My Mind Makes Noises

Pale Waves formed in 2014 when the drummer Ciara Doran met the vocalist and guitarist Heather Baron-Gracie while the two were attending the British and Irish Modern Music Institute (BIMM) in Manchester.{{cite web |last=Pollard |first=Alexandra |url=http://www.thefader.com/2018/03/06/pale-waves-band-all-the-things-i-never-said-new-years-eve-interview |title=Pale Waves is the goth pop hybrid you didn't know you needed |work=The Fader |date=6 March 2018 |archive-date=22 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180422133239/http://www.thefader.com/2018/03/06/pale-waves-band-all-the-things-i-never-said-new-years-eve-interview |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.bimm.co.uk/news/pale-waves-from-bimm-to-madison-square-working-with-the-1975/ |title=Pale Waves: From BIMM To Madison Square & Working With the 1975 |website=BIMM |date=1 November 2017 |archive-date=20 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180720230934/https://www.bimm.co.uk/news/pale-waves-from-bimm-to-madison-square-working-with-the-1975/ |url-status=live }} The two began collaborating on musical projects and eventually dubbed themselves "Pale Waves" {{en dash}} a reference to a painting that Baron-Gracie's grandmother had made of a ship at sea.{{cite web |last1=Hemmings |first1=Jeff |title=Pale Waves – Interview 2019 |url=https://brightonsfinest.com/music/q-and-a/pale-waves-interview-2019/2019/ |website=Brightons on Fire |date=11 January 2019 |archive-date=24 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224170041/https://brightonsfinest.com/music/q-and-a/pale-waves-interview-2019/2019/ |url-status=live }} Doran and Baron-Gracie eventually enlisted second guitarist Hugo Silvani and bassist Charlie Wood,{{cite web |last=Thomas |first=Fred |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/pale-waves-mn0003604120/biography |title=Pale Waves {{!}} Biography |website=AllMusic |archive-date=8 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220108194709/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/pale-waves-mn0003604120/biography |url-status=live }} and in 2015, the group recorded demos for the songs "The Tide" and "Heavenly" with production team Sugar House.{{cite web |last1=Amai |first1=Junnosuke |title=Interview with Pale Waves about "My Mind Makes Noises" |url=https://www.neol.jp/culture/74479/ |website=NeoL |language=Japanese |date=3 October 2018 |archive-date=30 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220130185800/https://www.neol.jp/culture/74479/ |url-status=live }} The band soon caught the attention of the independent record label Dirty Hit, to which the group signed in 2017, and on 20 February 2018, Pale Waves released their debut EP, All the Things I Never Said.{{cite web|title=All the Things I Never Said – EP by Pale Waves|url=https://music.apple.com/gb/album/all-the-things-i-never-said-ep/1341837407|website=iTunes Store (UK)|date=20 February 2018 |archive-date=22 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180422202244/https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/all-the-things-i-never-said-ep/1341837407|url-status=live}}

The first songs recorded for the album were "There's a Honey" and "Television Romance", both of which were produced by Matthew Healy and George Daniel of the pop rock band the 1975. Pale Waves came to Healy's attention after Jamie Oborne (the manager for both the 1975 and Pale Waves) played him the demo tracks of the aforementioned songs.{{cite web |last1=Smith |first1=Thomas |title=Pale Waves talk their 1975-produced single 'There's A Honey' and why they're aiming for Number One album already |url=https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-radar/pale-waves-interview-1975-2006865 |website=NME |date=10 March 2017 |archive-date=31 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220131173605/https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-radar/pale-waves-interview-1975-2006865 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Youngs |first1=Ian |title=BBC Sound of 2018: Pale Waves interview |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-42455531 |publisher=BBC |date=8 January 2018 |archive-date=5 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605064512/https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-42455531 |url-status=live }} Healy was struck by the songwriting {{en dash}} "There's a naivety and a purity to them and an honesty to them that kind of comes through in their music," he explained in an NME interview {{en dash}} and he subsequently reached out to the band, inquiring if he and Daniel could produce their songs.{{cite web |last1=Smith |first1=Thomas |title=The Big Read – Pale Waves, American Gothic |url=https://www.nme.com/big-reads/nme-big-read-pale-waves-2375204-2-2375204 |website=NME |date=7 September 2018 |archive-date=26 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126091900/https://www.nme.com/big-reads/nme-big-read-pale-waves-2375204-2-2375204 |url-status=live }} The band agreed to Healy's request and recorded the songs with him and Daniel in 2017. While talking to the University of Exeter's student-run newspaper Exeposé, Baron-Gracie explained that she and the band were delighted to work with Healy and Daniel: "It's been awesome, they're amazing producers. We felt really special that they wanted to spend their time on our tracks considering how busy they are".{{cite web |title=There's A Honey: An Interview with Pale Waves' Heather Baron-Gracie |url=https://exepose.com/2017/09/26/theres-a-honey-an-interview-with-pale-waves-heather-baron-gracie/ |work=Exeposé |date=26 September 2017 |archive-date=31 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220131174511/https://exepose.com/2017/09/26/theres-a-honey-an-interview-with-pale-waves-heather-baron-gracie/ |url-status=live }}

File:The 1975 - 2019158235937 2019-06-07 Rock am Ring - 2347 - AK8I7697.jpg of the 1975 co-produced Pale Waves's singles "There's a Honey" and "Television Romance".]]

On 4 January 2018, Heather Baron-Gracie announced via Twitter that the band had begun recording their debut album.{{cite web |url=https://readdork.com/news/pale-waves-have-started-recording-their-debut-album/ |title=Pale Waves have started recording their debut album |website=Dork |date=4 January 2018 |archive-date=31 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220131182224/https://readdork.com/news/pale-waves-have-started-recording-their-debut-album/ |url-status=live }} Pale Waves entered the studio with a "pencil-sketch plan" of what the wanted their album to sound like, but when recording began, the band began to rewrite and rework some of their material. "We got to the studio, and I had a mini breakdown because I didn't think we had enough songs that were good enough," Baron-Gracie admitted in an interview with Dork magazine. "Pressure really helped me", she continued, "[but] at times [recording] was really hard. Not just hard on me, but I could see it taking its effect on Ciara [Doran]. ... I was feeling stressed, and I could see it in [their] eyes as well".{{Cite web|last=Shutler|first=Ali|date=14 September 2018|title=Pale Waves: My Mind Makes Noises|url=https://readdork.com/features/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-2/|url-status=live|website=Dork|archive-date=4 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204143508/https://readdork.com/features/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-2/}} On 13 June 2018, Baron-Gracie confirmed via Twitter that recording had finished.{{cite web |last1=Graves |first1=Shahlin |title=Pale Waves - 'Kiss' music video |url=http://www.coupdemainmagazine.com/pale-waves/14542 |date=14 June 2018 |archive-date=31 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210831005807/http://www.coupdemainmagazine.com/pale-waves/14542 |url-status=live |work=Coup de Main}} Excepting "Television Romance" and "There's a Honey", the album was produced by Jonathan Gilmore, a music technician who had previously worked with the 1975 on their eponymous album (2013), and their subsequent records, I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It (2016), and A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships (2018).{{cite web |title=Jonathan Gilmore: Credits |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jonathan-gilmore-mn0000262933/credits?1643653372704 |publisher=AllMusic |archive-date=31 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220131182920/https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jonathan-gilmore-mn0000262933/credits?1643653372704 |url-status=live }} The versions of "There's a Honey" and "Television Romance" that appear on My Mind Makes Noises were slightly remixed by Gilmore and Doran, and Doran provided additional production for the entire album.

Sonically, the music on My Mind Makes Noises is informed by pop music from the 1980s. When asked by Music Feeds magazine why the band gravitated toward the sound of this decade, Baron-Gracie explained, "Me and [Ciara] grew up with our parents playing a lot of music from the eighties, so it's sort of engraved into us from such an early stage in our lives that I guess we always gravitate towards that era. I loved twinkly synths and the jangly chorus guitars".{{Cite web|last=Bellamy|first=Sarah|date=18 September 2018|title=Pale Waves On '80s Love & Why You Should Only Listen To Their Album In The Dark|url=https://musicfeeds.com.au/features/pale-waves-on-80s-love-and-why-you-should-only-listen-to-their-new-album-in-the-dark/|url-status=live|website=Music Feeds|archive-date=7 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207171314/https://musicfeeds.com.au/features/pale-waves-on-80s-love-and-why-you-should-only-listen-to-their-new-album-in-the-dark/}} 1980s musicians and bands whom the band members have cited in particular as influences include The Blue Nile, Madonna, Prince, Cocteau Twins, and the Cure.{{Cite web|date=5 July 2018|title=Making Waves With Heather Baron-Gracie|url=https://themusic.com.au/features/pale-waves-heather-baron-gracie-cyclone/xJnX1tnY29o/06-07-18/|url-status=live|website=The Music|archive-date=8 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220108193601/https://themusic.com.au/features/pale-waves-heather-baron-gracie-cyclone/xJnX1tnY29o/06-07-18/}}{{Cite web|last=Smith|first=Thomas|date=20 November 2020|title=Pale Waves: "I've been hiding who I am for so long now. I don't wanna do that any more"|url=https://www.nme.com/big-reads/pale-waves-cover-interview-2020-change-who-am-i-2821221|url-status=live|website=NME|archive-date=29 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210429000159/https://www.nme.com/big-reads/pale-waves-cover-interview-2020-change-who-am-i-2821221}} Some music critics have noted the sonic influence of the 1975 on the album,{{cite web|last1=Connick|first1=Tom|date=21 September 2018|title=Get to know Healywave – the scene indebted to The 1975's signature sound|url=https://www.nme.com/blogs/the-1975-healywave-new-bands-2300319|website=NME|archive-date=4 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204192511/https://www.nme.com/blogs/the-1975-healywave-new-bands-2300319|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|last=Smyth|first=David|date=17 November 2018|title=Virtually famous: Pale Waves|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/music/virtually-famous-pale-waves-a3693696.html|url-status=live|website=Evening Standard|archive-date=12 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220212164328/https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/music/virtually-famous-pale-waves-a3693696.html}} although Baron-Gracie has pushed back on blanket comparisons between her band and the 1975, telling Nylon magazine: "I guess people just hear poppy guitars these days and think, 'The 1975,' because they're the most relevant band at the moment, and they're so big people are automatically inclined to compare".{{cite web|last1=Manders|first1=Hayden|date=2018|title=Pale Waves Are So Much More Than the 1975 Clones|url=https://www.nylon.com/articles/pale-waves-interview-2018|website=Nylon|archive-date=23 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210723133405/https://www.nylon.com/articles/pale-waves-interview-2018|url-status=live}}

Speaking to the BBC on 8 January 2018 about the album, Heather Baron-Gracie explained that while most of the music the band had released up until that point was about romance, many of the songs from My Mind Makes Noises were more introspective: "The songs we have out now are very influenced by romance. The album is me talking about a lot of my darker issues. I talk about a lot of things that go on in my mind rather than in my heart ... I talk about a lot of my insecurities, which I think a lot of people will relate to and will find really comforting. There's a lot of content which I think will strike a chord with people, who will think it's really honest". In a subsequent interview with Music Week on 15 January 2018, Baron-Gracie further described the album as more sombre and personal: "A lot of people have only heard our pop songs, so I can't wait to give them the other side of Pale Waves, which is super dark and vulnerable".{{cite web |last1=Homewood |first1=Ben |title='Dirty Hit is the perfect label for us': Pale Waves on their meteoric rise so far |url=https://www.musicweek.com/talent/read/dirty-hit-is-the-perfect-label-for-us-pale-waves-on-their-meteoric-rise-so-far/071116 |website=Music Week |date=15 January 2018 |archive-date=31 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220131175206/https://www.musicweek.com/talent/read/dirty-hit-is-the-perfect-label-for-us-pale-waves-on-their-meteoric-rise-so-far/071116 |url-status=live }}

File:Theres a Honey Sample.ogg but pop at the same time".]]

The album-opener, "Eighteen", was written while the band was touring. Baron-Gracie had "had [the] first verse written for ages", and Doran wrote music around Baron-Gracie's lyrics. Doran's contributions were inspired by their affective response to Greg Mottola's film Adventureland (2009), and in a 2018 interview with Ones to Watch, Doran noted that "vibes from films can really give you inspiration for sound". Because several people who had heard the song felt like it would be "big", the band decided to have it open the record.{{cite web |last1=Lemeshow |first1=Rae |title=Q&A: Pale Waves Guides Us Through 'My Mind Makes Noises' Debut Album, Track by Track |url=https://www.onestowatch.com/blog/qa-pale-waves-guides-us-through-my-mind-makes |website=Ones to Watch |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028110406/https://www.onestowatch.com/blog/qa-pale-waves-guides-us-through-my-mind-makes|archive-date=28 October 2020 |date=14 September 2018}} The album's second track, "There's a Honey", was released on 20 February 2017 as the band's first single after signing to Dirty Hit. According to Baron-Gracie, the song "is about a failed relationship, the sense of desperation, contrasting feelings and insecurities".{{cite web |last1=Martinez |first1=Abraham |title=Pale Waves Arrive With Their Super Dreamy 'There's A Honey' Video |url=https://www.thefader.com/2017/04/11/pale-waves-theres-a-honey-dirty-hit-records |website=The Fader |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170522050427/https://www.thefader.com/2017/04/11/pale-waves-theres-a-honey-dirty-hit-records |archive-date=22 May 2017 |date=11 April 2017}} When recording the track, the band aimed for something "dreamy and dark", like "something you could hear off a movie track"; Baron-Gracie later defined the sound as "a bit of shoegaze but pop at the same time".{{Cite web|last=Prudham|first=Matthew|date=26 October 2017|title=A few words with: Pale Waves|url=https://www.palatinate.org.uk/words-pale-waves/|website=Palatinate|archive-date=4 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204155256/https://www.palatinate.org.uk/words-pale-waves/|url-status=live}} A 12-string Vox Phantom guitar owned by Matty Healy was used when recording the song's main riff; Healy later gifted this guitar to Baron-Gracie as a birthday present.{{Cite web|last=Gardner|first=Mike|date=4 October 2017|title=Interview with Pale Wave's Heather Baron-Gracie|url=http://www.circulation-mag.com/2017/10/in-conversation-with-pale-waves/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206032524/http://www.circulation-mag.com/2017/10/in-conversation-with-pale-waves/|archive-date=6 December 2017|website=Circulation}}{{Cite web|last=Fagerstrom|first=Bruce|date=15 February 2021|title=A Conversation With Heather Baron-Gracie (Pale Waves)|url=https://magnetmagazine.com/2021/02/15/a-conversation-with-heather-baron-gracie-pale-waves/|website=Magnet|archive-date=23 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220123183557/https://magnetmagazine.com/2021/02/15/a-conversation-with-heather-baron-gracie-pale-waves/|url-status=live}} "Noises" discusses mental health, focusing on struggles with body image and self-esteem. "['Noises' is] such an important song to me", Baron-Gracie told Dork magazine. "I wrote it when I was going through a difficult time. I was struggling with how I looked and how my body was". Baron-Gracie also expressed her hope that the song might have a positive influence on the band's younger fans: "A lot of our fans are young, they're growing up, and they're figuring out who they want to be. It was important for me to write a song on self-esteem and mental health issues because ... they need someone else to say, 'You know what? It's okay 'cos I'm feeling the same'". Doran revealed in a BBC interview that they had had the first line of the song (i.e., "My mind makes noises", from which the album derives its name) tattooed on their arm: "It's my favourite lyric," Doran explained. "That's the most personal song [Baron-Gracie]'s ever written. I love that song. That's all about Heather's world".

File:Pale Waves 12 06 2018 -9 (46372513022).jpg (centre), and Ciara Doran (right).]]

While discussing the songs "Came in Close" and Loveless Girl" with Ones to Watch, Baron-Gracie emphasized that they were both "really influenced by Ciara". Doran was inspired to "dancey" vibe of "Came in Close" to Aretha Franklin's single "Jump to It", which Doran was listening to while working on the song's bassline. "Loveless Girl" was based on Baron-Gracie's experiences as an aloof high school student,{{Cite web|last=Wright|first=Lisa|date=13 September 2018|title=Mind Control: Pale Waves|url=https://diymag.com/2018/09/13/mind-control-pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-interview|website=DIY|language=en|archive-date=4 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204152055/https://diymag.com/2018/09/13/mind-control-pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-interview|url-status=live}} with particular inspiration coming from a time she was chastised by an admirer after rejecting their advances: "That person ... wanted me to be in a relationship with them, and then when I explained to them that I didn't feel that certain type of way towards them ... [they] said I was cold and loveless and mean. But it was just because I was rejecting them".{{Cite web|first=Shahlin|last=Graves|date=11 December 2018|title=Interview: Pale Waves, a shoulder to cry on|url=https://www.coupdemainmagazine.com/pale-waves/15081|website=Coup de Main|archive-date=4 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204152106/https://www.coupdemainmagazine.com/pale-waves/15081|url-status=live}} "Drive" was inspired by the synth-pop sound of the Naked and Famous, and Baron-Gracie considers it to be a sort of follow-up to "Noises", telling Ones to Watch that if "'Noises' was when I was 16, ... 'Drive' is where I am now at 23". Baron-Gracie later told Coup de Main magazine that the song was about self-discovery and mental growth: "Sometimes I get really sad about stupid things, and I'm like, 'God, I'm 23, why [am] I still feeling liks this?' Or why am I still doing silly immature shit?" "When Did I Lose it All?" is about "having somebody who's 'the one,' and you know that they're right for you but you just don't work in that moment". "She" is an "all emo" lament that details a once-passionate relationship collapsing; musically, it was one of the first tracks that Doran composed almost entirely by themself.

