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Painted Shut is the third studio album by American indie rock band Hop Along. It was co-produced, recorded and mixed by John Agnello in at Headroom Studios, in Philadelphia and Fluxivity Studios in Brooklyn, and released on May 4, 2015.[2]

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Painted Shut
Studio album by Hop Along
Released	May 4, 2015
Recorded	2015
Genre	Indie rock, folk rock, power pop, pop punk[1]
Length	39:54
Label	Saddle Creek
Producer	Hop Along John Agnello
Hop Along chronology
Get Disowned (2012) Painted Shut (2015) Bark Your Head Off, Dog (2018)

Background and recording

Vocalist Frances Quinlan stated that much of the album was tracked live.[3]

Composition

Musical style

Pitchfork likened the album's style to the "romantic, middle-American indie" of artists such as Bright Eyes and Rilo Kiley, while crediting punk rock for the band's "energy".[4]

Lyrical content

The album's lyrical subject matter addresses topics such as poverty, abuse and mental illness.[5]

The album's seventh track "Powerful Man" is based on an experience Quinlan had as a teenager, where they claim to have witnessed a young child being physically abused by their father.[6] Quinlan admitted that the track was the first time they had felt uneasy about sharing lyrics, due to their personal nature.

There’s part of me that thinks, is anyone going to care if I yell at this man? [...] There is something about parents hitting their kids, it’s just such a weird thing that we allow [...] The craziest thing was he saw us, looked us in the face, and had no reaction. It just didn’t register that we were any threat. And then he said “She’s not gonna help you.” He felt nothing that we were there. It in no way affected his behavior.

— Frances Quinlan

Critical reception

Allmusic awarded the album four-and-a-half stars, directing praise towards Frances Quinlan's vocal performance.

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	7.9/10[7]
Metacritic	87/100[8]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[9]
The A.V. Club	A−[10]
Consequence of Sound	B+[11]
Exclaim!	9/10[12]
NME	8/10[13]
Pitchfork	7.9/10[14]
Rolling Stone	[15]
Spin	8/10[16]
Uncut	8/10[17]
Vice (Expert Witness)	A−[18]

Accolades

Publication	Accolade	Year	Rank
Vice	The 50 Best Albums of 2015	2015	8[19]
The A.V. Club	The 15 Best Albums of 2015	2015	15[20]
Consequence of Sound	Top 50 Albums of 2015	2015	44[21]
Stereogum	The 50 Best Albums of 2015	2015	7[22]
Pitchfork (website)	The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s	2019	164[23]

Track listing

Charts

Chart (2015)	Peak position
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[24]	10
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[25]	26
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[26]	41

References

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