If You Leave (Daughter album)

If You Leave is the debut album by Daughter released under 4AD on 18 March 2013. In anticipation of the album, a music video for the promotional single "Still" was released on 24 January 2013. It was directed by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard.

If You Leave
Studio album by
Daughter
Released18 March 2013 (2013-03-18)
Recorded2012
Genre
Length45:35
LanguageEnglish
Label4AD
ProducerIgor Haefeli, Jolyon Thomas, Rodaidh McDonald
Daughter chronology
The Wild Youth (EP)
(2011)		 If You Leave
(2013)		 Not to Disappear
(2016)
Singles from If You Leave
  1. "Smother"
    Released: 3 September 2012
  2. "Human"
    Released: 29 April 2013
  3. "Youth"
    Released: 15 August 2013

Background

Daughter formed in 2010, originally intended to showcase the solo work of singer Elena Tonra, until she was joined by guitarist Igor Haefeli and drummer Remi Aguilella. They released the Demos EP which started word of mouth on the band, Daughter self-released their debut EP, His Young Heart, on 20 April 2011. On 2 October 2011 they released another EP, The Wild Youth, through artist-led Communion Records. The latter EP earned praise from British website For Folk’s Sake who described Daughter as "one of the most unique sounds in the pop landscape today."[3] BBC Radio 1 DJ Huw Stephens also invited them to perform a Maida Vale Session for his show.[4] In 2012 the band were signed to 4AD and began work on their debut album.

Recording

Haefeli explained that their approach was that: "We never really rehearsed the songs before recording them. It was really written in the flat and then just recorded in the studio, where a lot of parts came up". The band re-recorded a new version of the song "Youth" in a live setting.[5]

Release
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.7/10[6]
Metacritic72/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
Consequence of Sound[9]
Drowned in Sound9/10[10]
The Guardian[11]
Mojo[12]
NME5/10[13]
PopMatters7/10[14]
Q[15]
The Skinny[16]
Uncut6/10[17]

Chart performance

On 18 March 2013 Daughter released If You Leave and it reached number 4 on the UK indie album chart[18] and number 16 on the Top 100.[19] Before the release of If You Leave they released the first single off the album "Smother" in October. It was playlisted by both BBC Radio 1 and 6Music, while being awarded Single of the Week by long-time supporter Huw Stephens.[20] Later on the band released promotional single "Still" which had no official cover and a music video for the song was released on 24 January 2013, directed by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard.[21] After the release of the album they released the second single from the album "Human" on 29 April 2013 on seven-inch vinyl. During the week of 5 May 2013, the song "Youth" was released as a Free Single of the Week on the iTunes Store. As of January 2016, the album has sold 74,489 copies in the UK.

Critical reception

The album has received positive reviews from critics. It was positively reviewed by BBC Music, who described the sound as "instantly enchanting of design", "wholly hypnotic" and "more engaging than many a peer's offerings."[1] The Guardian, who rated the album a three out of five, offered a mixed review, characterizing the sound as "atmospheric, but...calculatingly so, especially set against [Tonra's] overwrought poetry."[11]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Elena Tonra and Igor Haefeli, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Winter" 4:43
2."Smother" 4:02
3."Youth" 4:13
4."Still" 3:33
5."Lifeforms"Elena Tonra5:35
6."Tomorrow"Elena Tonra4:41
7."Human" 3:32
8."Touch" 4:26
9."Amsterdam" 4:03
10."Shallows" 6:54
Total length:45:35

Personnel
  • Elena Tonra - Vocals, guitar
  • Igor Haefeli - Guitar, producer
  • Remi Aguilella - Drums, percussion

Charts
Chart (2013) Peak
position
UK Albums Chart 16
UK Indie Chart 4
Billboard 200 97
Scottish Albums Chart 27
Australian Top 50 50
SNEP French Albums Chart 109

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[22] Gold 100,000

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

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References
  1. Diver, Mike (2013-03-07). "Daughter If You Leave Review". BBC. Retrieved 2013-03-18.
  2. "Daughter – If You Leave". musicOMH.com. 2013-03-14. Retrieved 2013-03-14.
  3. "Daughter – The Wild Youth". For Folk's Sake. 28 Nov 2011. Retrieved 16 Dec 2012.
  4. "Daughter in session at Maida Vale". BBC Radio 1. 29 Sep 2011. Retrieved 16 Dec 2012.
  5. "Musicfeeds January 2014" Rachelle Beaven, 'Daughter Talk Laneway 2014, Incremental Success & Album Number Two', Musicfeeds (Australia), 24 January 2014
  6. "If You Leave by Daughter reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 31 December 2019.
  7. "Reviews for If You Leave by Daughter". Metacritic. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  8. Phares, Heather. "If You Leave – Daughter". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  9. Hardy, Tony (26 April 2013). "Album Review: Daughter – If You Leave". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on 3 May 2013. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  10. Hamilton, Billy (15 April 2013). "Album Review: Daughter – If You Leave". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  11. Costa, Maddy (14 March 2013). "Daughter – If You Leave review". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
  12. "Daughter: If You Leave". Mojo (233): 89. April 2013.
  13. Mackay, Emily (19 March 2013). "Daughter – 'If You Leave'". NME. Archived from the original on 23 March 2013. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  14. Smith, Robin (28 April 2013). "Daughter: If You Leave". PopMatters. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  15. "Daughter: If You Leave". Q (321): 99. April 2013.
  16. Sully, George (28 February 2013). "Daughter – If You Leave". The Skinny. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  17. "Daughter: If You Leave". Uncut (191): 69. April 2013.
  18. "Daughter albums charts". Official Charts. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  19. "Daughter albums charts Top 100". Official Charts. Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  20. "Killers live, Daughter on the phone, Huw lookalikes". BBC Radio 1. 16 Sep 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  21. "Daughter Still video". Ohdaughter. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  22. "British album certifications – Daughter – If You Leave". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved July 31, 2020. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type If You Leave in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
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