Sharon Van Etten Performs “Mistakes,” from ‘We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong,’ on ‘Colbert’

Sharon Van Etten released her new album, We’ve Been Going About It All Wrong, without a “lead single” or any pre-release tracks ahead of the album’s full arrival.

That doesn’t mean the record, released on May 6, isn’t without standout tracks. “Mistakes,” one of the powerful record’s strongest and most memorable songs, was performed by Van Etten and her band on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as a sampling of the album:

Click here to pick up We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong on CD from our Rock Cellar Store
Click here to pick up We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong on LP from our Rock Cellar Store

Said Van Etten of the deliberate approach of releasing it as a completed project:

“I wanted to approach this release differently, to engage my fans in an intentional way, in an effort to present the album as a whole body of work. These ten songs are designed to be listened to in order, at once, so that a much larger story of hope, loss, longing and resilience can be told.” This is, in itself, a subtle act of control, but in sharing these songs it remains an optimistic and generous one. The album’s cover art reflects that too, inspired as much by Van Etten’s old life as her new one. “I wanted to convey that in an image with me walking away from it all” says Van Etten, “not necessarily brave, not necessarily sad, not necessarily happy.”

The result is a powerful artistic statement, one that adds to Sharon Van Etten’s catalog of emotive, expressive and wholly original material.

We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong arrived ahead of this summer’s Wild Hearts tour, a co-headlining affair featuring Van Etten, Angel Olsen and Julien Baker.

Here’s Van Etten’s full tour schedule:

Thu. Apr. 21 – Charlottesville, VA @ The Jefferson Theatre ~
Fri. Apr. 22 – Saxapahaw, NC @ Haw River Ballroom ~
Sat. Apr. 23 – Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse ~
Sun. Apr. 24 – Charleston, SC @ High Water Music Festival
Tue. May 31 – Lisbon, PT @ Aula Magna ^#
Thu. Jun. 2 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound
Sun. Jun. 5 – München, DE @ Muffathalle ^%
Mon. Jun. 6 – Antwerp, BE @ Openluchttheater Rivierenhof ^%
Tue. Jun. 7 – Hamburg, DE @ Markthalle ^%
Thu. Jun. 9 – Oslo, NE @ Loaded &
Fri. Jun. 10 – Stockholm, SE @ Rosendal, Djurgarden &
Sat. Jun. 11 – Copenhagen, DK @ Syd For Solen &
Mon. Jun. 13 – Berlin, DE @ Metropol ^%
Tue. Jun. 14 – Utrecht, NE @ TivoliVredenberg Grote Zaal ^%
Wed. Jun. 15 – Paris, FR @ La Cigale ^%
Fri. Jun. 17 – London, UK @ O2 Brixton Academy ^%
Sat. Jun. 18 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Institute ^%
Sun. Jun. 19 – Leeds, UK @ 02 Academy Leeds ^%
Tue. Jun. 21 – Glasgow, UK @ Barrowland ^%
Wed. Jun. 22 – Dublin, IE @ Vicar Street ^%
Thu. Jul. 21 – Vienna, VA @ Wolf Trap Center For the Performing Arts *
Fri. Jul. 22 – Asheville, NC @ Rabbit Rabbit *
Sat. Jul. 23 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium * √
Mon. Jul. 25 – Austin, TX @ Moody Amphitheater *
Thu. Jul. 28 – Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre *
Fri. Jul. 29 – Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre *
Sat. Jul 30 – Berkeley, CA @ Greek Theatre *
Tu. Aug. 2 – Troutdale, OR @ McMenamins Edgefield Amphitheater *
Wed. Aug. 3 – Redmond, WA @ Marymoor Amphitheater *
Fri. Aug. 5 – Boise, ID @ Idaho Botanical Garden *
Sat. Aug. 6 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Twilight Concert Series *
Sun. Aug. 7 – Denver, CO @ Sculpture Park *
Tue. Aug. 9 – Minneapolis, MN @ Surly Brewing Festival Field *
Wed. Aug 10 – Chicago, IL @ The Salt Shed *
Thu. Aug. 11 – Kalamazoo, MI @ Bell’s Eccentric Cafe *
Fri. Aug. 12 – Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall * √
Sat. Aug. 13 – Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall * √
Mon. Aug. 15 – Shelburne, VT @ The Green at Shelburne Museum *
Tue. Aug. 16 – LaFayette, NY @ Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards *
Thu. Aug. 18 – Boston, MA @ Leader Bank Pavilion *
Fri. Aug. 19 – Philadelphia, PA @ Skyline Stage at The Mann *
Sat. Aug. 20 – New York, NY @ Central Park Summerstage *
Sun. Aug. 21 – New York, NY @ Central Park Summerstage *

~ = with Mia Joy
& = with The National
^ = Darkness Fades Tour
# = with The Weather Station
% = with L’Rain
* = The Wild Hearts Tour with Angel Olsen, Julien Baker, & Spencer.
√ = no Spencer.