In her apartment in Allston, Mass., just outside Boston, Juliana Hatfield has her summer mapped out. ''I want to try something that hasn't been done before,'' she says, idly strumming an unplugged electric guitar. ''I want to play guitar and sing in a trio. I want it to be heavy and hard.'' The alternative-rock scene is jam-packed with take-no-guff women brandishing guitars and spitting out tough words. Hatfield, 24, is more reserved but no less striking. Highly regarded in underground circles as a member of the recently disbanded Blake Babies, Hatfield is now staking her own turf with her just-released solo album, Hey Babe (Mammoth Records). Unlike the front persons of Hole or L7, though, Hatfield doesn't just bury her voice underneath musical rubble on Hey Babe; her little-girl voice is also capable of dreamy, hooky pop, like a hipper version of the Bangles. ''There are a lot of bands with women in them, but no one's had the influence of Chrissie Hynde or Exene Cervenka,'' she says, adding half-jokingly, ''so I guess I'll fill that void myself.'' In fact, it was after hearing an album by Cervenka and her band, X, that Hatfield, then a high schooler in Duxbury, Mass., found her calling in life. ''I'd never heard a woman sing like that before. For the first time, I heard what I wanted to do. It was pop, but it was heavy.'' She then spent six years singing and playing bass with the Boston-based Blake Babies, who recorded three records of wispy, minimalist pop. On stage with them, swaying to the music as her hair fell in her face, Hatfield personified alternative cool. Hatfield remains wary of hype: ''Women in rock bands are exploited, like a novelty,'' she says. At the same time, involvement with the music business is unavoidable. The North Carolina-based Mammoth Records is negotiating with a major label about a possible distribution deal, meaning Hatfield may be headed for the big leagues whether she likes it or not. However, she takes consolation in the success of Nirvana (whom she salutes on Hey Babe in the song ''Nirvana''). ''They've kept their integrity,'' she says. ''It shows you don't have to smile and kiss ass and wear dumb clothes to make it. ''I haven't done what I want to do yet,'' she adds. ''Some of my stuff is whiny and sappy. But that'll change.'' When Hatfield plugs that electric guitar back in, watch out.
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