Customer Reviews

In Exile Deo

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a very strong release. Musically, it's interesting and enjoyable as always but nothing terribly new compared to her previous stuff. But the lyrics are more bitingly honest than anything she's done before. It's the same tales of woe, laced with a bit of hope, but this time it really hits the mark.

I still like her old stuff but she's grown up and this release, more than any other, shows that. This constant change is interesting enough for her music to have held my attention for the past 15+ years. It's nice that this release doesn't break that trend.

As one who has always loved Juliana's music and knows all her albums well, one caveat before I add to In Exile Deo's well-deserved kudos. If you have heard little or none of her work, I would first recommend one or more of her earlier CD's for some perspective, all filled with wonderfully diverse alterna-pop-rock songs showcasing her somewhat quirky, engaging style, youthful intensity and angst. Excluding In Exile Deo for the moment, which I would put somewhere near the top, here's how I would rate her albums first to last, though these are close calls... Only Everything('95), Beautiful Creature/Total System Failure(simultaneous 2000 release), Become What You Are('93) and the 6 song EP Please Do Not Disturb('97) will all make you a fan for sure. Bed ('98), while IMO less memorable overall, does has a few superb cuts. I would also highly recommend 2001's God Bless The Blake Babies -- her warmly relaxed/cool renunion CD with her old bandmates.

That said, there is so much to love about In Exile Deo! I don't see how an earlier reviewer could possibly diss the first two songs. The opening cut is a terrific kick-ass rocker where -- sick and tired of no (lasting) love & affection in her life -- she is determined to simply have fun playing with anyone who comes along that strikes her fancy. Coming from someone who has often lamented her shyness, it's fun to hear her loosen up and blow away that impression, though I don't think we have to worry too much about our socially shy heroine becoming a total hedonist. The song's title/main refrain is Get In Line (..I'm giving myself away. :-) ..it's hard, fast, propulsive and catchy with killer guitar work from Juliana!

The next song offers up further proof she is the most underated guitarist on the planet. Jamie's in Town (about needing to avoid this guy at any cost) is also catchy, but quite different with a kind of eerie, swinging, loping bass line and acoustic rhythm guitar delightfully adorned with at least 3 different kinds of electric guitar which drop in 'n out like so much chocolate, honey and spice. Very Cool Song.

I will make brief too much more I would like to mention. As with all her albums, a few muscially ordinary ditties here 'n there, but most are inspired, beautiful, cool creations, always with that wonderfully unique, emotionally honest voice. Heart always on her sleeve, especially in the lovely, tender, wistful ballads. And hints she is learning to let go of her pain and be happy more often in the breezy, infectious song Sunshine. :-)

Catch her on tour now while you can... Check out this great SXSW Live Concert Review: "Juliana Hatfield's set was dominated by lots of impressive new material, most of which she said will appear on her forthcoming album In Exile Deo. Hatfield's guitar-playing prowess has to be seen to be appreciated. While no great technician, she's developed an unmistakable style that simultaneously draws on the throaty riffs of The Rolling Stones' Keith Richards, the rhythmic jangle of The Velvet Underground's Sterling Morrison and the controlled feedback/distortion of Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore. It's a tasty and effective combination. And Juliana's current backing band seems to be more in touch with her quirky style than any group she's been a member of since the Blake Babies."

I'd give it 4.5 stars if I could. (5 is reserved for monumental works like "Who's Next".) But I really, really like this record. This is the most expansive, accessible work she's done since "Only Everything." Her recent outings with Some Girls show here in the melodic, upbeat nature of a lot of these songs. But where Some Girls' "Feel It" felt kind of restrained and subdued, "In Exile Deo" stretches its legs more. It rocks harder in places, with songs like "Get In Line"; gets intimate, with "Tomorrow Never Comes"; and even includes the most fun song Juliana's ever recorded, "Sunshine". This song, hey, the whole record is great for cruising down the highway on a summer day. There's only one throwaway song, "Dirty Dog", which sounds like a B-side from an old INXS album.

I give it 5 stars because it's as good as anything she has done in her long career.The highs and lows are all there but with a fresh touch to the overall sound . "Sunshine" is a rocker and one of my favorites(and one of her own favorites from the cd as well) The cd does not break much new ground but her voice is better than ever.She stated that she worked really hard with her voice during this one ...and it shows! .I'm happy with Juliana's music in the way she likes to make it. straight ahead true ,honest pop-rock.In a recient interview she mentions that she has more confidence in her work and in her self than ever before, and this cd mirrors that confidence in the songs
A must-have for any Juliana Hatfield fan's collection.

Listening to this CD, it's obvious Juliana has dedicated her life to her music. She is so incredibly honest - a true artist in every way. This is very rare. After so many years (I was a fan from the very start) she's found a way to let the energy just flow out, unobstructed. Art is so much bigger than the people beneath it and this CD proves that - it has it's own pulse, it's own message and meaning, it's own beautiful existense. I think the music teaches her as it does us, how to live honestly, how to deal with whatever comes. Juliana should be proud and in awe of her creation - truly amazing work.

