Become What You Are by Juliana Hatfield

Become What You Are

Available from Amazon
Usually ships within 1-2 business days

Become What You Are

Reader Reviews
Conventional wisdom states that the followup to an artist's debut is lacking when compared to the debut. Usually, that first album consists of songs they've been working on for years, whereas the followup is thrown together in a hurry. Of course, this isn't always the case, particularly with artists emerging from bands. Case in point: Juliana Hatfield's "Become What You Are". Performing with a trio of bassist Dean Fisher and drummer Todd Phillips, with herself handling the guitar duties, Hatfield's sophomore effor does something her debut did not. It lets go of the Blake Babies legacy. Sonically, its as indebted to the Pixies as the jangly pop of the Blake Babies-- loud, in-your-face, overdriven guitars and slicing basslines over which Hatfield confidently delivers her lyrics, giving her voice a resonance it lacked on "Hey Babe". But more to the point, it began the legitimization of Juliana Hatfield as a guitar hero-- it seems so long ago, but in 1994, women didn't appear in guitar magazines as anything more than a novelty, but Hatfield was too good to be denied. This is apparent right from the start, opener "Supermodel" is a slab of punky alternative with a fantastic vocal and clever songwriting. In fact its pretty much this that makes the album what it is, moving from semi-environmentalist jangle pop ("For the Birds") to venomous meditations on homelessness and mental illness-- which in Hatfield's native Boston often go hand-in-hand (moody rumination and album standout "Mabel") to popularity contests (goofy pop song "Spin the Bottle") to Henry Rollins and over sexuality (breezy pop turned heavy alternative monster "President Garfield"). Along the way, there's a dark hit song ("My Sister"), a punk song about gun-toting women ("A Dame With a Rod", which features one of Hatfield's best early guitar solos and a moody closer ("I Got No Idols"). What's fairly incredible is the stunning level of quality on the album-- there's no filler, no stuff clearly pushed by the record company, just all really good material. This album is really essential listening for any alternative fans, its one of the best of the genre and as many of her peers have received mainstream recognition, Hatfield remains unfairly in a cult status, and its downright depressing that this is out of print. Highly recommended.

Back To Top