Song of the Day: Sharon Van Etten - Taking Chances

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Today’s song, featured on The Midday Show with DJ Cheryl Waters, is “Taking Chances” by Sharon Van Etten from the 2014 album Are We There out now on Jagjaguwar.

Sharon Van Etten - Taking Chances (MP3)

It's no surprise that DJ Cheryl Waters has chosen a Sharon Van Etten track as her Song of the Day: KEXP has been championing the Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter for years now, even to the point of honoring her with a Six Degrees of Sharon Van Etten Day, inspired by her many musical collaborations.

On her fourth full-length, Are We There?, the beloved songstress took some chances, indeed, tackling self-production for the very first time, under the guidance of veteran music producer Stewart Lerman. (She also worked with a slew of special guests on this album, like Dave Hartley and Adam Granduciel from The War on Drugs, Jonathan Meiberg of Shearwater, and Jana Hunter of Lower Dens, if we ever do a Six Degrees reprise.) The result is an intimate, emotional, and vulnerable collection of songs, including today's KEXP Song of the Day. Against a syncopated synth beat, Van Etten reflects languidly on a past relationship in "Taking Chances," a slow jam that builds to a triumphant finish.

You can follow Sharon on Twitter and Facebook. She was recently in Seattle, performing at the Neptune Theatre, and she has extensive tour dates around the world through the rest of the year. Watch a live version of today's Song of the Day, performed in the KEXP studios: