“Leave Me Alone” is the debut full-length album from the Madrid-based band Hinds, formerly named Deers.
Carlotta Cosials and Ana Perrote on vocals and guitar, Ade Martin on bass, and Amber Grimbergen on drums make up this surf-rock outfit.
“Leave Me Alone” is a story of young love and misadventures, with everything from on-again-off-again romance to getting high in a barn. The entire album is full of beachy, surf-rock themes, but underlying the fun, catchy guitar riffs and beats are the staticky murmurs and wails of two vocalists who tell the story of one wild summer.
The album opens with “Garden,” a slow, driving beat and introduces “the same old story of the bad boy” who always talks about running away.
As the bass continues to lead the songs, “Fat Calmed Kiddos” follows, with its singers wailing back and forth like a drunken fight over text, ending with the two crying, “Please don’t let me,” wave goodbye.
Things get crazy in “Castigadas en el Granero,” translated as “Punished in the Barn. This track is led by an energetic bass with simple but sharp riffs, complimenting lyrics about sneaking out and hiding in a barn, which causes the singer to pass a “smoking roll” and hallucinate until the next morning.
“San Diego” is the classic summertime heartbreak track on this album. With lyrics like “take me to the beach, alright/ stay close to me or know I’ll die!” paired with an extremely catchy beat, guitars laced with feedback, and bouncy and whiny vocals, it’s clear that this song is meant to be sung while driving.
“And I Will Send Your Flowers Back” is the official send-off for the bad boy, for better or for worse. The singer complains that “space hit me in your face,” and that even though they’ve broken up, it “doesn’t mean I’m happy to go away.” It’s obvious the couple has second thoughts about ending their volatile relationship, until the singer finally declares, “I will send your flowers back/ What goes around, comes around.”
Finally, in “Walking Home,” the singer has found a new love, and the song proves to be an energetic finale to the album, as if walking back from a party, head still spinning from drinks.
“Leave Me Alone” is a spirited start for Hinds, and with its laid-back, day-at-the-beach vibe and emotion-packed lyrics, this is definitely a band to keep on the radar.
by Allie Farrell
Promotions Director
Spring 2016
