Juliana Hatfield

Hatfield has made an impressive career out of setting her personal experiences to music, and In Exile Deo is no exception. Listening is a bit like eavesdropping on your older sibling's phone conversations, where confessions and desires are laid out with such emotional starkness it's hard not get swept up in the drama.

A decade after she began her descent from alt-rock It girl to respected cult artist, Hatfield
sounds content to turn out wistful songwriter-with-backup fare that rocks lightly and stays
bright around the corners. Her first solo album in four years finds her toning down her
love-as-war introspection and keeping her laid-back but memorable melodies up front.