PJ Harvey

PJ Harvey
October 9, 1969
Yeovil, Somerset, England, UK

This double Libra performs a balancing act between darkness and light in her work.

I firmly disbelieve that one has to be a tortured soul to write good music.

PJ Harvey's Tarot Reading

Polly Jean Harvey was born in England and raised on a sheep farm in Yeovil, Somerset. Her father was a quarryman and her mother, an artist. She studied guitar, saxophone and violin when she was a child and during her teen years, played in numerous bands. With a passion for horses, she intended to become a veterinarian when she grew up, but her love of music ultimately won out. She started her first band, PJ Harvey, when she was 21. Steve Vaughn played bass and Robert Ellis played drums. Their first EP, Dress, was a demo that the three of them put together for next-to-nothing and got them a record deal with the independent British label, Too Pure. The single was released in 1991 and went over big with music critics. PJ Harvey's first album, Dry, came out on Island Records the next year. It too was a smash hit with critics.

With her Sun in Libra, harmony and balance are PJ's keynotes. She instinctively understands the need to accommodate other people's interests, and is always willing to meet the other person halfway. With considerable social awareness, she does all she can to avoid conflict. She expresses a spirit of cooperation and often achieves through charm what would have been impossible with a forceful approach. Getting along with and pleasing others may actually be too important to her, for she can become too dependent on others' opinions to make her own decisions. She will rarely act without seeking advice from other people, like her friend and fellow musician, Captain Beefheart. 'I'm a Libra,' she acknowledges, 'That means that I can make a decision, but only after much thought.'

She prefers sharing and doing things with others rather than on her own. Being alone feels unnatural to her, and she has a strong need for a partner and intimate relationships. PJ invests a great deal of energy in love and is very idealistic about marriage, seeking a partner who is her equal intellectually -- a person who is capable of a mental relationship as well as a physical and emotional one. She is a thoughtful friend or lover, and enjoys the traditional symbols of love and courtship. Relationships are like an art to PJ, an art that requires time, attention and creative effort. She appreciates a partner who is subtle and polished, never coarse or blunt. Fairness and equality, both in her personal life and in the world, are extremely important to her. If she fights about anything, it is often about something she feels is unfair and unbalanced. Balance is essential to her. She believes in moderation in all things, avoiding extremism of any sort. She confirms this by saying, 'Why take a trip on acid when you can read the Bible?'

She has a strong need for beautiful, harmonious surroundings. Her natural sense of artistic style is reflected in the way she dresses and furnishes her home and workspace. Everything must be aesthetically pleasing and appropriate. Working with people in an artistic field such as design or photography would be fulfilling to her. Says PJ, 'I did photography, painting and drawing, but I prefer sculpture. I like it because it's very physical.' Indeed, PJ has a degree in sculpture and her works have been exhibited in a number of British galleries.

Sun square Mars seems to contradict previous areas of her chart, indicating that she is direct and brisk, sometimes even aggressive and combative. However, with Sun conjunct Jupiter she is blessed with abundant optimism, self-confidence and cheerful generosity. Her good will and affability win her many supporters. She also has grand visions and the desire to succeed in life in a big way. Expecting the best, she usually gets it. In 2001, PJ Harvey was voted the Number 1 female rock star in history by readers of British rock magazine, Q.

Mercury in Virgo indicates that she is a perfectionist with a logical, analytical mind and an aptitude for work that requires meticulous attention to detail. Well-grounded and pragmatic, she tends to develop specialized skills and technical expertise in specific fields. Knowledge, ideas and theories don't really interest her unless they are useful in a material way. She is inclined to scrutinize, measure and dissect everything, while missing nuances. Her strengths are in her precise thinking, careful craftsmanship and mastery of technical skills.

Mercury conjunct Uranus makes PJ an independent and original thinker, excited by new ideas, discoveries and innovations. Her mind functions in an intuitive, nonlinear way and sudden insights often come to her 'out of the blue.' She grasps ideas very quickly and may become impatient with those who are slower or more cautious. She is considered rather eccentric by more conservative types. She does well in an open, unpredictable atmosphere where flexibility and quick responses are needed.

Uranus conjunct Sun/Pluto shows that she has a great need to make changes in her life and to break away from circumstances that hold her back. She illustrates this dramatically in her song, 'Big Exit.'

