Another singer-songwriter (we are going for a trilogy), I discovered her on her fifth LP "Remind me tomorrow", from which I chose two of my favourite songs. Recently she joined The Attachment Theory, the band she used to tour with, to release a new LP this year.
Sharon Van Etten
"Comeback kid"
2018 · Remind me tomorrowAbout the song
The main idea is identity and coming back to the house you grew up in. There are two voices in the song, that's why some phrases go in quotes (also in blue in the video): the quoted ones are people from your old town talking to you, and the others are what she feels.j
In words of Van Etten herself:
Comeback Kid’ is about that feeling when you go back home to visit your family and you have those mixed emotions of feeling like that kid again, like you’re always going to be a kid in your parents’ eyes. You walk around in your hometown and run into people you used to know who have in their minds who they think you are. I go home and I’m in the bedroom where I grew up, with all these memories around me, but I’m an adult now. I’ve come very far, but sometimes you get back in that spot and feel like a kid all over again.
Vocabulary · Idioms · Phrasal Verbs
noun phrasal verb
comeback / come back
infinitive come back past simple came back past participle come back
'Comeback' (one word, noun) is a return to success or popularity after a period of difficulty or absence. 'Come back' (two words, verb) means to return to a place or person.
After years away, the singer made an amazing comeback.
Please come back home, we miss you.
Note: 'Comeback kid' is a fixed expression for someone who recovers and succeeds after a hard time or failure.
In the song She plays with the words: sometimes she says 'comeback kid' (the noun — the person who bounced back) and sometimes 'come back, kid' (the verb — a plea: please return). They sound the same but mean different things.
noun
runaway
A person who has escaped or run away from home or from a situation, especially a child or young person.
The police found the runaway at the train station.
As a teenager, he was a runaway for a few months.
Note: 'Runaway' can also be an adjective meaning out of control (a runaway train) or a huge success (a runaway hit).
In the song She calls herself 'the runaway' — the one who wants to escape, even when everyone else sees her as the success story.
phrasal verb
stay out
infinitive stay out past stayed out
regular
To remain away from home until late at night, usually for fun, parties, or nightlife.
We stayed out late dancing on Saturday.
My parents didn't let me stay out late as a kid.
Note: Built from 'stay out' (to not come home) + 'late'. In the song it's hyphenated and used as a noun-like label: 'the stay-out-late', the same trick as 'a know-it-all' or 'a good-for-nothing'.
In the song 'I'm the stay-out-late' turns a habit into an identity: she's the kind of restless person who goes out and doesn't come home early — reinforcing the 'runaway' image.
phrasal verb
look back
infinitive look back past looked back
regular
To turn your head to see what is behind you (literal); or to think about the past and remember it (figurative).
She looked back to check if the door was closed.
When I look back, I realize how much I've learned.
Note: Useful expression: 'never look back' = to move forward without regret. Don't confuse with 'look forward to' (to feel excited about the future).
In the song 'Don't look back, watch me run away' plays with both meanings at once: don't physically turn to watch her leave, and don't get stuck living in the past. It fits the song's push-and-pull between the old neighborhood and the urge to escape forward.
phrasal verb
slip away
infinitive slip away past slipped away
regular
To leave quietly or gradually, often without being noticed; also, for something to slowly disappear or be lost.
She slipped away from the party before anyone noticed.
Don't let this chance slip away.
In the song 'Don't let me slip away' means 'don't let me quietly disappear or escape' — she's asking her family to hold on to her.
noun
turnaround
A complete change from a bad situation to a good one.
The company's turnaround surprised everyone.
His life was a real turnaround after he found a job.
Note: As a phrasal verb it splits: to 'turn around' can be literal (turn your body) or mean to improve a bad situation.
In the song 'Kid came back, a real turnaround' is what others say about her — they see her return as a total change for the better.
phrasal verb
look away
infinitive look away past looked away
regular
To turn your eyes away from someone or something, so that you are no longer looking at it; often because you feel uncomfortable, embarrassed, or ashamed.
The image was so sad that I had to look away.
He looked away when she caught him staring.
