Customer Reviews

Beautiful Creature/Juliana's Pony: Total System Failure

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

You would be short changing yourself, literally and figuratively, by buying only one of Juliana Hatfield's new albums or getting each separately. Literally, because you can save around $7 picking up the box set (containing both albums) and get a 2-track bonus disc with screen saver and letter. Figuratively, because although it can be said that BEAUTIFUL CREATURE represents the light side of Juliana while TOTAL SYSTEM FAILURE the heavy side, this is an oversimplification. The slightly off-center vocal/acoustic harmonies which made me a Juliana fan early on are present on "Noblesse Oblige." A heavy rocker, "Easy Way Out," might could easily have fit in with the tunes on TOTAL SYSTEM FAILURE. There are abundant pop tunes on BEAUTIFUL CREATURE. "Close Your Eyes" would be my choice for a hit single. "Somebody is Waiting" reminds me of the Beatles and America. And "Might Be in Love" is very catchy. Juliana's two musical sides are somewhat similar to Neil Young's, although she hasn't ventured into country rock yet. The bonus disc contains an interesting cover of the Police's "Every Breath You Take," so pick up this limited edition box set while it's still available.

I ordered the double album and bought tickets for Juliana's show in San Francisco before hearing a single riff on any one of the singles.

I was pleasantly surprised when I slipped in the bonus disk and heard a promising new song (When you Loved Me) with a cover of the Police's Every Breath You Take, which I saw her perform live at the Brattle Theater in Cambridge a couple years ago. (I read somewhere that Juliana used to play in a high school band with an affinity for Police tunes.)

But I was immediately disappointed with Total System Failure. It's not just that the tunes are heavy rockers. (I love Sleater-Kinney, a punk band from Olympia that can turn up the volume.) And I liked Bed, Juliana's last album, which features plenty of heavy guitar playing. Trouble here is the production is messy. Riddled with feedback. Juliana's voice sounds flat. The band is unremarkable. (My sister complained after the hearing the CD: "This person can't sing.) I still liked a few of the tunes: Housboy, My Protgee, The Victim (the lyrics are a hoot: "Threw the baby in the trash. No one said I can't do that.") and 10-foot pole. Die-hard fans will still want it. But casual listeners can skip it.

Most Juliana fans, however, will probably like the other disc in the set, Beautiful Creature. It reminds me of her pre-Bed hits, emphasizing voice over feedback. But Juliana's 30 now, and the songs are more mature both musically and lyrically. Cool Rock Boy and Choose Drugs are especially catchy. It might be too late for Juliana to make it back on the radio and the charts (We're living in the Age of Britney.) But there is plenty here to like.

It's a cliche when a great or not so great artist releases a double-album to say "it would have made a great single album had they paired it down." Juliana Hatfield is truly a great artist - I can't think of a singer/songwriter I've enjoyed more in the last ten years - but these albums aren't her best work. Beautiful Creatures is the better of the two, with about eight of the ultra-hooky, ultra-intelligent songs which makes her so endearing. The rest seem unfinished or are a little flat. Total Systems Failure is less successful: with the exception of "My Protege," "Ten Foot Pole" and a couple of swell punky numbers, these songs plod more than they rock. A must for fans, but not what I would play to convince the unconverted.

I bought this because I wanted some of that relaxed Juliana feel. Imagine my surprise when I put on disc two (first of course). This CD is what it feels like when you've had a really, really (think worst in decades) bad day. When it feels like if someone touches you, you will explode with rage. I reminds me a great deal of Husker Du's "Zen Arcade" and more recently Elastica's "Menace".... I think Juliana's lyrics work here. I was struck by how much they resemble Exene Cervenka's. All of this in mind this sound is not at all derivitive. Juliana certainly stands alone.

The first CD is possibly the most beautiful CD I've heard since "Dusty in Memphis". Juliana's moved away from that "Hey Babe" sound. And with the exception of "Choose Drugs" I haven't noticed a bit of her Evan-Dando-broke-my-heart whine. This is a beautiful relaxing CD.

I must admit that I haven't listened to Juliana for years, but now it's like running into an old friend and realizing how much you really loved them.