File:Television_Romance_(Pale_Waves)_sample.ogg.{{cite magazine |title=Pale Waves singles so far |magazine=NME |date=20 October 2017 |page=22 |last=Stubbs |first=Dan }}]]

"One More Time" was consciously written by the band to be one of the album's "pop bangers". Described by Doran as "straightforward" and "pop", the track was crafted to "sound really good with Heather on guitar". Doran composed the track's musical structure, and Baron-Gracie wrote the song's chorus immediately after hearing what Doran had developed: "Usually we're perfectionists", Baron-Gracie told Ones to Watch, "and we're like, 'If it's the first thing it can't be right,' but with this, we were like, 'You know what? That's it.'" "Television Romances" was written by the band in 2016, during a period of self-doubt, as Baron-Gracie explained to NME: "We got off that tour, and we're like, 'Right, we can't write.' We were so sad. ... [But] then we came out with one of our best songs".{{cite web |last1=NME |title=Pale Waves – 'Television Romance' {{!}} Song Stories |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLoftvM1i2o |publisher=YouTube |date=25 October 2017 |archive-date=16 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210716192031/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLoftvM1i2o |url-status=live |author1-link=NME }} Lyrically, the song was inspired by Baron-Gracie's experience with an unwanted admirer, as she told Billboard magazine: "[The song is] about a night we had ... [And] somebody was just constantly coming onto me, and I was like, 'No, please stop! Because one, I don't want this, and two, I'm not really into you.' And they just wouldn't stop and I was like, 'Is it not obvious that I don't like you back?'"{{cite magazine |last1=Schiller |first1=Rebecca |title=Pale Waves: Get to Know the 'Television Romance' Group |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/rock/8470409/pale-waves-interview-video |magazine=Billboard |date=20 August 2018 |archive-date=16 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210716193532/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/rock/8470409/pale-waves-interview-video |url-status=live }} In a discussion with Sarah Kidd of Ambient Light, Baron-Gracie noted that some listeners have incorrectly taken "Television Romance" to be a love song, even though it is really "a rejection song ... It's looking at romance in a negative manner".{{cite web |last1=Kidd |first1=Sarah |title=Heather Baron-Gracie of Pale Waves: Disintegration, Every Time |url=https://www.ambientlightblog.com/disintegration-every-time-a-pale-waves-interview/ |website=Ambient Light |date=29 June 2018 |archive-date=16 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210716195308/https://www.ambientlightblog.com/disintegration-every-time-a-pale-waves-interview/ |url-status=live }} Musically, many critics have compared the song to the music of the 1975.

"Red" had originally been envisioned by Baron-Gracie as an acoustic track, but when she showed the song to Doran, the latter insisted that this musical approach "wasn't right". The two reworked the song, adding in a "club track" chorus. "Kiss" was another older composition, with its origins dating back to when Baron-Gracie was a student at BIMM Manchester. In one class, Baron-Gracie had been tasked with "writ[ing] a soundtrack to a film", and so she spliced scenes from John Hughes's The Breakfast Club (1985) down into a trailer-length video and scored it. Doran and Baron-Gracie later took the score and fleshed it out into what evolved into "Kiss". In a conversation with Clash magazine, Baron-Gracie described "Kiss" as "a naive song" because its lyrics were written when she was "try[ing to] get into the mindset of being a songwriter for a band, rather than a solo artist".{{cite web |last1=Murray |first1=Robin |title=Backstage At The Great Escape: Pale Waves |url=https://clashmusic.com/features/backstage-at-the-great-escape-pale-waves |website=Clash |date=21 May 2018 |archive-date=2 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202212112/https://clashmusic.com/features/backstage-at-the-great-escape-pale-waves |url-status=live }} Musically, "Kiss" has been compared to the work of the Cure and Robert Smith.For sources linking the sound of "Kiss" to the Cure and Robert Smith, see the following:

• {{cite web|last1=Nardino|first1=Meredith|date=20 November 2018|title=Review: On Pale Waves' 'My Mind Makes Noises,' Nostalgia and Romance Burn Bright|url=https://atwoodmagazine.com/pwmn-pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-album-review/|website=Atwood Magazine|archive-date=21 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721140413/https://atwoodmagazine.com/pwmn-pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-album-review/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite web |title=Pale Waves shake and cry until the walls bleed in new music video for "Kiss" |url=https://www.grimygoods.com/2018/06/19/pale-waves-shake-and-sing-until-the-walls-bleed-in-new-music-video-for-kiss/ |website=Grimy Goods |date=19 June 2018 |archive-date=2 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202213352/https://www.grimygoods.com/2018/06/19/pale-waves-shake-and-sing-until-the-walls-bleed-in-new-music-video-for-kiss/ |url-status=live }}
• {{cite web |last1=Viles |first1=Phil |title=Pale Waves at Rock City – review |url=https://www.nottinghampost.com/whats-on/music-nightlife/pale-waves-rock-city-review-2064997 |website=Nottingham Post |date=2 October 2018 |archive-date=2 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202213354/https://www.nottinghampost.com/whats-on/music-nightlife/pale-waves-rock-city-review-2064997 |url-status=live }}
• {{cite web |last1=Osborne |first1=Naoise |title=A Sharp and Syrupy Kiss from Pale Waves |url=https://www.tn2magazine.ie/a-sharp-and-syrupy-kiss-from-pale-waves/ |website=TN2 |date=27 June 2018 |archive-date=2 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202213356/https://www.tn2magazine.ie/a-sharp-and-syrupy-kiss-from-pale-waves/ |url-status=live }} The album's penultimate track, "Black" was another song that had been written years before the album's release. The track (originally called "You Don't Love us Anymore") went through several iterations, which led Baron-Gracie to call it "the most problematic song" that the band had ever written. Musically, "Black" fuses "really frantic and really rock" verses with a more "relaxed R&B" chorus. My Mind Makes Noises closes with "Karl (I Wonder What It's Like to Die)", a sparsely-arranged acoustic song in which Baron-Gracie mourns the loss of her grandfather, who died when she was 14. The track {{en dash}} described by DIY magazine as being "filled with an almost uncomfortable level of sadness and pain" {{en dash}} was written after Doran encouraged Baron-Gracie to channel her grief through music. Due to its emotional resonance, Baron-Gracie has cited "Karl" as her favourite song on the album.{{Cite web|last=Nichols|first=Paul|date=28 September 2018|title=Riding high: Pale Waves|url=https://www.prsformusic.com/m-magazine/features/rising-tide-pale-waves-interview/|website=PRS for Music|language=en|archive-date=4 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204175439/https://www.prsformusic.com/m-magazine/features/rising-tide-pale-waves-interview/|url-status=live}}

File:Pale Waves 12 06 2018 -10 (44606412470).jpg.]]

The album's first single "There's a Honey" was released on 20 February 2017,{{Cite web|last=Richards|first=Will|date=20 February 2017|title=Dirty Hit newbies Pale Waves start strong on 'There's A Honey'|url=https://diymag.com/2017/02/20/dirty-hit-pale-waves-debut-single-theres-a-honey|website=DIY|archive-date=4 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204203635/https://diymag.com/2017/02/20/dirty-hit-pale-waves-debut-single-theres-a-honey|url-status=live}} and music video for the song, directed by Silent Tapes, was released on 11 April 2017.{{Cite web|last=Pale Waves|date=11 April 2017|title=Pale Waves – There's A Honey (Official Video)|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfPZ6hukcw8|publisher=Vevo|via=YouTube|archive-date=5 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205174808/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfPZ6hukcw8|url-status=live}} Matty Healy and Samuel Burgess-Johnson served as the video's creative directors.{{cite web |last1=Millner |first1=Polly |title=Pale Waves "There's A Honey" (silent tapes, dir.) |url=https://www.videostatic.com/watch-it/2017/04/12/pale-waves-theres-honey-silent-tapes-dir |website=Video Static |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170923215733/https://www.videostatic.com/watch-it/2017/04/12/pale-waves-theres-honey-silent-tapes-dir |archive-date=23 September 2017 |date=12 April 2017}} The video for "There's a Honey" focuses on the group performing the song in the dark under a translucent magenta cloth. When talking to Fader about the video, Baron-Gracie noted: "For the first Pale Waves video we wanted [it to be] minimal and beautiful. Drawing inspiration from American sculptor Daniel Wurtzel, [we wanted something] romantic [while also] evoking a feeling of claustrophobia".{{Cite web|date=12 April 2017|title=Pale Waves go under cover in the video for 'There's A Honey'|url=https://diymag.com/2017/04/12/pale-waves-video-theres-a-honey-2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180111175006/https://diymag.com/2017/04/12/pale-waves-video-theres-a-honey-2017|archive-date=11 January 2018|website=DIY}} The album's second single, "Television Romance", was released on 16 August 2017.{{cite web |last1=Swann |first1=Emma |title=Pale Waves Unveil New Single, 'Television Romance' |url=https://diymag.com/2017/08/17/pale-waves-unveil-new-single-television-romance |website=DIY |date=17 August 2017 |archive-date=2 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201202031556/https://diymag.com/2017/08/17/pale-waves-unveil-new-single-television-romance |url-status=live }} The music video for the single was co-directed by Samuel Burgess-Johnson and Matty Healy, and it debuted on 18 September 2017.{{Cite web|last=Pale Waves|date=18 September 2017|title=Pale Waves – Television Romance|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ot1j5M5PTC4|publisher=Vevo|via=YouTube|archive-date=4 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171204105247/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ot1j5M5PTC4|url-status=live}}{{cite web |last1=McGoran |first1=Peter |title=Hot Press Track of the Day: Pale Waves' 'Television Romance' |url=https://www.hotpress.com/music/hot-press-track-of-the-day-pale-waves-television-romance-20764930 |website=Hot Press |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220606151717/https://www.hotpress.com/music/hot-press-track-of-the-day-pale-waves-television-romance-20764930 |archive-date=6 June 2022 |date=17 September 2017}} The video features the band performing the song in the living room of a flat located in Ashton-under-Lyne in the Greater Manchester area. The flat used in the video was owned by a 92-year-old woman (according to Healy, "She had no clue what was going on but she was loving it").{{Cite web|last=Stubbs|first=Dan|date=20 October 2017|title=The 1975 and Pale Waves: Matty Healy introduces your favourite new pop band|url=https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-radar/pale-waves-1975-matty-healy-interview-2151614|url-status=live|website=NME|archive-date=16 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210716192511/https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-radar/pale-waves-1975-matty-healy-interview-2151614}} Both "There's a Honey" and "Television Romance" were re-released on 10 November 2017 as a limited edition white 7" double A-side single,{{cite web|url=https://store.dirtyhit.co.uk/*/*/Television-Romance-There-s-A-Honey-White-7/5ML70000000|title=Pale Waves {{!}} Television Romance / There's A Honey White 7|publisher=Dirty Hit|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212031756/https://store.dirtyhit.co.uk/*/*/Television-Romance-There-s-A-Honey-White-7/5ML70000000|archive-date=12 December 2017|url-status=dead}} which debuted at number 83 on the Scottish Singles Chart, and at number 2 on the UK Vinyl Singles and UK Singles Sales Charts.{{cite web|title=Official Physical Singles Chart Top 100: 17 November 2017 – 23 November 2017|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/physical-singles-chart/20171117/1/|publisher=Official Charts Company|archive-date=19 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210719011602/https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/physical-singles-chart/20171117/1/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Official Vinyl Singles Chart Top 40: 17 November 2017 – 23 November 2017|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/vinyl-singles-chart/20171117/897/|publisher=Official Charts Company|archive-date=13 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210113131344/https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/vinyl-singles-chart/20171117/897/|url-status=live}}

"Kiss" was officially released as the album's third single on 15 May 2018, although it had earlier leaked on Spotify before being taken down.{{cite web|date=15 May 2018|title=Here's Pale Waves' latest massive banger, 'Kiss'|url=https://readdork.com/news/pale-waves-kiss-new-track/|work=Dork|archive-date=4 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204152216/https://readdork.com/news/pale-waves-kiss-new-track/|url-status=live}} "Kiss" premiered on Annie Mac's Radio 1. A music video for "Kiss" was released on 14 June 2018.{{Cite web|date=14 June 2018|title=Pale Waves unveil video for 'Kiss'|url=https://diymag.com/2018/06/14/pale-waves-unveil-video-for-kiss|website=DIY|language=en|archive-date=5 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205181651/https://diymag.com/2018/06/14/pale-waves-unveil-video-for-kiss|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|last=Whatley|first=Jack|date=14 June 2018|title=Pale Waves share new video for 'Kiss'|url=https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/pale-waves-share-new-video-for-kiss/|url-status=live|archive-date=9 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209153501/https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/pale-waves-share-new-video-for-kiss/}} Directed by Robert Hales,{{Cite web|title=Pale Waves|url=http://www.houndcontent.com/project/8419/pale-waves|url-status=live|website=Hound Content|archive-date=9 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209154150/http://www.houndcontent.com/project/8419/pale-waves}} this video is in filmed in black and white and sees the band performing in a seemingly disused warehouse while black paint leaks from the walls.{{Cite web|last=Pale Waves|date=14 June 2018|title=Pale Waves – Kiss|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvTKiz_Sbqk|url-status=live|website=YouTube|archive-date=9 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209154147/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvTKiz_Sbqk}} The fourth single, "Noises", was released on 28 June 2018, debuting on Zane Lowe's Beats1 radio show.{{cite web|title=Pale Waves' new song 'Noises' addresses mental health and insecurity – listen|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/listen-pale-waves-noises-2346618|date=28 June 2018|work=NME|archive-date=2 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302144246/https://www.nme.com/news/music/listen-pale-waves-noises-2346618|url-status=live}}{{cite web |last1=Lowe |first1=Zane |title=6/28/18: Pale Waves |url=https://music.apple.com/co/station/6-28-18-pale-waves/ra.1405261907?l=en |publisher=Apple Music |access-date=11 June 2022 |date=28 June 2018}} Around a month later, on 20 July 2018, the band released a video for the single. Directed by Gareth Phillips,{{Cite web|last=Reilly|first=Nick|date=20 July 2018|title=See the many sides of Pale Waves in the music video for 'Noises'|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/pale-waves-unveil-2357023|url-status=live|website=NME|archive-date=5 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205122159/https://www.nme.com/news/music/pale-waves-unveil-2357023}}{{Cite web|last=Pale Waves|date=20 July 2018|title=Pale Waves – Noises (Official Video)|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nQessUrdk0|url-status=live|website=YouTube|archive-date=5 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205180148/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nQessUrdk0}} this video sees Baron-Gracie performing as four distinct characters, each dressed in a unique style.{{cite podcast | url= https://archive.org/details/podcast_darkus-podcast_pale-waves-the-journey-so-far_1000426720373 | title=Pale Waves: The Journey So Far: Heather Baron-Gracie | website=Darkus Podcast| author1=T. S. C.| author2=Baron-Gracie, Heather| via=Archive.org| date=16 March 2020| time=3:10| access-date=8 June 2022}} On 24 July 2018, the band released "Eighteen" as the fifth single from the record. "Eighteen" also debuted on Mac's Radio 1 show,{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p067bjzv|title='It reminds me of being 18' {{en dash}} Pale Waves introduce Kiss, tonight's Hottest Record|publisher=BBC|date=2018|archive-date=10 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180910023112/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p067bjzv|url-status=live}} and it later charted at 55 on Billboard Japan.{{cite web|title=Japan Billboard Hot 100|url=http://www.billboard-japan.com/charts/detail?a=hot100&year=2018&month=09&day=17|work=Billboard Japan|archive-date=12 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180912131123/http://www.billboard-japan.com/charts/detail?a=hot100&year=2018&month=09&day=17|url-status=live}} The music video for "Eighteen", directed by Adam Powell, was released on 22 August 2018 and follows Baron-Gracie as she goes on a road trip across the United States. Footage of Baron-Gracie walking through a forest, staying in a motel, visiting a diner, and driving in her car is interspersed with flashbacks of Baron-Gracie's trysts with an unseen lover.{{Cite web|last=Pale Waves|date=22 August 2018|title=Pale Waves – Eighteen (Official Video)|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yk9v1zyGXYg|url-status=live|website=YouTube|archive-date=5 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205180147/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yk9v1zyGXYg}}{{cite web |last1=Hernandez |first1=Joe |title=Pale Waves share music video for 'Eighteen' |url=https://www.beyondthestagemagazine.com/pale-waves-shares-music-video-for-eighteen/ |website=Beyond the Stage |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220606155154/https://www.beyondthestagemagazine.com/pale-waves-shares-music-video-for-eighteen/ |archive-date=6 June 2022 |date=22 August 2018}} The sixth single from the album, "Black", was released on 14 August 2018. The song premiered on Beats1.{{cite magazine|magazine=Billboard|title=Pale Waves Drop Shimmering New Single 'Black': Listen|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/pale-waves-black-8470165/|author=Mele, Sofia|date=14 August 2018|archive-date=4 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204150029/https://www.billboard.com/music/rock/pale-waves-black-8470165/|url-status=live}} "One More Time" was released on 13 September 2018 as the final single from the album.{{cite web |title=Listen to Pale Waves' new song 'One More Time' |url=https://diymag.com/2018/09/13/listen-to-pale-waves-new-song-one-more-time |website=DIY |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220606155154/https://www.beyondthestagemagazine.com/pale-waves-shares-music-video-for-eighteen/ |archive-date=6 June 2022 |date=13 September 2022}} A music video for "One More Time" was released on 17 September 2018,{{cite web|author=Pale Waves|date=17 September 2018|title=Pale Waves – One More Time (Official Video)|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy-WhOVbKZ8|publisher=YouTube|archive-date=5 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205180602/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy-WhOVbKZ8|url-status=live}} which was directed by the duo Sophia + Robert,{{cite web |title=Sophia + Robert |url=https://sophiaplusrobert.com/ |website=Sophia + Robert |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220606152315/https://sophiaplusrobert.com/ |archive-date=6 June 2022}} sees Pale Waves perform the song in a small red room.

In August 2018, Pale Waves received a Music Export Growth Scheme (MEGS) grant from the Department for International Trade, which helped offset the cost of the band's international touring.{{cite web |last1=Paine |first1=Andre |title=Pale Waves, Anna Calvi, Nothing But Thieves among acts set for Government-backed export boost |url=https://www.musicweek.com/talent/read/pale-waves-anna-calvi-nothing-but-thieves-among-acts-set-for-government-backed-export-boost/073474 |website=Music Week |date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=12 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220212163656/https://www.musicweek.com/talent/read/pale-waves-anna-calvi-nothing-but-thieves-among-acts-set-for-government-backed-export-boost/073474 |url-status=live }} To promote My Mind Makes Noises in the United States, Pale Waves performed "Eighteen" on the 14 November 2018 episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers.{{Cite magazine|last=Engelman|first=Nicole|date=15 November 2018|title=Pale Waves Delivers Moody Performance of 'Eighteen' On 'Late Night': Watch|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/late-night-pale-waves-eighteen-watch-8485194/|url-status=live|magazine=Billboard|archive-date=5 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220205181236/https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/late-night-pale-waves-eighteen-watch-8485194/}} The band also embarked on a three-month tour of North America that stretched from October 26 to December 6;{{cite web |title=Pale Waves address body image, insecurity with new song 'Noises' |url=https://www.altpress.com/news/pale-waves-body-image-noises/ |website=Alternative Press |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220606152604/https://www.altpress.com/news/pale-waves-body-image-noises/ |archive-date=6 June 2022 |date=28 June 2018}} at the start of 2019, the band subsequently embarked on the Music for Cars Tour, opening for the 1975.{{cite web |title=The 1975 announce third album, 'Music For Cars' |url=https://www.altpress.com/news/the_1975_announce_third_album_music_for_cars/ |website=Alternative Press |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220606153354/https://www.altpress.com/news/the_1975_announce_third_album_music_for_cars/ |archive-date=6 June 2022 |date=27 April 2017}}

