If You Leave
by Daughter
Metascore
72

Generally favorable reviews - based on 18 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 18
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 18
  3. Negative: 0 out of 18
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  1. No Ripcord
    May 6, 2013
    70
    What emerges is a fascinating, infinitely bleak break-up album, but one without the scope of Disintegration or the raw, intellectual power of Blood on the Tracks.
  2. AllMusic
    Apr 29, 2013
    70
    Even if their meditations on heartbreak and death can be overwhelming occasionally, If You Leave proves that Daughter can channel a single mood over the course of an entire album with often exquisite results.
  3. PopMatters
    Apr 29, 2013
    70
    There are a lot of topic sentences about If You Leave that won’t tell that story--the defiant moment, clearer and less guarded revelation--but it’s captivating to watch Tonra shake off the burden she’s locked herself up with.
  5. Consequence
    Apr 26, 2013
    80
    These cavernous guitar effects, corrosive beats, and inspiring melodic twists magnify If You Leave, an album with true grandeur and occasion.
  6. Under The Radar
    Mar 22, 2013
    80
    The group's debut full-length album picks up where its EP left off. [Mar-Apr 2013, p.91]
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  7. The Quietus
    Mar 21, 2013
    80
    Soaring and swooping in all the right places, there's no denying the gorgeous ethereal shimmer and dizzying demonstrative pull of these songs.
  8. New Musical Express (NME)
    Mar 19, 2013
    50
    Both musically and lyrically, Daughter ain’t half as clever as they clearly think they are (people get serious and clever mixed up a lot, weirdly).
  9. The Fly (UK)
    Mar 18, 2013
    80
    By turns, If You Leave is word-in-the-ear intimate and mountain-range massive.
  10. DIY Magazine
    Mar 18, 2013
    60
    While all the elements are there it seems far too eager to drift into not only the background but also into itself, with it turning into musical wallpaper and into one, long indistinguishable track with worrying ease.
  11. The Observer (UK)
    Mar 18, 2013
    40
    Tonra's voice is breathy and sweet and unremarkable, breaking sometimes into a wrenched whisper, that should be heartbreaking but, more often than not, is just a bit grating.
  12. Drowned In Sound
    Mar 15, 2013
    90
    An album as beautifully conceived as If You Leave is one you follow from start to finish, riveted by the story it weaves and the emotion it bleeds.
  13. The Guardian
    Mar 14, 2013
    60
    These songs are atmospheric, but feel calculatedly so, especially set against the overwrought poetry of Tonra's lyrics.
  14. musicOMH.com
    Mar 14, 2013
    100
    Heavy it most certainly is, but Daughter succeed simply by creating phenomenally beautiful music and heart-rending songs.
  15. BBC Music
    Mar 12, 2013
    80
    If You Leave is a damaged debut, then, but the way the hues of its bruises blend into each other is wholly hypnotic. It wants to love, again, but has chosen darkness.
  16. Mojo
    Mar 12, 2013
    60
    These fine-spun talents are too frequently suffocated by the album;s production, which ignores the songs' subtler details in favour of something more epic. [Apr 2013, p.89]
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  17. Uncut
    Mar 12, 2013
    60
    There's an unwelcome hint of Florence Welch's swollen emotionalism on "Tomorrow," but the surging pop of "Touch" is more successful. [Apr 2013, p.69]
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  18. Q Magazine
    Mar 12, 2013
    80
    There's stark simplicity to Tonra's lyrics that's evocative enough to consistently land emotional haymakers. `[Apr 2013, p.99]
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  19. The Line of Best Fit
    Mar 12, 2013
    95
    If You Leave is staggeringly beautiful from beginning to close, a catharsis that’s both bracing and woozily amniotic.

Awards & Rankings

55
#55 Most Shared Album of 2013

User Reviews

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User Score
8.7

Universal acclaim- based on 63 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 58 out of 63
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 63
  3. Negative: 3 out of 63
  1. FacingDrama
    May 7, 2013
    10
    If You Leave may never be a hit, but is in the shadows where this amazing album must be listened to, or at least that's what I think TonraIf You Leave may never be a hit, but is in the shadows where this amazing album must be listened to, or at least that's what I think Tonra wants us to do. The marvelous sounds and poetry of Tonra's lyrics turn Daughter's first album in the best think I have listened to in years. This one comes from the heart, a damaged heart, and a brilliant mind. The ethereal instrumentation makes the perfect match to such a melodic voice. But it is obvious that the most remarkable thing here is the songwriting which, in the words of this mortal, makes everything a sweet mess: It's weird how we love to be so sad. To finish, I just want to say this: Elena, take my soul, I'm on my knees.… Full Review »
  2. jotaeseche
    Nov 26, 2015
    7
    If You Leave might be a great record for the post-rockers and folk ambient lovers, but in my opinion it is as beautifully written, performedIf You Leave might be a great record for the post-rockers and folk ambient lovers, but in my opinion it is as beautifully written, performed and settled as blandly unoriginal and -sometimes- tasteless.… Full Review »
  3. thibaultalgrins
    Feb 25, 2015
    6
    If You Leave includes songs of quality such as Still and Human but sometimes you just don't see the diference between all the songs. ItIf You Leave includes songs of quality such as Still and Human but sometimes you just don't see the diference between all the songs. It definitely lacks of originality. Although Tonra's voice is sweet and authentic.… Full Review »
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