I walk on concrete

I walk on sand

But I can't find

A safe place to stand

I'm scared baby

I wanna run

This world's crazy

Gimme the gun

Baby, baby

Ain't it true

I'm immortal

When I'm with you

But I want a pistol

In my hand

I wanna go to

A different land

Unlikely to be very patient, she feels that she knows what is best. She also tends to force herself to work until physical exhaustion. After touring with her first album, due to the stresses of the road and sudden fame, she suffered a near nervous breakdown. However, she immediately recorded a second album, Rid of Me, with producer Steve Albini. This highly successful album came out in 1993 and PJ Harvey continued to tour.

Venus in Virgo indicates that she is quietly devoted and faithful to her loved ones. Even so, she is reluctant to express too much sentiment or emotion. 'I suppose I give as much as I want to give. I decide immediately if I like a person and if I do, then I'm myself, and if I don't, then I give nothing ...' she admits in a 1994 Q Magazine interview. '... I'm quite happy for it to be like that. Do I want loads of people to know who I am? I'd much rather they didn't have a clue.' She may also underestimate her lovability, which comes across in many of her songs. Venus conjunct Pluto reveals that she has deep, compelling feelings of love that seem irresistible and often irrational. Her relationships are very intense; she experiences both agony and ecstasy in love:

Lover had to leave me

Cross the desert plain

Turned to me, his lady

Tells me 'lover wait'

Calling Jesus, please

Send his love to me

Oh, wind and rain may haunt me

Look to the north and pray

Send me, please, his kisses

Send them home today

I'm begging Jesus, please

Send his love to me.

She is always changed in a deep, fundamental way by her love experiences, though this may come about through painful and difficult confrontations or separations. She is something of an emotional fanatic about the things she cares about. Consider, for example, the song, 'It's You:'

All I want to do

All I want to grow up to be

Is all caught up with you

Look what you're doing to me

When I'm not with you my dreams are so very dark

When I'm not with you I dream of my hair just falling out

When I'm not with you I walk dark tunnels of my heart

When I'm not with you everything just comes apart

When I was younger

I spent my days

Wondering to whom

I was supposed to pray

It's you?

With Neptune conjunct Sun/Mars she tends to idealize her partner and create a beautiful image in her mind, pretending that person fits the image. But when the cloud lifts and the truth becomes clear, she is likely to be disillusioned. Naturally, she puts these feelings into songs like 'The Life and Death of Mr. Badmouth:'

When you told me every word you'd said

Came from voices talking in your head

Baby, I just think you're out for what you can get

Your badmouth has killed off everything we had.

Mars in Capricorn indicates that PJ is serious about her ambitions and tenacious in pursuing her goals. Her drive and energy are directed toward material accomplishment and concrete results. She strives to be in a position of authority and social influence; she enjoys being in command. She is hardworking and capable of foregoing immediate comfort in order to achieve her long-range goals. With a natural shrewdness and instinct for business, she is an excellent strategist who attains success by following through with a workable plan.

Mars square Jupiter shows that she is enterprising and willing to take risks if she senses that something is going to be a winner. However, no matter how much she accomplishes, she never seems to be completely satisfied. She always feels she can do more, and immediately sets her sights on another goal. She feels frustrated in limited circumstances, and will leave secure and reasonably successful situations if they do not offer challenges and potential for growth. After touring for Rid Of Me, PJ disbanded her trio and in 1995, put out a solo album, To Bring You My Love. It was another hit, as was her next release, Is This Desire? In 1999, she got back together with Vaughn and Ellis and in 2000, they put out Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea. PJ likes to stretch her limits to see how far she can go. She relishes healthy competition and feels that it spurs her on to even greater achievement. With Jupiter in Libra her strengths lie in her ability to collaborate, a willingness to listen to opposing viewpoints and a knack for at least seeming to be impartial and moderate, rather than extreme and one-sided.

Saturn in Taurus suggests that she either overvalues or undervalues her possessions and assets, possibly denying herself sensual pleasure and enjoyment of the fruits of her labor. She may also be unable to give freely. Many times she feels that she does not have enough to make her feel secure, regardless of how much she has.

With Saturn quincunx Uranus, the side of her that needs structure and stability is at odds with her urges for unfettered freedom, change, excitement and discovery. She can feel a great deal of discontent and tension because of this. She may act out rebelliously at times, or clamp down hard on herself in an attempt to strictly control her 'wild' impulses. Her task is to try to find a reasonable balance between order and creative chaos.

N. Node opposition Venus/Pluto shows that she makes a big impression on everyone she meets and has the ability to attract many people into her world. Others find her fascinating and are likely to see her as their standard or example -- a role PJ herself is not particularly comfortable with: 'Making me into a role model is placing too much importance on what I see as a work in progress.'