Reneé Rapp BITE ME
Reneé Rapp's BITE ME arrives as a brash, theatrical collection that leans into defiance and performative swagger, and critics largely agree it's most effective when Rapp lets personality lead. Across six professional reviews the record earned a 72/100 consensus score, with reviewers repeatedly citing “Leave Me Alone”, “Kiss It Kiss It” and “At Least I’m Hot” as the album's sharpest moments. Those tracks marry bratty hooks, crowd-ready belting and nostalgic 80s/90s pop-rock flourishes to create the best songs on BITE ME and anchor the record's bold, revenge-pop energy.
Critics praised Rapp's theatrical instincts and candid confrontation - blame and clapback sit alongside queerness, vulnerability and hedonistic party scenes - even as several reviews flagged sonic inconsistency and occasional over-polish. Publications from Rolling Stone to Pitchfork celebrate the album's rowdy disco-glossed hits and Joan Jett-meets-Kesha rock-pop moments, while Paste and The Line of Best Fit note moments of cosplay and scattered identity that keep the record from fully committing. Reviewers consistently point to “Leave Me Alone” as the exemplar of her sneering charisma, with “Kiss It Kiss It” and “Mad” also named among standout tracks.
Balanced between triumph and unevenness, BITE ME reads as a confident, occasionally messy step in Rapp's pop trajectory - a short, quotable party that showcases vocal power and persona even when the songwriting and production wobble. For anyone searching for a BITE ME review or wondering what the best songs on BITE ME are, critics agree the record is worth attention for its centerpiece singles and theatrical bravado, while its uneven moments suggest greater refinement could follow.
Critics' Top Tracks
The standout songs that made critics take notice
Kiss It Kiss It (lyric quotes)
1 mention
"She asked me how I like my breakfast/I told her ‘hot on the bedroom floor’"— Rolling Stone
Leave Me Alone
6 mentions
"Party-hearty anthems like “Leave Me Alone” hit like old-school Sunset Strip rock sleaze"— Rolling Stone
Kiss It Kiss It
5 mentions
"the hell-raising rocker “Kiss It Kiss It.”"— Rolling Stone
She asked me how I like my breakfast/I told her ‘hot on the bedroom floor’
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
Leave Me Alone
Mad
Why Is She Still Here?
Sometimes
Kiss It Kiss It
Good Girl
I Can’t Have You Around Me Anymore
Shy
At Least I’m Hot
I Think I Like You Better When You’re Gone
That’s So Funny
You’d Like That Wouldn’t You
What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 7 critics who reviewed this album
Critic's Take
Reneé Rapp leans into mischief and blunt confession on BITE ME, where the best tracks - “Leave Me Alone” and “At Least I’m Hot” - capture her gleeful nastiness and self-assured swagger. Cobbald writes with a critic's eye but a fan's smile, noting that when she turns inward on songs like “I Think I Like You Better When You’re Gone” the record genuinely shines. The album's strengths are personality and hard-hitting lines, even if the production stays safe rather than adventurous. Overall, the best songs on BITE ME are the ones that let Rapp be both cruel and vulnerable, because that tension is where she is most interesting.
Key Points
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The best song is "Leave Me Alone" because its motif anchors the record and showcases Rapp's unfiltered personality.
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The album's core strengths are raw personality, confrontational lyrics, and moments of genuine vulnerability.
Themes
Critic's Take
Watch Reneé Rapp in BITE ME and the best songs - “Leave Me Alone” and “That’s So Funny” - feel built for spectacle, full of bratty hooks and powerhouse belting. The reviewer delights in Rapp’s stage-trained theatricality, praising how “Leave Me Alone” harnesses droll new wave and how the extended final chorus of “That’s So Funny” displays remarkable belting. Yet the critic also warns that many of the album’s ballads and slick production sometimes undercut those highs, so the best tracks stand out by letting Rapp act as much as sing. Overall, searchers for the best tracks on BITE ME will find the album’s peak moments where personality and vocal force collide.
