Album Review: Snail Mail - 'Ricochet'

After five years the incredibly talented Lindsey Jordan, AKA Snail Mail returns with her latest effort Ricochet, which drops everywhere tomorrow on Matador Records! Jordan has a young but acclaimed career, particularly when it comes to songwriting. While her prior work has tangled with issues of love, her latest effort is more introspective in nature.

On Ricochet, Jordan develops themes centered on issues of the passing of time and our own mortality. Jordan has a history of working in complex themes into her work with her prolific songwriting ability. Ricochet represents another evolution in the career of Snail Mail.

Jordan keeps familiar tones of dynamic guitar work that sets the mood for her emotionally heavy tracks. Jordan is such a master of her craft that she perfectly pairs her instrumentation (particularly on guitar) with the mood she is crafting lyrically. That hasn't changed on her latest effort, as Ricochet, does a great job at pulling the listener in sonically, then delivering an emotional gut punch lyrically.

Lead single "Tractor Beam" sets the tone for the album and Jordan doesn't let up from there. Our favorite track on the record has to be "Dead End". It does such a fantastic job of building to it's chorus, where Jordan elegantly pairs her pitch perfect falsetto with the highs on her guitar. It's paced well from a rhythm perspective, especially from a percussion standpoint. The chorus is punctuated perfectly with an arresting guitar riff to start thing off and show that Jordan means business.

While we can't talk enough about her lyrical prowess, we have to stress that Jordan has shown continued evolution from a instrumentation perspective as well. Her guitar work is dynamic, but not overbearing. She picks her spots perfectly, pairing picking work with chords that build a powerful sonic landscape. The track "Nowhere" is also another great example of Jordan making use of mutes and pauses. She pairs these perfectly with her fantastic vocal work. Snail Mail shows that while five years may feel like an eternity with regard to releasing music (particularly in our singles driven, streaming marketplace). However, with Ricochet, Jordan shows that good things come to those who wait. This is a real winner and an early contender for album of the year.

Rating - 5/5