From the beginning, I've always had a knack for catchy melodies. But I went through a period when I was trying to be rock n' roll and have a rock n' roll attitude. I was fighting my nature by trying to play really hard and sing really hard. But at a certain point, I realized that I loved syrupy pop music with tons of harmony.
— Juliana Hatfield
I want to paint. That is probably going to sound so pretentious coming from someone who's been a musician.
My music - that's the one area I won't let myself be pushed around. But in other parts of my life, I'm a confused mess.
Songwriting is like editing. You write down all this stuff - all this bad, stupid stuff - and then you have to get rid of everything except the very best.
All I'm trying to do is to keep going and keep evolving.
I'm able to see humor in a lot of things.
I have been a bridesmaid. Fortunately, the outfits were pretty tame. They were cream and black, but I still wouldn't wear them out in public, though.
You find yourself approaching middle age, playing another scuzzy rock club.
I've been embarrassing myself publicly for over 20 years. Why should I stop now?
Writing helps me process things that are happening to me.
My dad was depressed a lot of the time, and there were a lot of things in his life that he never resolved.
I don't have anything to prove anymore. I don't have a record deal, no one has any expectations, I'm in a position of freedom. I don't need anyone's approval.
You can learn so much just by doing, not by listening to anybody.
To make big steps, you've got to take action yourself and not listen to other people.
The first kiss between two people is something really good in life.
People make such a big deal about how people in bands look, especially if you're a girl.
My knees are ticklish.
I've finally learned to love my voice for its uniqueness.
Human relations, I mess them up, and they let me down.
My songs are about not knowing who to be and not knowing how to act.
I like people wanting to know about me.
Motivation is just this potion to create stuff, a compulsion to express the truth of my own experiences in this life.
I have many moods, and there is no objective reality. And I kind of live by that.
I finished 'Beautiful Creature,' and I felt somewhat unfulfilled. I felt like this other side of me needed to be released. Some of the songs I left off the album weren't intense enough to be what I wanted. They weren't hard enough.
I am not dead inside. I still care about right and wrong.
Sometimes I feel like a human pin cushion. Every painful emotion hits me with ridiculously exaggerated force. And the anxiety feels like hands inside of me, squeezing my guts really hard.
I'm totally committed to the cause of individuality. That's the only thing I stand by: independence.
I never felt happy with the idea that part of what I do is to be an object to be looked at. I thought of my public persona as an entity separate to myself.
What happens when your dream comes true - when the spotlight is on and then it moves away?
When I did have a little bit of commercial success, it really didn't suit my temperament at all. I'm a terrible public person.
The way I see it, all the popular singers are strippers.
Some of the songs are so crazy, the words are so crazy... it's hard to believe I was so crazy.
Once I picked up an electric guitar, I lost interest in piano, and I just wanted to rock. I studied piano for so long, I got burned out on it.
My first guitar was a Gibson Challenger.
The whole thing about rock music, pop music, is it's really for kids.
For a long time, music was hope. Now it seems music isn't enough to make me happy. It used to be that's all I needed to keep going. Now I need other things to take up the other parts of my life.
When I start writing, I'll have a vague concept or I'll just have a title, and the song just goes on its own direction. Usually it goes in many directions within each song. They get really convoluted sometimes.
I love playing in front of people. I feel powerful, 'cause I don't have to really say anything - I'm just singing.
In this world, where everything happens so fast, it's hard to sit back, take the time and contemplate.
People are complex. I'm just showing my complexity.
I love 'Crazy Horse,' and Neil Young is one of my favorite guitar players.
A heart that hurts is a heart that works.
I'm a damaged person, but I have hope and a will to not give up.
I still have a lot of those depressive thoughts, but now I have the foresight to tell myself, 'Don't think like that,' and things seem better.
My whole life was writing, recording and touring over and over again. At some point I realised I wasn't enjoying myself any more.
I still have all the faith and love for my music and yet I'm still playing places for kids.
To me, success was not having to have a boss and not having a day job. I've been living my own version of success since the early '90s when I first got signed. I haven't had a job since then.
The most rabidly religious people are the most rabidly evil.
People need meanings to everything. People want you to intellectualize every choice you make.
My soul is fine, thanks.