I have liked Juliana Hatfield for a long time and was always looking for a reason to love her. These two CDs are exactly what I was looking for. Both CDs are distinct and beautifully done. The extra CD with the superb Police cover makes this set worth all the money in the world. Amazon is the last place I could find this 3 CD set anywhere on the net so I beg you to buy it now before Amazon sells out also. Take care.

I heard Juliana Hatfield say in an interview a few years ago that she likes doing acoustic shows when it's just her and a guitar, but then also likes doing "the other thing" with a band - "I wanna do both". She's certainly always had a stark heavy/soft dichotomy in her music and this dual release deliberately exaggerates it. One could wonder: is this is some sort of experiment, to split apart and isolate her two musical halves, trying to somehow reinvent herself in the process? In some ways it's not too different to her previous stuff, just exploring those two heavy/soft extremes further, heaping you with lots of wistful ohhhh's and ahhhh's on one disc, and then lots of belting grunge on the other. It's an interesting idea and I'm still wondering which side of her music I like best. Maybe I'm simply like all those who got hooked with Juliana's more introspective little-girl-lost voice on "Hey Babe" way back in '92 than the later heavier stuff, 'cause it seems to be Beautiful Creature that is spinning more frequently in the CD player than Total System Failure at the moment, I seem to be getting more out of her quieter twinkling of the acoustic, more than just an essence of Frente in there (maybe it's just due to the mood these CDs have found me in?) Although I really get into the grunge-kick of Juliana's heavy stuff too (eg: Only Everything, Bed, etc) and do quite like Total System Failure, some of the feedback-strewn songs remind me a little Nirvana's "Bleach" in rawness, bashing out "balls" and angst. The lyrics keep it at street-level though, give out the familiar no-crap Juliana attitude. I bet it'll sound awesome live. The box set is a good deal - both albums for less, plus a CD single with a catchy cover of Every Breath You Take. That's tons of songs in one release.

Juliana's Pony-Total System Failure: This a new side of Juliana. One that is totally torqued off and gonna let you know it. The lyrics seem really spiteful and vindinctive. She sings about hitting people in their cars, about parents hitting kids, about throwing your kid away in the trash and much more. It is unsettling in a way. From a musical perspective this album sounds similar to Veruca Salt with a lot more distortion.

Beautiful Creature: This is the typical Juliana CD. Good old rock music with catchy vocals and clever hooks. The lyrics are lighter as they only deal with love and not death. Nice.

Also included is a cover of the Police's 'Every Breath You Take', which was rather nice.

I wanted to say four stars but the inclusion of Total System Failure tends to bring this down a notch.

What happened? Not that I don't love this box set, particularly "total system failure"....but it's so hard, I do enjoy it, it is different from the usual. It's a classic guy-hating-post-teen-angst-filled collection of beautiful songs...yet, somewhat disturbing lyrics.

Somehow over the course of six years Juliana Hatfield's vocals have deteriorated. Whereas she was a confident, distinctive lead singer on Only Everything and Become What You Are, on both Beautiful Creature and Total System Failure she sounds unsure, and her songwriting is a ghost of its former, catchy, occasionally ingenious self.

Beautiful Creature, at least, is a three-star album, unremarkable but sometimes tuneful, relaxed arrangements bedding Juliana's somewhat laid back performances. It doesn't sound all that different from any other acoustic guitar-strumming female singer out there (eg. Karen Peris or Dayna Manning), but blandly pleasant. Total System Failure, on the other hand, should just have the word "System" removed from its title. While Juliana used to temper her harsher guitar performances with melody and hooks, on Total System Failure it's complete ineptitude all around: A bad, flat band; guitars that resemble noise instead of musical instruments; faceless songs with no coherent structure or build to speak of. I wouldn't call this hard rock or punk -- it lacks the energy. And it's definitely not pop or noise-pop, because it doesn't have the hooks. All in all, a piece of trash.

I can't help but wish Juliana would get back on track one of these days. In her heyday she was a force to be reckoned with in the alternative-music scene. For six years straight, though, it's as though she's lost touch with her songwriting muse.