{{Use American English|date=March 2019}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2019}} {{Infobox album | name = Are We There | type = studio | artist = Sharon Van Etten | cover = AreWeThere.jpg | alt = A black-and-white image of a seated woman in sunglasses looking out the open window of a moving car. Handwritten text underneath reads "Are We There" on the bottom left and "Sharon Van Etten" on the bottom right. | released = {{start date|2014|05|27}} | recorded = | studio = *Hobo Sound<br />{{small|(Weehawken, New Jersey, United States)}} *Electric Lady<br />{{small|(New York City, New York, United States)}} | genre = {{hlist|Indie rock|folk rock|soul<ref name= "Pitchfork Staff 2019">{{cite web|last= Pitchfork Staff |title= The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s |website= Pitchfork |date= October 8, 2019|url= https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-200-best-albums-of-the-2010s/|quote= Her fourth album, ''Are We There'', was the first to rise from classic soul more than indie rock...|accessdate= May 3, 2023}}</ref>}} | length = {{Duration|m=47|s=03}} | label = Jagjaguwar | producer = {{hlist|Sharon Van Etten|Stewart Lerman}} | prev_title = Tramp | prev_year = 2012 | next_title = I Don't Want to Let You Down | next_year = 2015 | misc = {{Singles | name = Are We There | type = studio | single1 = Taking Chances | single1date = March 4, 2014 | single2 = Every Time The Sun Comes Up | single2date = May 13, 2014 | single3 = Our Love | single3date = July 13, 2014 | single4 = Your Love Is Killing Me | single4date = October 28, 2014 }} }} '''''Are We There''''' is the fourth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Sharon Van Etten. It was released on May 27, 2014 via Jagjaguwar.<ref name="am"/>
==Packaging== Of the lack of a question mark in the album's title, Van Etten said it was "… open-ended, I ask myself that question all the time, for my work, for my love, even for my friends. It's just really good to check in with yourself and it's a play on words, about touring and about travelling, being in transition."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://exclaim.ca/News/sharon_van_etten_explains_open-ended_nature_of_are_we_there|title=Sharon Van Etten Explains the Open-Ended Nature of 'Are We There'|work=Exclaim!|publisher=1059434 Ontario|last=Lau|first=Melody|date=May 6, 2014|access-date=October 5, 2014}}</ref>
==Reception== {{Music ratings | ADM = 8.3/10<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.anydecentmusic.com/review/6414/Sharon-Van-Etten-Are-We-There.aspx|title=Are We There by Sharon Van Etten reviews|work=AnyDecentMusic?|access-date=December 18, 2019}}</ref> | MC = 86/100<ref name="mc">{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/are-we-there/sharon-van-etten|title=Reviews for Are We There by Sharon Van Etten|work=Metacritic|publisher=CBS Interactive|access-date=December 1, 2014}}</ref> | rev1 = AllMusic | rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="am">{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/are-we-there-mw0002627927|title=Are We There – Sharon Van Etten|work=AllMusic|publisher=RhythmOne|last1=Thomas|first1=Fred|access-date=May 26, 2014}}</ref> | rev2 = ''The A.V. Club'' | rev2Score = A−<ref name="av">{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/sharon-van-etten-unleashes-an-epic-that-s-punishing-in-1798180559|title=Sharon Van Etten unleashes an epic that's punishing—in a good way|work=The A.V. Club|publisher=The Onion|last=St. James|first=Emily|date=May 27, 2014|access-date=December 9, 2015}}</ref> | rev3 = ''Chicago Tribune'' | rev3Score = {{Rating|3.5|4}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-xpm-2014-05-23-sc-ent-0523-music-sharon-van-etten-neil-young-revi-20140523-story.html|title=Sharon