal-length, individual sets that translated personal experiences into creative expression. It seemed that every track related to the saying, “everything is copy,” the idea that anything and everything that happens to a person is fair game to write about. No matter how many indie-rock adjacent genres fluctuated throughout the evening, combustible emotion was a fulcrum for each artist’s set.
As the crowd began to filter in, the first words out of Baker’s mouth were, “I wish I could write songs / About anything other than death,” on “Sprained Ankle.” Standing in front of a few thousand people, Baker demonstrated her ability to zoom in on snippets of emotion and enlarge them to the scale of festival-worthy anthems.
The singer connected with the audience through words and movement rather than eye contact. With textured yet sensitive vocals, she closed her eyes or looked directly down at her guitar for the majority of the set. While she sang to a crowd about mental health struggles and complications with the exploration of faith, it appeared that some of her focus remained internal.
She had intense facial expressions on “Faith Healer” and “Ziptie,” standouts from her most recent release, Little Oblivions. Her jaw stretched open to release the pain encapsulated in each. When singing “But I can’t find the brake,” on “Hardline,” the crowd participated in a simultaneous head thrust forward.
Leaving the stage, she promised, “Sharon and Angel are going to blow your minds away.”
Next on the bill was Olsen, who leaned wholeheartedly into country music from her newest album, Big Time, with subtle twang. When asking someone about music preferences, a common response is: “I like everything but country.” If any country cynics were in the crowd last night, Olsen might have changed their minds. The singer-songwriter paired gentle sentiments with minimalistic instrumentation to produce a relaxing setlist during the summer sunset.
Later, she jumped out of the country music for a few minutes to dabble in the gothic synth-rock sounds of her past. On the songs “Lark” and “All Mirrors” from the 2019 album, All Mirrors, the band drifted into a slow burn of synths. Olsen didn’t revisit one of her biggest hits, the catchy “Shut Up Kiss Me.” It’s reasonable when an artist wants to focus on their newest material, but this fan favorite was missed.
Nonetheless, unlike Baker, Olsen used moments between songs to put her stories into context. Witty comments demonstrated her down-to-earth personality. At her 7:30 p.m. start time, she said, “The sun’s out…You can see us clearly, but only I have my thoughts, and my thoughts are very mysterious.” Then she shared some advice from her therapist: You have to suffer to learn things, and suffering can be a blessing and gift. “But I have enough gifts!” she exclaimed.
After “Ghost On,” she asked, “Have you ever tried to keep your priorities straight? It’s something I’ve been trying out lately.” She laughed, as if it were an inside joke with herself. “Sometimes I get a little angry, and I need to let it out. I need to share it with y’all,” she explained after “Right Now.” She described her moods as complex and simple at the same time. All the while, Van Etten stood on the side of the stage, mouthing the words as Olsen sang. (Olsen’s keyboardist was Nona Marie Invie, who has a history leading Twin Cities acts Dark Dark Dark, Anonymous Choir, and RONiiA.)
Van Etten took the stage last. Whereas Baker was in her own world, and Olsen was a bit whimsical, Van Etten appeared with an attentive and eerie stage presence. She stared concentratedly into the audience while fake boxing, but eased into her set with warmth. The singer rebooted the 2014 song, “Every Time the Sun Comes Up,” by giving it a more lighthearted and upbeat tempo. Lyrics included: “I washed your dishes / But I shit in your bathroom” and “We broke your glasses / But covered our asses.” Van Etten admitted the words embarrass her now, but she’s not ashamed.
And there’s nothing like standing in a field on a Tuesday night while screeching guitars guide a singer speaking to her younger self on “Seventeen,” contemplating how the young woman would see herself now.
The show climaxed during the encore when Olsen returned onstage, giving a cheek-kiss and rose to Van Etten. They teamed up to play their collaborative single, “Like I Used To” and bask in sweet memories.
People often comment on the vulnerability of musicians who share evocative lyricism. Last night’s performances could be called vulnerable, but not in the sense of susceptibility to harm. After all, people likely came to hear stories that resonate with their own experiences — songs that are intensely subjective but also universal.
The artists’ bravery to share intimate thoughts on an epic scale made them momentarily invincible. With unrestrained storytelling, the label Wild Hearts fit the evening well. And as Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart” played over the speakers as people exited the field, the night came full circle.
Setlists and photos
Julien Baker
Sprained Ankle
Bloodshot
Tokyo
Favor
Relative Fiction
Red Door
Heatwave
Ringside
Faith Healer
Hardline
Ziptie
Angel Olsen
Dream Thing
Big Time
Ghost On
Right Now
Lark
All Mirrors
Go Home
All The Good Times
Sharon Van Etten
Headspace
Comeback Kid
No One’s Easy to Love
Anything
Come Back
I’ll Try
Used to it
Serpents
Everytime the Sun Comes Up
Mistakes
Born
Seventeen
Encore:
Darkish
Like I Used To (Feat. Angel Olsen)