{{Album ratings

| ADM = 6.2/10{{cite web |title=Pale Waves My Mind Makes Noise |url=http://anydecentmusic.com/review/9552/Pale-Waves-My-Mind-Makes-Noise.aspx |website=AnyDecentMusic? |date=2018 |archive-date=24 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210724181637/http://anydecentmusic.com/review/9552/Pale-Waves-My-Mind-Makes-Noise.aspx |url-status=live }}

| MC = 61/100{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/my-mind-makes-noises/pale-waves|title=Pale Waves – My Mind Makes Noises|work=Metacritic|date=13 September 2018|last=|first=|archive-date=9 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220509175238/https://www.metacritic.com/music/my-mind-makes-noises/pale-waves|url-status=live}}

| rev1 = Clash

| rev1Score = {{rating|7|10}}{{cite web|url=https://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises|title=Pale Waves - My Mind Makes Noises|work=Clash|date=19 September 2018|last=Murray|first=Robin|archive-date=26 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180926205522/https://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises|url-status=live}}

| rev2 = DIY

| rev2Score = {{rating|4|5}}{{cite web|url=http://diymag.com/2018/09/13/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-album-review|title=Pale Waves – My Mind Makes Noises|work=DIY|date=13 September 2018|last=Finn|first=Rachel|archive-date=13 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913211150/http://diymag.com/2018/09/13/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-album-review|url-status=live}}

| rev3 = Dork

| rev3Score = {{rating|5|5}}{{cite web|url=https://www.readdork.com/reviews/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises|title=Pale Waves – My Mind Makes Noises|work=Dork|date=11 September 2018|last=Ackroyd|first=Stephen|archive-date=11 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180911191845/https://www.readdork.com/reviews/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises|url-status=live}}

| rev4 = Exclaim!

| rev4Score = {{rating|7|10}}{{cite web|url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/pale_waves-my_mind_makes_noises|title=Pale Waves – My Mind Makes Noises|work=Exclaim! Review|date=15 September 2018|last=Gormely|first=Ian|archive-date=14 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914222730/http://exclaim.ca/music/article/pale_waves-my_mind_makes_noises|url-status=live}}

| rev5 = The Guardian

| rev5Score = {{rating|2|5}}{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/sep/13/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-review-goth-pop-thin-as-a-layer-of-black-lipstick|title=Pale Waves: My Mind Makes Noises review – goth-pop as thin as black lipstick|work=The Guardian|date=13 September 2018|last=Ward|first=Sean}}

| rev6 = The Independent

| rev6Score = {{rating|2|5}}{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-album-review-the-1975-paul-weller-true-meanings-tour-dates-a8532416.html|title=Pale Waves, My Mind Makes Noises album review: An awful lot of mimicry|work=The Independent|date=13 September 2018|last=Ward|first=Sean|archive-date=13 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913112300/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-album-review-the-1975-paul-weller-true-meanings-tour-dates-a8532416.html|url-status=live}}

| rev7 = The Line of Best Fit

| rev7Score = {{rating|8|10}}{{cite web|url=https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/reviews/albums/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-album-review|title=Pale Waves remind us of the vital importance of pop music on their debut album|work=The Line of Best Fit|date=11 September 2018|last=Ward|first=Sean|archive-date=7 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190707123729/https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/reviews/albums/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-album-review|url-status=live}}

| rev8 = NME

| rev8Score = {{rating|4|5}}{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/album/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-review|title=Pale Waves – My Mind Makes Noises|work=NME|date=14 September 2018|last=Smith|first=Thomas|archive-date=14 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914132309/https://www.nme.com/reviews/album/pale-waves-my-mind-makes-noises-review|url-status=live}}

| rev9 = Q

| rev9Score = {{rating|3|5}}

| rev1score =

}}

The record received mostly positive reviews from music critics. At review aggregation website Metacritic the album has an average score of 61 out of 100 indicating "generally favorable reviews" based on 10 reviews. Fellow music aggregator AnyDecentMusic? likewise gave the album an average score of 6.2/10.

Dork magazine gave the album a perfect score; reviewer Stephen Ackroyd called the album "a glorious coronation, plain and simple" and noted that My Mind Makes Noises was a record of "such assured confidence it belies just how raw Pale Waves still are". Sean Ward of the Line of Best Fit gave the album a highly positive review and praised the band's ambition to resurrect guitar music: "As we are constantly reminded guitar music is long deceased, four musicians arrive who look, aptly, as though they have come back from the dead". Ward concluded that "My Mind Makes Noises is both immediate and idiosyncratic", and that while "Pale Waves' presence may be gloomy ... their songwriting and ambition could not be brighter". Writing for DIY magazine, Rachel Finn argued that this record proved Pale Waves to be "a band keen to subvert your expectations", whose debut album was "filled to the brim with hooky pop choruses centred around that well-trodden songwriting topic of falling in and out of love". Finn noted that the record "show[ed] both sonic and lyrical growth from [the band's] first EP", and concluded that it was ultimately "a pop record with substance at its core".

Thomas Smith of NME magazine called My Mind Makes Noises "an impressive, deft debut" that he hypothesized would propel the band "from cult concern to the big leagues". Smith further argued that the record "encapsulates everything Pale Waves are: emotional, arresting and endearing". Clash magazine writer Robin Murray called the record a "stellar debut". "Battle-hardened by lengthy tours across the land and beyond", Murray wrote, "Pale Waves bring that energy into the studio on a crisp, effervescent debut LP". The reviewer concluded that My Mind Makes Noises "feels like a beginning – a picture not entirely in focus, but somehow you can't rest your eyes away". Ian Gormely of Exclaim! magazine wrote that Baron-Gracie "broadcasts her highest highs and lowest lows overtop of light and shimmering '80s rock and R&B with a modern pop gloss". Goermly argued that the band's aesthetic, as exemplified by Baron-Gracie, was key to their success, serving as a "hook" that reels listeners in. While noting that the record's "repetitive nature" and its highly produced sound may alienate potential listeners, Gormely nevertheless concluded that "if early aughts emo was your jam, there'll certainly be lots to love here".

