Arcade Fire’s stunning Grammy triumph was not just a victory for the band, but it was a victory for independent music artists everywhere. Few of those artists will ever see that kind of exposure in their career, as few have the ability, or, in some cases, the inclination to marry their singular visions to musical settings that are palatable to the masses.

One such artist is PJ Harvey, who simply follows the muse wherever it takes her, even if it’s to a place that no mass audience would ever dare follow. Her loyal cult, who has been in Polly Jean’s corner for about two decades now, has been right with her every step of the way, and so it likely will be for her newest release, Let England Shake.

This is not an album for the meek. Harvey, armed with an autoharp as her main instrument of choice, takes her native country of England to task throughout for exposing young men to the battlefield, to “Death’s anchorage,” as she puts it in “All and Everyone.”

But she extrapolates from that to suggest that England’s struggles to recapture its former glory in the eyes of the world are directly related to the moral rationalizations at the heart of the war efforts. You may or may not agree with her, but it’s impossible to argue against the force of her conviction or the angry eloquence of her lyrics.

Harvey does not mince words here. On “The Last Living Rose,” she takes a disillusioned journey through her homeland “past the Thames River glistening/Like gold hastily sold for nothing.” The title of “The Glorious Land” is bitterly ironic, considering that she sings that “its fruit is orphaned children.” “The Words That Maketh Murder” has even less subtlety about it, with lines about “arms and legs in the trees.”

PJ also takes a cue from her countryman Roger Waters when she makes some of her best arguments through personal tales. “Hanging In The Wire” is an unflinching story of a soldier’s lonely final moments, while album closer “The Colour Of The Earth,” a duet with longtime collaborator Mick Harvey, takes the action all the way back to WWI, suggesting a sad connection between doomed young men through time.

Of course, Harvey has been around long enough to know that simply telling people that war is bad won’t have much of an impact. Instead, she dresses some of her most vehement lyrics in captivating music. She busts out some endearing saxophone honking on “The Last Living Rose," the instrument making wry commentary all its own. On “In The Dark Places,” drummer John Parish uncorks a tough rock beat and the other band members turn up the guitars, achieving some measure of musical catharsis.

What makes all of this more than just a one-sided diatribe is Harvey’s songwriting skill, as she parses through the complicated relationship she has with her country. She makes it clear that the brilliance that she once beheld may still be within reach, but time could be running out. All of the minor keys and PJ’s nuanced vocals suggest more than just anger and bile; they also bring to bear a profound sense of disappointment about forgotten ideals and squandered greatness.

Admittedly, this is music that doesn’t exactly jump out at you with big hooks and sing-along choruses, but it is a sustained mediation on a difficult topic that affects us all: The horrors of war. It may not be what everyone wants to hear, and that’s fine. It may be what we need to hear though, and, because of that, Let England Shake is more than just another PJ Harvey album. It’s darn near essential listening.

SAMPLE LET ENGLAND SHAKE

"The Last Living Rose"

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"In the Dark Places"

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"The Colour of the Earth"

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