Leave Me Alone
by Hinds
Metascore
74

Generally favorable reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 25
  3. Negative: 0 out of 25
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  1. Exclaim
    Jan 7, 2016
    90
    It’s contagious; every song sounds like a party
  2. Pretty Much Amazing
    Mar 18, 2016
    83
    It really only hopes to make you smile with smart twin harmonies and silly lyrics. On those terms, Leave Me Alone is a unqualified success.
  3. The Skinny
    Jan 26, 2016
    80
    It's the peppiest, jauntiest, most charismatic debut you’ll likely find in the next 12 months.
  5. No Ripcord
    Jan 12, 2016
    80
    Leave Me Alone is giddy with joy, cackling with sun-drenched vibes and that captivating youthful energy, and it’s impossible to listen to tracks like Easy, Chili Town and San Diego without leeching off it.
  6. Drowned In Sound
    Jan 11, 2016
    80
    The result is a more sober work than the group anticipated--sad, even (their words)--but an unexpectedly lovely one for being just so.
  7. The 405
    Jan 8, 2016
    80
    Hinds have shown that they are a force to be reckoned with on Leave Me Alone.
  8. DIY Magazine
    Jan 8, 2016
    80
    They stick to their guns, and they end up emphasising their rough-around-the-edges strengths.
  9. Q Magazine
    Jan 7, 2016
    80
    It's impossible not to be swept up in the exuberance. [Feb 2016, p.111]
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  10. The Guardian
    Jan 7, 2016
    80
    Hinds are great because of two crucial factors. They have bags of tunes--opener Garden is loaded with 60s soul hooks, for instance--and bags of charm, adopting the clatter of C86 but updating it with a riotous rush of freewheeling, girl-gang energy.
  11. New Musical Express (NME)
    Jan 7, 2016
    80
    Part of what makes Leave Me Alone such a blast is the impression it gives of Hinds as a tight-knit girl gang, on and off record.
  12. The Line of Best Fit
    Jan 5, 2016
    80
    Leave Me Alone is flawed, but its flaws are what makes it so beguiling.
  13. Paste Magazine
    Jan 5, 2016
    76
    Leave Me Alone manages to be a nostalgic album that nevertheless lives in the moment.
  14. Pitchfork
    Jan 5, 2016
    75
    The best moments on Leave Me Alone occur when Cosials and Perrote are going all-out, belting together without restraint.
  15. musicOMH.com
    Jan 14, 2016
    70
    While Leave Me Alone has its flaws as an album, it’s the perfect summation of where Hinds find themselves at the moment. And when the sunny riffs of Castigadas En El Granero kick in, you’ll want to follow them to see where they’re going in the future.
  16. Uncut
    Jan 7, 2016
    70
    Their debut has a raucous charm that makes it easy to overlook their songs' emotional punch. [Feb 2016, p.77]
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  17. PopMatters
    Jan 6, 2016
    70
    You may leave Hinds’ debut with a hangover but you’ll likely be smiling. Either way, a fuzzy glow is guaranteed.
  18. Rolling Stone
    Jan 5, 2016
    70
    This great garage-rock crew from Madrid folds decades of naïf-rock history into its craftily shambling tunes.
  19. Under The Radar
    Jan 5, 2016
    70
    While much of the record feels bandaged together, coordinated sounds like the breezy "Castigadas En El Granero" suggest more nuanced possibilities to come. But for now, it's worth embracing the retrograde, sticky-taped songs of Leave Me Alone for what they are: nothing new, but still a little bit special.
  20. Austin Chronicle
    Nov 3, 2016
    67
    Not quite a party record, Leave Me Alone fuels messy rock with sunny guitar lines.
  21. Consequence
    Jan 5, 2016
    67
    Making an old model feel fresh is no easy task, but Hinds largely accomplish it, embracing the intriguing sloppiness of their predecessors while making steps on their own.
  22. AllMusic
    Jan 11, 2016
    60
    The simple guitar leads and shared lead vocals of Cosials and Perrote are charming in their ramshackle way and their quirky back-and-forth interplay is the glue that holds it all together.
  23. The Observer (UK)
    Jan 11, 2016
    60
    They peak with the surf-influenced Warts, which sounds like nothing so much as a riot grrrl take on Bossanova-era Pixies. Elsewhere, the meandering lack of focus can grate, as on forgettable instrumental Solar Gap.
  24. Mojo
    Jan 7, 2016
    60
    A debut packed with infectious fun. [Feb 2016, p.94]
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  25. Spin
    Jan 7, 2016
    60
    Leave Me Alone is a friendly, enthusiastic album of coppery six-strings glinting in the sunlight with the more-than-occasional flat note, scuffing up the album’s already sand-blasted texture with an endearing scrappy quality.
  26. Boston Globe
    Jan 27, 2016
    50
    Adhering to basic rock formalism, the all-women quartet captures a raw primitivism that’s undeniably appealing in an era when most mainstream rock acts are as manicured as Bravo housewives. Unfortunately, too many songs like “I’ll Be Your Man,” a sleepy (hungover?) stab at hooky, sunshine rock, seem like first drafts.

User Reviews

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User Score
7.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 45 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 37 out of 45
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 45
  3. Negative: 1 out of 45
  1. indierokdunstop
    Apr 5, 2016
    9
    Hinds are a party. Well aware that their voices aren't all that but it matters not, this is rock n' roll. The album, along with their liveHinds are a party. Well aware that their voices aren't all that but it matters not, this is rock n' roll. The album, along with their live performances may not be the most technically sound, but their mood is totally infectious, and its a damn happy one. What they lack vocally they more than make up for with jangling guitars and just a plain to see love of everything they do. Gracias.… Full Review »
  2. steals73
    Jan 18, 2016
    9
    Simultaneously reminiscent of 60s garage rock and the likes of The Strokes and Pavement, Hinds deliver the goods. The album is tremendouslySimultaneously reminiscent of 60s garage rock and the likes of The Strokes and Pavement, Hinds deliver the goods. The album is tremendously fun and exciting and it's the perfect remedy to the winter blahs.… Full Review »
  3. Jumpman
    Jan 12, 2016
    6
    This album is fun refreshing and uplifting. It feels one dimensional but remains an easy listening project appealing to anyone and thank godThis album is fun refreshing and uplifting. It feels one dimensional but remains an easy listening project appealing to anyone and thank god the tumblr girls haven't discovered this yet.… Full Review »
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