Q magazine gave My Mind Makes Noises a somewhat mixed review, noting that while it was "a promising start", there was still "room for improvement". Roisin O'Connor of The Independent likewise wrote that the album "show flashes of potential but an awful lot of mimicry"; she concluded that while "it's fine to be influenced by one particular band, [Pale Waves] need to find their own voice or risk being known as little more than The 1975's pale imitators". Alexis Petridis of The Guardian called it "an album with ambitions bigger than its abilities". Petridis negatively compared the band to other pop artists ("what Pale Waves really sound like is Taylor Swift in 80s retro mode"), with the caveat that they "don't yet have the facility to craft a knockout pop song to take on the Swedish songwriting factories".

My Mind Makes Noises was released by Dirty Hit on 14 September 2018 on cassette tape, CD and vinyl record; the record was also released on streaming platforms and as a digital download. The record charted at number five on the midweek UK Albums Chart Update,{{cite web |title=It's Paul Weller vs Eminem for this week's Number 1 album |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/paul-weller-battling-eminem-for-his-first-uk-number-1-album-in-six-years__24067/ |publisher=Official Charts Company |archive-date=26 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180926170414/http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/paul-weller-battling-eminem-for-his-first-uk-number-1-album-in-six-years__24067/ |url-status=live }} and on 21 September 2018, it debuted at number eight on the UK Albums Chart, selling 7,110 copies in its first week.{{cite web |last=Jones |first=Alan |url=https://www.musicweek.com/analysis/read/charts-analysis-eminem-holds-off-modfather-from-albums-summit/073899 |title=Charts analysis: Eminem holds off Modfather from albums summit |work=Music Week |date=21 September 2018 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=6 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191006073227/https://www.musicweek.com/analysis/read/charts-analysis-eminem-holds-off-modfather-from-albums-summit/073899 |url-status=live }} The record was also the best-selling cassette tape of the week.{{cite web |title=Eminem fends off Paul Weller to claim a third week at Albums Number 1 |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/eminem-fends-off-paul-weller-to-claim-a-third-week-at-number-1-on-the-official-albums-chart__24128/ |publisher=Official Charts Company |archive-date=3 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220603143047/https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/eminem-fends-off-paul-weller-to-claim-a-third-week-at-number-1-on-the-official-albums-chart__24128/ |url-status=live }} In its second week on the chart the record fell to number 60.{{cite web |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/albums-chart/20180928/7502/ |title=UK Albums chart 2nd Week |publisher=Official Charts Company |date=28 September 2018 |archive-date=11 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181011014018/http://www.officialcharts.com/charts/albums-chart/20180928/7502/ |url-status=live }} In the United States (where it was distributed by Interscope Records), the album debuted at number one on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart and number 39 on the Top Album Sales chart, selling 3,000 copies.{{cite magazine |title=Pale Waves Debut On Emerging Artists Chart, Gunna Hits Top 10 |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/8477047/pale-waves-debut-emerging-artists-chart |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=26 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180926180459/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/8477047/pale-waves-debut-emerging-artists-chart |url-status=live }}

All tracks are written by Ciara Doran and Heather Baron-Gracie.

{{Track listing

| extra_column = Producer(s){{efn|name=note1|Ciara Doran provided additional production on all tracks, and Gilmore provided additional production on tracks 2 and 10.}}

| total_length = 50:10

| title1 = Eighteen

| length1 = 3:00

| extra1 = Jonathan Gilmore

| title2 = There's a Honey

| length2 = 3:50

| extra2 = {{hlist|George Daniel|Matthew Healy}}

| title3 = Noises

| length3 = 4:06

| extra3 = Gilmore

| title4 = Came in Close

| length4 = 3:03

| extra4 = Gilmore

| title5 = Loveless Girl

| length5 = 3:04

| extra5 = Gilmore

| title6 = Drive

| length6 = 4:14

| extra6 = Gilmore

| title7 = When Did I Lose It All?

| length7 = 3:57

| extra7 = Gilmore

| title8 = She

| length8 = 4:14

| extra8 = Gilmore

| title9 = One More Time

| length9 = 2:39

| extra9 = Gilmore

| title10 = Television Romance

| length10 = 3:24

| extra10 = {{hlist|Daniel|Healy}}

| title11 = Red

| length11 = 3:56

| extra11 = Gilmore

| title12 = Kiss

| length12 = 3:10

| extra12 = Gilmore

| title13 = Black

| length13 = 3:54

| extra13 = Gilmore

| title14 = Karl (I Wonder What It's Like to Die)

| length14 = 3:39

| extra14 = Gilmore

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Japan edition bonus track{{cite web|url=http://hostess.co.jp/releases/2018/09/HSE-6862.html|title=My Mind Makes Noises|work=Hostess Entertainment Unlimited|language=ja|archive-date=30 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220130231910/http://hostess.co.jp/releases/2018/09/HSE-6862.html|url-status=live}}

| total_length = 53:41

| title15 = The Tide

| note15 = Demo

| length15 = 3:13

}}

Credits adapted from the liner notes of My Mind Makes Noises.{{cite AV media notes|title=My Mind Makes Noises|last=Pale Waves|year=2018|type=LP record liner notes|publisher=Dirty Hit|id=DH00385|location=London}}

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Pale Waves

• Heather Baron-Gracie – vocals, guitar
• Ciara Doran – drums, synths, programming
• Hugo Silvani – guitar
• Charlie Wood – bass guitar

Additional musicians

• Jonathan Gilmore – programming

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Technical

• Jonathan Gilmore – production {{small|(tracks 1, 3–9, 11–14)}}, additional production {{small|(tracks 2, 10)}}
• George Daniel – production {{small|(tracks 2, 10)}}
• Matthew Healy – production {{small|(tracks 2, 10)}}
• Ciara Doran – additional production {{small|(tracks 1–14)}}
• Joseph Rodgers – engineering
• Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing
• Robin Schmidt – mastering

Artwork

• Samuel Burgess-Johnson – art direction
• Danny North – photography

{{col-end}}

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

{{col-end}}

{{notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Pale Waves}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:2018 debut albums

Category:Pale Waves albums

Category:Interscope Records albums