If anything, both Juliana and Matthew Sweet should be raking in the sales and recognition that their more “successful” peers from Alternative Nation have been.  The two of them have mastered the Neil Young approach to songwriting, which emphasizes subtlety and nuance over grandiose glossiness.  Back in the nineties, both scored minor hits, respectively, all the while continuing to write great records into the new millennium.  They have managed to maintain longevity without becoming popular, and all of their records have held up for me over the years.  Juliana Hatfield especially adheres to her straightforward style, tried and true, with no plans to give up anytime soon.  You can hear her lingering respect for the art form, but most importantly, on each record, you can clearly perceive her need to prevail for herself as a human being and as a musician.  With her soaring, beatific vocals that recall a more restrained Veruca Salt or Susanna Hoffs, her strengths both acoustically and electrically were notably displayed on two of the best pop records ever released simultaneously, Total System Failure and the aptly titled Beautiful Creature.  Her latest is on par with some of her best material to date and quite frankly, anytime she releases a record, its arrival should be shouted from mountaintops.

In Exile Deo starts off strong and doesn’t let up, concluding on a high note with one of her best songs in years, “My Enemy.” Highlights also include the two-chord punch of “Tourist,” with a quaint little metaphor about lost love, accompanied by cosmological harmonies that just don’t let up.  Hatfield seeps meditative thoughts into the cracks of her sing along choruses.  “With a little courage/in time you might forget me/with a little loving/in time you might forgive me” is understated verse that tugs at the heartstrings without it ever coming across as artificial.  Despite having a similar melody as “Tourist,” the tragic ballad, “Tomorrow Never Comes,” has a completely different arrangement with echoing violins and a stripped-down solo acoustic, as her voice wavers off-key towards tears by the song’s closing.  The standout moments ignite towards the end.  “Because We Love You” about a neglectful father, does manage to suggest Sheryl Crow guitar strumming, only Hatfield observes the world from a deeper standpoint. “Sunshine” recalls the familiar, luminous old-fashioned pop that wouldn’t seem out of place on an earlier record.  “Don’t Let Me Down” is one of the better examples of her ability to dichotomize optimism and insecurity all within one phrase.  “Don’t let me down/I need you now/When inspiration fades/Don’t leave me now/Please show me how/Then send me on my way” she exclaims throughout the catchiest number on the record.  One thing’s for sure, she never lets her fans down, and inspiration shows no signs of fading. And it all comes full circle with the final track that builds magnificently, suggestively revolving around her keen affection for the enemy, which could also be herself. 

Although the experimental production isn’t as speckled or multi-faceted as the aforementioned double releases, Hatfield sticks to her guns, and sings from her gut as always.  These days, amidst the negative TRL images of female rock stars that somehow continue to pervade, a voice like Hatfield’s resonates stronger and stands out more than ever, at a time when it’s more than just welcome, it is transcendent and embraceable. If you have yet to discover one of the best female songwriters of the past fifteen years, then go out and reward your ears with her latest composition or any one of her past efforts.  Some might say to just pick up her greatest hits collection, Gold Stars, but why do that when every record is as consistently appealing as the next?  In Exile Deo is thankfully no exception.