Photo by Philip Cosores
Sharon Van Etten’s intimate and devastating brand of folk rock has been known to break a few hearts and leave listeners in tears (me included). But now, thanks to LCD Soundsystem offshoot The Juan MacLean, the singer-songwriter’s sparse music has been recast for the dance floor.
The electropop duo — comprised of producer Juan MacLean and James Murphy cohort Nancy Whang — have flipped Van Etten’s tender Are We There standout “Our Love” into a psychedelic and sinuous banger. Although Van Etten’s original vocals for the most part remain intact, they float and billow between bright, bubbling synthesizers like a playful specter on the loose.
Van Etten spoke to The FADER about the reworking, saying: “I feel very lucky that Juan MacLean made the time to do a remix of my song. Being a huge fan of Air, Daft Punk, James Murphy, I was looking for something that had a bit of edge, but I wasn’t expecting this. He started by giving it a lot of space and let the vocals remain dark and bleak while incorporating both my samples and his own sound. I feel honored that he wanted to collaborate.”
Listen in below.
Here’s the original for full comparison:
Van Etten’s Are We There is out now via Jagjaguwar. Meanwhile, The Juan MacLean’s new album, In A Dream, is out this week via DFA Records.