Key Points
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The best song, "Leave Me Alone", succeeds because it channels bratty new wave and Rapp's theatrical persona into anthemic hooks.
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The album’s core strengths are Rapp’s powerhouse vocals and performative charisma, though uneven songwriting and maudlin production hold it back.
Themes
Critic's Take
Reneé Rapp’s Bite Me is a glorious noise, a 33-minute party where the best songs - like “Kiss It Kiss It” and “Leave Me Alone” - land as unapologetic blowouts. Rob Sheffield’s voice delights in the album’s rowdy, horny bravado, praising the hell-raising rocker moments and disco-glossed hits that make the best tracks on Bite Me sound like Gen Z reinventions of grunge and Seventies disco. He singles out “At Least I’m Hot” for its disco cameo and “Good Girl” for its Eighties synth-pop charm, explaining why those tracks stick in the head. The result answers plainly: if you want to know the best songs on Bite Me, start with “Kiss It Kiss It”, “Leave Me Alone”, and “At Least I’m Hot” - they define the album’s reckless, quotable energy.
Key Points
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“Kiss It Kiss It” is the best song because it exemplifies the album’s hell-raising, quotable bravado and sonic grunge-pop energy.
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The album’s core strengths are its relentless party-hearty songwriting, quotable one-liners, and successful fusion of grunge, disco, and Eighties synth-pop.
Themes
Critic's Take
Reneé Rapp is gleefully unfiltered on Bite Me, and the best songs land when she claws back at lovers and industry alike. Tracks such as “Leave Me Alone” and “Mad” show her at her most viciously entertaining, equal parts snark and singalong hooks. There is sultry payoff on “Kiss It Kiss It” and a bruised tenderness on “I Can’t Have You Around Me Anymore”, which together mark the album's strongest moments. The record rarely disappoints when Rapp turns the mic into a confetti cannon and refuses to be anything but brazen.
Key Points
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“Leave Me Alone” is the best song because it crystallizes Rapp's defiant persona with a memorable chant and on-brand attitude.
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The album's core strengths are its gleeful, unapologetic voice and a mix of snarky pop hooks with moments of sultry melancholy.
Themes
Critic's Take
Reneé Rapp leans into a bolder pop-star persona on BITE ME, where the best songs - notably “Leave Me Alone” and “Sometimes” - balance unapologetic sass with genuine heartbreak. Shannon Garner writes with punchy, theatrical relish, praising “Leave Me Alone” for its Joan Jett-meets-Kesha energy and singling out “Sometimes” as one of the record's most emotional points. Tracks like “Kiss It Kiss It” and “You'd Like That Wouldn't You” further prove Rapp's versatility, toggling between flirtatious, punk-tinged and confessional moods. The result is a messy, cathartic pop record that trades quiet reflection for bold, crowd-ready honesty.
Key Points
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The best song, “Leave Me Alone”, is best for setting the album's unapologetic tone with punchy production and commanding vocals.
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The album's core strengths are theatrical vocal delivery, candid lyrical wit, and a blend of pop polish with punk-tinged attitude.
Themes
Critic's Take
Cassidy Sollazzo writes with a wry, observant coolness, arguing that Reneé Rapp’s BITE ME delivers moments of real payoff — notably “Kiss It Kiss It” and “SHY” — while never fully committing to a singular identity. The review leans conversational and slightly sardonic, praising hooks that linger and vocal runs that soar, yet faulting the record for its cosplay tendencies and chaotic bridge choices. Sollazzo frames the best songs as high points amid a scattered set, explaining why the pop bangers and early-aughts rock flourishes stand out as the best tracks on BITE ME. The tone remains measured, admiring Rapp’s charisma but insisting the album needs more clarity and intentionality.
Key Points
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Kiss It Kiss It is the best song because it balances sensuality, cutesy hooks, and a radio-ready melody.
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The album's core strengths are Rapp's compelling vocal chops, charismatic persona, and several irresistible pop hooks amid risky genre play.