In 2000, Juliana Hatfield released two albums that showed drastically different facets of her musical personality-- the aggressive "Total System Failure" and the introspective "Beautiful Creature". In the period intervening, she assembled a "best-of" collection with a number of unreleased tracks from recent sessions ("Gold Stars") and recorded an album with a power trio (Some Girls), all of which caused a four year gap between records. When 2004's "In Exile Deo" arrived, my expectations were rather high.

The good new is, by and large, Hatfield did not disappoint.

Opening with a great driving rock song with an aggressive guitar line ("Get In Line"), the album pretty much rides through on this vein the whole way through. Moving between sort of low-fi mid-tempo alt-rock ("Jamie's in Town", "Because We Love You"), superb bright pop a la Some Girls ("Tourist", "Sunshine"), and an explosive blues-based rock (standou tracks "Forever" and "Dirty Dog") with one jaw dropping ballad along the way (Dot Allison cover "Tomorrow Never Comes"), the album is quite a ride. Hatfield's guitar playing is as powerful as ever, check the blistering solo on the aformentioned "Forever", and certainly her arrangements maintain their cleverness with great use of organs and vocal harmonies on cuts like "Tourist" and "Don't Let Me Down". But most noticable is how confident and self-assured her vocal is, even in her extreme upper register as on "Tomorrow Never Comes". Hatfield's voice can be thin and reedy ("girlish"), but she delivers with such strength that it works well. The only disappointment for me is in fact closer "My Enemy" which just feels like it drags and drones endlessly.

All in all, a great album, not quite as brilliant as some of her other work (2000's "Beautiful Creature" and 1994's "Become What You Are" come immediately to mind), but still an awfully good record. Recommended.

These days I could take or leave Juliana's soft sound. I prefer her rocking out loud-n-dirty because, despite any guitar hero riffs or sarcastic sneer, she's always undeniably feminine too. Why can't fans accept a female rocker? Why does she have to slow down to become some cute vulnerable waif to be accepted? This latest solo album gives me mixed feelings. I read reviews here lauding the slower songs, songs I could take or leave, meanwhile they're ripping on the heavier songs that I actually prefer. My first impressions are that "In Exile Deo" has a great fast-moving opener, "Get In Line". From there it settles back into fairly good driving music. "Dirty Dog" and "Because We Love You" kinda rock out, sort of, and are to my liking. But there's a lot of slower stuff such as "Tomorrow Never Comes", way too saccharin for me with curly-sweet violin and hushing vulnerable girly vocals. I presume this overall softer sound has to do with working solo without any band, just with a guitar. Sounds more Sheryl Crow-ish than ever in some places, eg: "Some Rainy Sunday", "Forever", although "Sunshine" has traces of the old Blake Babies sound. Okay, I'm still getting my head around this album, it's early days. Thus far, compared to her previous albums, it lacks an intangible element. Not enough of the coy irony of "Bed" or something. I'm not as inspired to hit that repeat button. Maybe some song choices were a tad conservative and self-conscious, but perhaps that's just my taste since I prefer her loud-n-dirty sounds. It might become a grower after several more listens. And I really hate over-criticising honest and unpretentious music, which this certainly is. Juliana's music usually comes from the heart and that always makes it worth the money.

juliana hatfield has always been an artist that i love but i will admitt her last cds of all new material were scattered at best. not so with the new release. i have had the pleasure of owning the cd since the 27th of april and it's awesome. easily capable of being the best alt/rock cd of the year so far. Abra Moore's Everything Changed is the best though. anyway back to juliana the opening track get in line is so propulsive in sound that it sets the mood and tone for what is to come on the rest of the cd. get in line's gutiar just rings through and sounds so amazing. i love the drums and the bass in that song too. jamie's in town is another stunner. from the guitars to the bass it just blows you away. there are several stunners on here. and several songs that could be big on radio. like touris which i love. my fav songs are forever, for it's amazing guitar solo in the middle, and my enemey with it's amazing sing along ending and crushing guitar. juliana has come back in the very best of form. my bf bought me Beautiful creature for my birthday 4 years ago and i was so suprised. i was already into her then but i got into her moreb because of that. thanks juliana for giving me another summer of excellent music to sing to.

I've been a fan of Juliana since 1995. This new cd is definitely her best since "Only Everything" and it's bound to become my favorite Juliana cd with "Hey Babe". Highlights for me are : Tourist, Tommorow Never Comes, Forever, Singing In The Shower, and Don't Let Me Down. Thank you Juliana.

The music on "In Exile Deo " isn't as good as on "Beautiful Creature", but lyrically it may be her best work, or at least her most personal. It's hard to see how a previous reviewer ("A total 'pop' album") could have thought that Juliana was "too happy" when making this - song after song describes deep regret, lost opportunities, destructive addictions, and an inability to sustain intimate relationships. But the beauty of Juliana's music has always been the juxtaposition of angry and despairing words with lovely melodies and that sweet voice. It feels as if music is the only way that Juliana can truly express herself, and here she offers up her soul for all to see. The occasional weak note and girlish "yeah" only enhance the impression that this is a real, flawed person being honest with her audience (which doesn't sound "poppy" to me).
While this isn't my favorite CD of hers, it is certainly enjoyable musically. Like all of her albums, it contains some uninspired tunes but also many glorious moments. Anyone who likes her later work or is curious to know more about her inner life should check it out.