Juliana Hatfield

Wed., Sept. 10, 7:30 p.m., $25-$35, with Hayden and Greg Laswell, World Café Live, 3025 Walnut St., 215-222-1400, worldcafelive.com.

by M.J. Fine

rock/pop

After spending the past three years in partial exile, Juliana Hatfield has a lot of explaining to do and she knows it. She's got a memoir — When I Grow Up, due out later this month — that addresses her struggle with depression. She's got a MySpace blog, on which she contextualizes songs from throughout her career. (Check out her 4,000-word essay/animal-rights rant on Become What You Are's "For the Birds.") And she's got a new album, How to Walk Away, that encompasses both sage pop ("The Fact Remains") and tortured slow jams ("My Baby ... ," "Just Lust"). It's the antithesis of 2005's sloppy, stripped-down Made in China. Hatfield cedes the producer's seat to Ivy's Andy Chase, who sets the tone with smooth synths and mellow strings. Jason Hatfield plays piano on a pair of sappy songs he co-wrote with his sister, and fellow alt-rocker Tracy Bonham adds violin to a few tracks. Despite Hatfield's extended network, she's still at her best when chronicling the lives of the chronically lonesome. Psychedelic Furs singer Richard Butler keeps her company on the soulful "This Lonely Love," while Chase's warm keys and Jody Porter's chilly guitar fuel the manic-depressive "So Alone." Keep sharing, girl.

Wed., Sept. 10, 7:30 p.m., $25-$35, with Hayden and Greg Laswell, World Café Live, 3025 Walnut St., 215-222-1400, worldcafelive.com.