PROFILES

An Introduction to PJ Harvey

Exploring the many sides of a multifaceted artist

Chris Zappa
The Riff
Published in
8 min readFeb 18, 2022

--

PJ Harvey by Denis Denis / CC BY-SA 4.0 / Edited

PJ Harvey is a woman possessed.

Her particular demons just happen to be as visionary as they are prolific — an ostensibly special and dangerous combination.

She will amuse or confuse you, but she will never, ever bore you.

Harvey’s music is, at once, both for and not for the faint of heart — a synchronously beautiful and rare dichotomy that has served to establish her as a truly authentic virtuoso to be reckoned with.

One of the most compelling and seductive voices in music of the last 30 years, PJ Harvey is the flesh and blood embodiment of the quintessential enigmatic artist. Without question, there has never been anyone else like her.

An unparalleled musical genius, she doesn’t fit any exclusive mold. Rather, it’s almost as if she creates her own unexampled genre each time she releases new music.

Many artists inadequately try and fail to reinvent themselves, yet she does so habitually, cyclically, seemingly effortlessly. Over the last three decades as a solo artist, she has released nine full-length studio albums, not one of which is remotely like any other.

--

--