POP/ROCK

Sharon Van Etten, "Are We There"

(Jagjaguwar)

Van Etten sings simple love songs that are anything but simple. On her fourth and best album, the North Jersey native songwriter teams with veteran producer Stewart Lerman and collaborates with a cast of musical helpmates to craft a set of 11 wounded, openhearted songs that soar with heightened emotional intensity. Van Etten's voice sweeps you up in its richly luxurious tone, and here she varies and refines her approach.

The quietly hypnotic "Our Love" sneaks in lyrics like "I'm reliving my own hell." The majestically wounded "Your Love Is Killing Me" is enacted on a mythic plane akin to epic heartbreak songs such as Lucinda Williams' "I Changed the Locks." And the supervulnerable "You Know Me Well" and "Break Me" make the search for "your own true self" seem an operatic matter of life and death.

Van Etten performs July 16 at First Avenue in Minneapolis.

Dan DeLuca, Philadelphia Inquirer

Cher Lloyd, “Sorry I’m Late”

Cher Lloyd, "Sorry, I'm Late" (Epic)

Lloyd arrived in America in 2012, a brash pop-star-in-training discovered on the British version of "X Factor" by Simon Cowell. On her sophomore album, Lloyd, 20, has clearly grown up, getting married to boyfriend Craig Monk and splitting from Cowell's label.

Her single "I Wish," featuring T.I., is the bridge from her first album, still sassy and slightly unpredictable over a '70s-styled beat.

The sleek, emotional, Kelly Clarkson-influenced midtempo ballad "Sirens" is another nice surprise, showing a more serious side. Unfortunately, most of "Sorry" doesn't hold up. It's well crafted, but devoid of personality — a shame, considering Lloyd has such a winning one.

Glenn Gamboa, Newsday