After graduating from Purchase College's Conservatory of Music, where she studied studio compositions and released her first two albums as student projects, Mitski learned to play the guitar and began work on her third studio album. The projects, combined with completing her degree while working outside jobs to pay rent, left Mitski exhausted, a state which heavily influenced the creation of the album. The album was recorded mostly in houses and makeshift studios with a select group of musicians and friends and represented a departure from Mitski's classical training showcased in her orchestral, piano-based first two albums.[7][8]
The lead single of the album, "First Love / Late Spring", was released on May 15, 2014,[9][10] with Double Double Whammy announcing Mitski joined their label roster and will release a full-length record later that year. The album was announced on September 16 alongside the release of the second single, "Townie".[11][12] Two music videos were released for "Townie", the first directed by Allyssa Yohana and premiered on Rookie on November 9, 2014,[13] and the second directed by Faye Orlove and premiered on The Fader on March 9, 2015.[14] She released two more singles, "I Don't Smoke" on September 29 and "I Will" on October 21.[15][16]
The album was reissued with four new bonus tracks on April 7, 2015, through Don Giovanni Records.[17] In 2016, the album was released under Mitski's new label Dead Oceans.[18]
Bury Me at Makeout Creek received acclaim from music critics.[20][21] Writing for Pitchfork, Ian Cohen said, "though not necessarily nostalgic, the sound of Bury Me at Makeout Creek, the impressive third album from Mitski Miyawaki, is inventive and resourceful in a '90s-indie way," concluding the review saying the album "still sounds like a breakthrough even if nothing's coming up Mitski in these songs."[6]Consequence of Sound's Sasha Geffen said "love and death and violence all smash into each other throughout the record, which delicately balances on a thin line between polished, academic pop music and unhinged punk rock," adding: "Mitski's grip on melody, pacing, and composition is tight from years of practice, but the raw energy with which she applies it is what brings Make Out Creek to life. Her courage as a musician distinguishes her more than any amount of training. Here, it's on full display."[4]Rolling Stone's Paula Mejia wrote, "Bury Me is edged with heavy riffs that at various times recall Black Sabbath and even Liz Phair. But it's Mitski's talent for penning deep-cutting lyrics that makes this album soar."[3]
Concluding the review for AllMusic, Marcy Donelson called the album an "auspicious if fatalistic label debut" and described it as "grungy, impulsive, and with memorably acerbic, vulnerable lyrics."[19]
^Tully Claymore, Gabriela (March 23, 2015). "Mitski Silences The Rain At SXSW". Stereogum. Retrieved July 4, 2018. ...followed by the album's first single, the cavernous ballad "First Love/Late Spring."