Note: It often suggests avoiding eye contact on purpose, sometimes to hide an emotion.
In the song 'See me look away' and 'then look away' show her avoiding the others' eyes — she can't hold the gaze of the people who admire her, because she doesn't feel like the success story they see.
verb
recover / recovering
infinitive recover past recovered
regular
To get better after an illness, injury, or difficult time; to return to a normal state.
It took her months to recover from the surgery.
He is still recovering from the breakup.
Note: 'Recovering' often describes someone in the ongoing process of healing, including from addiction (a recovering alcoholic).
In the song 'I'm recovering' suggests she is still healing — not fully better yet, which is why she feels the urge to run.
Watch
"Seventeen"
2019 · Remind me tomorrowAbout the song
The lyrics see Van Etten musing about her past seventeen-year-old self, offering a perspective on the tribulations of life, and how people can grow, change, and ultimately find their place in the world.
Van Etten on a Billboard interview
“Seventeen” just feels like my New York song. This is talking about living somewhere long enough to see the changes that I have. I’ve been here fifteen years. To be like, chasing neighborhoods constantly, walking down the street and seeing a place that’s closed that I used to hang out in, in a neighborhood you can no longer afford, but then you see kids younger than you moving in, things like that, constantly – it’s just the New York Story.
Vocabulary · Idioms · Phrasal Verbs
adverb adjective noun
downtown
The central part of a city, especially its main area of shops, business and nightlife. Can mean 'to/in the city centre' (adverb), 'of the city centre' (adjective), or 'the city centre' itself (noun).
Let's go downtown tonight.
They live in a downtown apartment.
Note: Mostly American English (British English uses 'city centre' or 'go into town'). As an adverb it takes no preposition: 'go downtown', not 'go to downtown' — like 'go home'.
In the song 'Downtown hotspot' describes a trendy place in the city centre — the vibrant New York nightlife she used to enjoy at seventeen. It sets the nostalgic scene of her younger, freer days.
adverb adjective
halfway
At the middle point between two places (in space) or at the middle of a process or period (in time). From half + way.
We stopped halfway up the hill to rest.
I'm halfway through the book.
Note: Usually followed by a direction word: halfway up / down / through / across / between. Idiom: 'meet someone halfway' = to compromise.
In the song The song uses it two ways: 'halfway up the street' is literal (the spot's location), but 'halfway through this life' is figurative — she's at the midpoint of her life, looking back.
preposition
beneath
Under or below something. A more formal, literary synonym of 'under'. Also used figuratively to mean 'not good enough for someone' or 'below someone's dignity'.
We rested beneath a tall tree.
He felt that the task was beneath him.
Note: More formal than 'under' (the everyday word) and 'below'. Common in poetry and songs. For speaking, 'under' is the safe everyday choice.
In the song 'Down beneath the ashes and the stone' is a dark, buried image — the past sealed under ashes and rock. Choosing 'beneath' over 'under' gives the line a solemn, almost epitaph-like weight.
noun
hotspot
A popular, lively place that many people go to (a bar, club, area).
That bar is the new hotspot downtown.
Note: Don't confuse it with 'hotshot' (a person): a hotspot is a PLACE.
In the song The 'hotspot' is the cool place she used to go — which, as time passes, blurs into the 'hotshot' (the cocky young person who now hangs around).
noun
hotshot
A person who is (or thinks they are) very skilled, important, or successful.
He acts like a hotshot since he got promoted.
Note: Sounds like 'hotspot' but is very different: a hotshot is a PERSON, and it's often slightly mocking.
In the song She plays with the two words: the 'hotspot' (the place) becomes the 'hotshot' (the person) — place and person blur together as time passes.
idiom
led astray (lead astray)
infinitive lead astray past led astray
To be guided in the wrong direction; to be influenced into making mistakes or behaving badly.
He was led astray by the wrong group of friends.
Bad advice can lead you astray.
Note: 'Astray' means off the right path. Base form: lead astray; past form: led astray.
