“Serpents” is a complete departure from Sharon Van Etten‘s early work. Admittedly, I missed her sophomore release, Epic from 2010, but was fully entranced by her debut, 2009’s Because I Was In Love.
Here, she shatters the quietude of the stripped-down acoustic guitar of that earliest album with a folk-rock piece that is utterly haunting. The track is stunning, including rock-centric guitar riffs and a fair share of emotion and angst.
Musically, “Serpent” may fit the title of her sophomore release, but it’s off her new album, Tramp, which was released yesterday via Jagjaguwar.