Van Etten tucks turmoil inside melodies|work=Chicago Tribune|publisher=Tribune Publishing|last=Kot|first=Greg|author-link=Greg Kot|date=May 23, 2014|access-date=December 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151023165105/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2014-05-23/entertainment/sc-ent-0523-music-sharon-van-etten-neil-young-revi-20140523_1_sharon-van-etten-melodies-guitar|archive-date=October 23, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> | rev4 = ''The Guardian'' | rev4score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="gdn">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/may/22/sharon-van-etten-are-we-there-review|title=Sharon Van Etten: Are We There review – breathtaking lyrics, hit-and-miss songs|work=The Guardian|last=Jonze|first=Tim|date=May 22, 2014|access-date=December 9, 2015}}</ref> | rev5 = ''The Independent'' | rev5score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-reviews-neil-young-royksopp-robyn-sharon-van-etten-the-secret-sisters-9424829.html|title=Album reviews: Neil Young, Royksopp & Robyn, Sharon Van Etten, The Secret Sisters|work=The Independent|publisher=Independent Print|last1=Coleman|first1=Nick|last2=Williams|first2=Holly|last3=Harley|first3=Kevin|last4=Richman|first4=Simmy|date=May 23, 2014|access-date=December 9, 2015}}</ref> | rev6 = ''NME'' | rev6Score = 8/10<ref name="nme">{{cite journal|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/sharon-van-etten/15326|title=Sharon Van Etten – 'Are We There'|journal=NME|publisher=TI Media|last=Traynor|first=Cian|date=May 23, 2014|access-date=December 9, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141127063332/http://www.nme.com/reviews/sharon-van-etten/15326|archive-date=November 27, 2014}}</ref> | rev7 = ''Pitchfork'' | rev7score = 8.2/10<ref name="p4k">{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/19384-sharon-van-etten-are-we-there/|title=Sharon Van Etten: Are We There|work=Pitchfork|publisher=Condé Nast|last=Deusner|first=Stephen M.|date=May 27, 2014|access-date=May 27, 2014}}</ref> | rev8 = ''Q'' | rev8score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite journal|title=Sharon Van Etten: Are We There|journal=Q|publisher=Bauer Media Group|issue=336|date=July 2014|page=117}}</ref> | rev9 = ''Rolling Stone'' | rev9Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="rs">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/are-we-there-20140523|title=Are We There|magazine=Rolling Stone|publisher=Penske Media Corporation|last=Hermes|first=Will|author-link=Will Hermes|date=June 5, 2014|issue=1210|page=73|issn=0035-791X|access-date=May 23, 2014}}</ref> | rev10 = ''Uncut'' | rev10score = 9/10<ref>{{cite journal|title=Sharon Van Etten: Are We There|journal=Uncut|issue=205|date=June 2014|page=70}}</ref> }} Upon its release ''Are We There'' received widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 86, based on 36 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".<ref name="mc" /> Fred Thomas of AllMusic rated ''Are We There'' four-out-of-five stars, in particular praising the album's "inventive arrangements and advances in songwriting", which he referred to as "an undeniable step forward for Van Etten".<ref name="am" /> In ''Rolling Stone'', Will Hermes also rated ''Are We There'' four-out-of-five stars, writing that "like Nick Cave, [Van Etten's] darkness contains multitudes" and calling the album "magnificent" and one "which grows her trademark examinations of romantic decay to cathedral-like scale."<ref name="rs" /> ''The A.V. Club''{{'}}s Emily St. James summarized that "''Are We There'' offers an artist in full command of her voice and her instrument" and called it a "punishing epic of an album, intense and bruised and haunted", ultimately awarding it an A− rating.<ref name="av" />