In the song 'Constantly being led astray' describes the young person making the same wrong turns she once made.
phrasal verb idiom
used to
infinitive used to past used to
regular
Used to talk about something that happened regularly or was true in the past, but is not true anymore.
I used to live in Madrid.
She used to play the piano every day.
Note: Structure: used to + base verb. In questions/negatives the 'd' disappears: Did you use to...? / I didn't use to...
In the song 'I used to be seventeen, I used to be free' is the heart of the song — a life and a freedom that no longer exist.
verb
crumble
infinitive crumble past crumbled
regular
To break into small pieces; or, for something (a plan, a feeling, a person) to fall apart slowly.
The old wall is starting to crumble.
His confidence crumbled after the failure.
Note: Can be literal (bread, stone) or emotional (hopes, resolve). The dessert 'crumble' comes from the same word.
In the song 'You'll crumble it up just to see' suggests the young person destroying something carelessly, the way the young test and break things without thinking.
adjective
carefree
Free from worry, anxiety, or responsibility; relaxed and happy.
They spent a carefree summer by the sea.
Children are usually carefree.
Note: A compound adjective: care + free = 'free from care (worry)'. Don't confuse with 'careless', which means not paying attention.
In the song 'Think you're so carefree' is gently ironic — the young person feels untouchable, just as she once did before life caught up with her.
noun
shadow
The dark shape made when something blocks the light; figuratively, something that follows you closely or a darker side of yourself.
The tree cast a long shadow on the grass.
His past followed him like a shadow.
In the song The 'shadow' is her younger self following her — 'who's my shadow?' mixes up who is following whom, blurring her past and present identities.
Watch
"Afterlife"
2026 · Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment TheoryAbout the song
Last year she joined her backing band in the studio and they released a new album as Sharon Van Etten and The Attachment Theory.
From an interview in The Guardian
There was a woman named Ariel who was very sick. She had a lot of breathing issues and was waiting for a lung transplant. She came to multiple shows and befriended me and my bandmates. I remember we were in Charlottesville, Virginia, and I saw her in the street with a friend. They were in tears, telling me how much our music meant to them, and how it helped Ariel through all her hospital stays and every time she had to do her breathing exercises. Her parents would help her come to all of our concerts and she was always upfront. I would sing Seventeen to her at the end of the show.
We stayed in touch over the years and we had one last talk on Zoom before she decided to go into hospice care. It was really, really intense. She was scared, but also really at peace. She had a profound effect on all our lives. I wrote Afterlife around the time she died.
Vocabulary · Idioms · Phrasal Verbs
noun
afterlife
Life after death; the existence (in some beliefs) that continues after a person dies.
Many religions describe an afterlife.
She wondered if there was an afterlife.
Note: A compound noun: after + life. Usually used with 'the': the afterlife.
In the song The 'afterlife' is partly literal, but mostly a metaphor: asking 'will I be okay in the afterlife?' is really asking 'am I living my life right? Will I be fine in the end?'
idiom
see the light
To suddenly understand something or realize the truth after not understanding it before.
After years of stress, he finally saw the light and quit his job.
I tried to explain it many times before she saw the light.
Note: Don't read it literally — it means to understand or be convinced, not to look at a lamp.
In the song 'Made me see the light' means something inside her made her finally understand and find clarity.
idiom
turn inside out
To turn something so the inside faces out; figuratively, to change or affect someone so deeply that they feel completely transformed or shaken.
The wind turned my umbrella inside out.
Grief turned her inside out.
Note: Literal use is about clothes or objects; the figurative use is about strong emotional change.
In the song 'All these expectations turned me inside out' means the pressure of others' expectations changed and exhausted her completely.
phrasal verb
come home
come home
To return to your house; figuratively, to return to a place or state where you feel you truly belong and at peace.
I can't wait to come home after this long trip.
Singing again felt like coming home.
Note: The figurative sense — 'returning to yourself' or to peace — is common in songs and poetry.
In the song 'Does it feel like coming home?' uses the deeper meaning: not just a house, but finding peace and feeling like yourself again.
Watch
stay tuned-in -- see ya on the next one.
/g 13/06/26