Juliana Hatfield, October 17, 1998, Fitzgeralds, Houston
This is my third time seeing Juliana live, second in less than a year at Fitzgeralds (see that review). The first thing to note is that this is the way to see a band. Right up front/center, maybe three people deep, during the show, my friend commented that small venues like Fitzgeralds really spoil us for the large shows at places like the Woodlands. I love being up close, watching the guitar techniques and really getting a fell for what is going on onstage. Before the show, I checked out the crowd. The entire first row flanking the stage was more or less estrogen free. But, it was the motliest crew of men I had ever seen assembled in one place. You had the hairy, the shirtless, and the prepubescent all hoping for that fleeting moment of eye contact. Realizing that this was what Juliana had to look forward to for the next 2 hours, for the first time, I did not envy being a rock star.
So forget the crowd, forget that the shirtless guy kept trying to crowd surf only to be dropped to the cement in a nano-second, forget that Juliana threatened his life if he kicked her, forget that it was hot as hell, this was a great show. Juliana Hatfield continues, even at 30, to be a waifish, childlike young woman who can rock hard. She writes and sings songs of complex relationships within the context of melodic pop hooks that tend to stay with you. Probably the most popular tunes of the evening were "My Sister" (even though she doesn't have one) and "Spin the Bottle." Her newest CD, the just released Bed, has received critical acclaim. While I don't have it yet, I plan to run right out and get it. What I heard during the show and with the research I've done on the lyrics, it proves to be an angry yet poignant interpretation of the struggle of men and women, fitting in, getting pissed off... It's the usual things, but it seems that Juliana has had her share of despair. When in "Bad Day" Juliana says "I think I understand what makes a boy a bad man" you tend to believe her. She opened with "You are the Camera" revealing the need to have acceptance reflected in another person. You can't get any more direct than "You are the camera, a reason for living. I need you to need me. I need you to justify my life."
Juliana first broke onto the Boston music scene in the late 80s with the Blake Babies. This band showcased the childlike vocals in what was, at that time, an emergent alternative sound. Juliana dished up one tune from the Blake Babies Sunburn, "Girl in a Box" where she cleverly works in the rhyme "dirty little whore" and "girl next door". The absolute highlight of the evening for me was the first song during the encore had Juliana onstage for a solo of "Ugly" (with a capital U) from her first solo CD "Hey Babe", the only representation from that period. I call it "pulling a Juliana Hatfield" when an artist doesn't play their big hit, which Juliana did again by ignoring not only "Everybody Loves Me But You", but also "I See You" and "Universal Heartbeat". I guess she just wants to move forward.
During the set, she added a song that I hadn't heard and could not track down (perhaps on the unreleased God's Foot CD) called "Why Does Baby Get So High?". Juliana Hatfield is a great talent that has seemingly, purposely avoided all the attention currently being given to female rockers ala Lilith, choosing instead to do it her way. She puts out music on her own terms, plays the small club circuit, and somehow manages to move from label to label that keeps up her tour support. When the alternative is "making it" to the point of playing the huge venues, maybe Juliana's got the right idea, at least from a musical integrity standpoint. I start to envy being a rock star once again...
On That Note, I'm outta here......