Pitchfork writer Stephen M. Deusner called ''Are We There'' "the peak of a steady upward trajectory", describing how it was more "self-determined and self-directed" than Van Etten's previous albums, ''Because I Was in Love'' (2009), ''Epic'' (2010) and ''Tramp'' (2012).<ref name="p4k" /> In ''NME'', Cian Traynor made a similar observation, writing that ''Are We There'' is "less jagged and more finessed than its intricately layered predecessor … The songs are slower and spacious enough to keep their clarity intact". Traynor further praised the album's arrangements and Van Etten's emotional delivery, awarding it an eight-out-of-ten rating.<ref name="nme" /> However, writing for ''The Guardian'', Tim Jonze offered a more mixed review criticizing how Van Etten's songwriting on ''Are We There'' "conforms to accomplished but trad indie-rock norm". Jonze did, however, appreciate the album's "unusual harmonies", "orchestral slow build" and referred to "Every Time the Sun Comes Up" as a "stirring closing number" in his three-out-of-five-star review.<ref name="gdn" />
===Accolades=== Due to its high rating of 86 on Metacritic, ''Are We There'' became the fifth-most critically acclaimed album of 2014.{{citation needed|date=March 2019}} In addition, it placed in several year-end lists. The album was placed at number 20 on ''Rolling Stone''{{'}}s list of the "50 Best Albums of 2014." Likewise, ''NME'' placed the album at number 31 on their list, while ''Q'' placed it at number 7.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.albumoftheyear.org/album/13948-sharon-van-etten-are-we-there.php|title=Sharon Van Etten – Are We There – Reviews|work=Album of the Year|access-date=December 1, 2014}}</ref> Jessica Goodman and Ryan Kistobak of ''The Huffington Post'' included the album on their list of 2014's best releases, calling the album "earnest and tragic".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/best-albums-2014_n_6326402|title=The 23 Best Albums of 2014|work=HuffPost|publisher=Verizon Media|last1=Goodman|last2=Kristobak|first1=Jessica|first2=Ryan|date=December 15, 2014|access-date=December 15, 2014}}</ref> In 2019, ''Pitchfork'' ranked ''Are We There'' at number 174 on their list of "The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s"; contributing editor Jayson Greene wrote: "''Are We There'' was a great deepening—of Sharon Van Etten’s emotional range, of the power of her songwriting, and of the potency of her voice."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-200-best-albums-of-the-2010s/|title=The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s|work=Pitchfork|date=8 October 2019|accessdate=9 October 2019}}</ref>
==Track listing== {{Track listing | total_length = 47:03 | title1 = Afraid of Nothing | length1 = 4:05 | title2 = Taking Chances | length2 = 3:50 | title3 = Your Love Is Killing Me | length3 = 6:18 | title4 = Our Love | length4 = 3:53 | title5 = Tarifa | length5 = 4:51 | title6 = I Love You But I'm Lost | length6 = 4:19 | title7 = You Know Me Well | length7 = 4:32 | title8 = Break Me | length8 = 4:01 | title9 = Nothing Will Change | length9 = 3:16 | title10 = I Know | length10 = 3:36 | title11 = Every Time the Sun Comes Up | length11 = 4:23 }}
{{Track listing | headline = Japanese CD digital download<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hostess.co.jp/releases/2014/06/HSE-60187.html|title=Are We There|work=Hostess Entertainment Unlimited|access-date=March 28, 2019|archive-date=March 28, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328224555/http://hostess.co.jp/releases/2014/06/HSE-60187.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> bonus tracks | title1 = Afraid of Nothing | note1 = Demo | title2 = Taking Chances | note2 = Demo | title3 = Break Me | note3 = Demo }}
