Sharon Van Etten has unveiled her take on “Femme Fatale” by The Velvet Underground and Nico with some help from Angel Olsen. Stream it below.
“Here she comes/ You better watch your step/ She’s going to break your heart in two/ It’s true/ It’s not hard to realize/ Just look into her false colored eyes/ She builds you up to just put you down/ What a clown,” the indie rock mainstay warns, slowing the original arrangement into a funereal meditation on the manipulative minx at the track’s center, with none other than Olsen providing backing vocals.
Van Etten’s cover is just the latest sneak peek off I’ll Be Your Mirror: A Tribute to the Velvet Underground & Nico, the forthcoming tribute album to the iconic art rock band’s 1967 debut LP with their German chanteuse. Due out September 24th (that’s next Friday!) via Verve Records, the compilation also features contributions from the likes of Iggy Pop and Matt Sweeney (“European Son”), Courtney Barnett (“I’ll Be Your Mirror”), Matt Berninger (“I’m Waiting for the Man”), and more.
Last month, Van Etten teamed up with Olsen to debut an acoustic version their new collaboration “Like I Used To” on Jimmy Kimmel Live!. She also joined Beck onstage at the Newport Folk Fest along with Jack Antonoff and Fred Armisen, and provided a guest feature on Big Red Machine’s latest star-studded album How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last?
Meanwhile, fans can get a more in-depth look at The Velvet Underground on October 15th thanks to Todd Haynes’ eponymous documentary of the band, the first trailer for which dropped at the end of last month.