Album Review: Leave Me Alone

Writer Jack Morris-Edwards reviews Madrid based band Hinds’s album: Leave Me Alone. Their debut album is a set of 12 fun, warm and fuzzy garage rock songs, all about different experiences of love and in some way or another, its various stages. Written over the course of the last two years, (starting at a time when they were a duo called Deers) the band consists of Carlotta Cosials and Ana García Perrote who now provide vocals and guitar to the band. The band took full shape adding bassist Ade Martín and drummer Amber Grimbergen to their line-up to complete their sound, influenced by The Strokes, Mac Demarco, The Vaccines and Ty Segall.

Evidence that much of the writing took place during Hinds days as a duo, is in the fact that the band’s sound is based around the guitar and loose harmonies. Songs such as “Garden”, “Warts” and “San Diego” play to the band’s strengths; with the tracks being built around a lead guitar, reminiscent of a slack Real Estate. A straightforward structure, Perrote and Cosials’ vocals flit effortlessly between harmonising and duelling.

At first listen “Leave Me Alone” can sound a little indistinguishable, and at its worst, a little grating, yet after a few listens the album’s sense of fun and laidback charms become clearer. Only a few songs can be accused of retaining that initial impression, such as “Fat Calmed Kiddos”, which at some points almost feels as if it could fall apart at any given moment. “Solar Gap”, will probably struggle to hold your attention at a whole 2 minutes and 25 seconds. However Hinds’ flaws are also linked closely to their strengths, which lie in their unashamed simplicity and shunning of perfectionism.

A less immediate album highlight, that may not strike you on immediately is “I’ll Be Your Man”. Being one of the album’s most restrained songs, it is easily overshadowed by the album’s louder songs on earlier listens. However the understated beauty of “I’ll Be Your Man”, becomes clear eventually, especially when the nostalgia evoking lead guitar line comes in, showing that Hinds are capable of expanding beyond their signature sound.

On the whole “Leave Me Alone” is a great success to please those who favour simple, summery and fun indie pop- and could possibly achieve success beyond their originally intended fan base. So whatever your taste, give this an album a listen soon, because if you do, it is sure to be still stuck in your head as spring turns to summer.

Essential song: Garden

Rating: 4/5