Ricochet, Snail Mail (7/10)

Snail Mail? In 2026? Fuck yeah. If you've been following me for a while lol you know that I've been a hardcore Snail Mail fan since the Lush era, so it's a great treat for me to finally get a new album after 5 years. I know Lindsey's said that this is her best and most cohesive/developed album she's written, and I can see that for sure (even if Habit will always be my fav). It exists somewhere in the production landscape between Lush and Valentine, and probably in the sound too, but it definitely has pushed past both into new territory. The arrangements are great, and she moves a little back from the pop of Valentine towards the rock side of things, which I of course love, though there are still pop elements and sounds for sure. Lindsey's albums have a history of really growing on me with time and repeated listens, and I'm sure this one will too, so perhaps I'll come back and revise this review in a few months. But on second/third listen, I think it is definitely an achievement. I know she's said she was listening to a lot of trip hop, Pinback, American Analog Set, and Juliana Hatfield, and I think you can see a lot of inspiration in the songs. The opening of "Butterfly" reminds me so much of the opening of WHAT FKNG SONG IS IT someone help me pls yup okay i got it, it's "15 Seconds" by Ivy. Anyways, thumbs up from me. Fav tracks: Dead End, Butterfly, Nowhere

Revised 3/31/26: Ok so Pitchfork put out this scathing review of this album, which I thought was really harsh but also articulated a lot of what I was feeling but couldn't quite name (or didn't want to bc i luv snail mail); I think the biggest being that the lyricism on this album kind of fell flat for me. Lindsey's an amazing lyricist, one of my favorites, but I do agree that, I think because of their vagueness or proximity to cliché, the lyrics on this record felt much less original or piercing than those on her prior. As I said up there, Snail Mail albums typically grow on me over time, so I'm keen to keep giving this album more chances, but i dont know, I guess I am a little disappointed given how much Lindsey talked about this album being her proudest work to date. I will report back later probably.