==Personnel== All personnel credits adapted from ''Are We There''{{'}}s album notes.<ref>{{cite AV media notes|title=Are We There|others=Sharon Van Etten|year=2014|type=Album notes|publisher=Jagjaguwar|id=JAG255}}</ref>
{{col-begin}} {{col-2}} ;Musicians *Sharon Van Etten – vocals {{small|(1–11)}}, guitar {{small|(1–5, 7–9)}}, piano {{small|(1, 4, 6, 7, 10)}}, organ {{small|(2–4, 7, 9)}}, Omnichord {{small|(2, 4, 8, 11)}}, bass {{small|(2)}}, drums {{small|(4, 6–8)}}, synthesizer {{small|(8)}}, claps {{small|(11)}} *David Hartley – bass {{small|(1, 4, 5, 7–9, 11)}}, bass synthesizer {{small|(3)}}, baritone guitar {{small|(3)}}, guitar {{small|(4, 8, 11)}}, backing vocals {{small|(11)}}, claps {{small|(11)}} *Zeke Hutchins – drums {{small|(1–5, 7–9, 11)}}, percussion {{small|(4, 5, 9)}}, backing vocals {{small|(10)}}, claps {{small|(11)}} *Heather Woods Broderick – strings {{small|(1)}}, backing vocals {{small|(1–3, 5–7, 9, 11)}}, electric piano {{small|(7)}} *Jonathan Meiburg – guitar {{small|(1, 4, 5)}}, organ {{small|(4, 5)}}, electric piano {{small|(5)}} *Jacob C. Morris – electric piano {{small|(2)}}, organ {{small|(3, 5)}}, piano {{small|(3, 7)}} *Doug Keith – guitar {{small|(2, 8, 11)}}, bowed guitar {{small|(7)}} *Adam Granduciel – guitar {{small|(4, 11)}}, electric piano {{small|(11)}} *Stewart Lerman – piano {{small|(1)}}, organ {{small|(1, 4)}} *Stuart Bogie – woodwinds {{small|(5, 9)}} *Mickey Free – beats {{small|(2, 4, 8)}} *Mackenzie Scott – backing vocals {{small|(1, 4)}} {{col-2}} ;Musicians ''(continued)'' *Mary Lattimore – harp {{small|(4, 8)}} *Marisa Anderson – guitar {{small|(1)}} *Peter Broderick – strings {{small|(1)}} *Jana Hunter – backing vocals {{small|(2)}} *Little Isidore – backing vocals {{small|(1)}}
;Technical personnel *Sharon Van Etten – production *Stewart Lerman – production, mixing {{small|(1, 5, 7, 9–11)}} *James Frazee – recording *Richard Swift – mixing {{small|(2–4, 6, 8)}}
;Design personnel *Martine Franck – photography *Dusdin Condren – photography {{small|(inner sleeve)}} {{col-end}}
==Charts== {| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |- !scope="col"|Chart (2014) !scope="col"|Peak<br />position |- {{Album chart|Flanders|123|artist=Sharon Van Etten|album=Are We There|accessdate=February 8, 2016|rowheader=true}} |- {{Album chart|Wallonia|164|artist=Sharon Van Etten|album=Are We There|accessdate=February 8, 2016|rowheader=true}} |- {{Album chart|Ireland|30|year=2014|week=22|accessdate=March 28, 2019|rowheader=true}} |- {{Album chart|IrelandIndependent|6|year=2014|week=22|accessdate=March 28, 2019|rowheader=true}} |- {{Album chart|UK2|27|date=20140601|accessdate=March 28, 2019|rowheader=true}} |- {{Album chart|UKIndependent|19|artist=Sharon Van Etten|date=20140622|accessdate=March 28, 2019|rowheader=true}} |- {{Album chart|Billboard200|25|artist=Sharon Van Etten|accessdate=February 8, 2016|rowheader=true}} |- {{Album chart|BillboardAlternative|6|artist=Sharon Van Etten|accessdate=February 8, 2016|rowheader=true}} |- {{Album chart|BillboardRock|7|artist=Sharon Van Etten|accessdate=February 8, 2016|rowheader=true}} |- ! scope="col"| Chart (2015) ! scope="col"| Peak<br />position |- {{Album chart|New Zealand|33|artist=Sharon Van Etten|album=Are We There|accessdate=February 8, 2016|rowheader=true}} |}
==References== {{Reflist|30em}}
==External links== *{{Discogs master|master=690254|name=Are We There|type=album}} *{{MusicBrainz release group|mbid=60cbb40c-1db0-4e5b-81a7-b693a67dff0a|name=Are We There}}
{{Sharon Van Etten|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:2014 albums Category:Albums produced by Stewart Lerman Category:Jagjaguwar albums Category:Sharon Van Etten albums