Ricochet by Snail Mail

Snail Mail Ricochet

74
ChoruScore Critic consensus / 100

Released Mar 27, 2026 Matador

Established consensus 12 professional reviews Updated Oct 1, 2026

Mostly positive consensus

Snail Mail's Ricochet arrives as a purposeful reintroduction: across twelve professional reviews the record earned a 74.42/100 consensus score, and critics consistently point to a widened vocal range, lush arrangements, and shoegaze-dusted guitar work as the album's defining moves.

How ChoruScore works

Critics' Top Tracks

The songs critics returned to most

01

Tractor Beam

6 critic mentions

“Album opener "Tractor Beam" is ace, but the first guitar line unwittingly (hopefully unwittingly!)” — Beats Per Minute
02

Butterfly

3 critic mentions

“the second half comes in strong with some of her grittiest tracks to date in ‘Butterfly’ and ‘Hell’,” — Far Out Magazine
03

Light On Our Feet

2 critic mentions

“Light On Our Feet" has a Melon Collie -era Smashing Pumpkins backing supporting the plaintive guitar and vocals” — Beats Per Minute
Full critic consensus

Snail Mail's Ricochet arrives as a purposeful reintroduction: across twelve professional reviews the record earned a 74.42/100 consensus score, and critics consistently point to a widened vocal range, lush arrangements, and shoegaze-dusted guitar work as the album's defining moves. Early highlights such as “Tractor Beam” and “My Maker” recur in reviews as the clearest proofs of Lindsey Jordan's growth, while songs like “Dead End” and “Butterfly” are named among the best songs on Ricochet for blending intimate lyricism with denser orchestration.

The critical consensus frames Ricochet as a record of maturity and sonic expansion. Reviewers praise the string-enhanced arrangements and dream-pop/shoegaze textures that push Jordan from wounded detail into larger existential inquiry, noting themes of moving on, recovery, and alienation. Several critics single out “Tractor Beam” as an urgent opener whose inventive guitar-work and synth sheen set the tone, while “My Maker” and “Dead End” emerge as standout tracks that pair lyrical precision with haunting production. At the same time some reviews register reservations — a few critics find stretches of repetitiveness or that the album favors atmosphere over immediate hooks — which tempers unanimous acclaim.

Taken together, professional reviews suggest Ricochet is worth listening to for those interested in an artist expanding her palette: it balances introspective songwriting with richer production and offers several genuinely standout songs that mark Lindsey Jordan's clear artistic growth. Below, individual reviews unpack where the record's rewards lie and where its ambitions sometimes outpace its momentum.

Track Ratings

How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.

View:
1

Tractor Beam

6 mentions
100
03:34
2

My Maker

6 mentions
92
04:19
3

Light On Our Feet

2 mentions
95
03:53
4

Cruise

4 mentions
61
03:05
5

Agony Freak

2 mentions
79
03:21
6

Dead End

4 mentions
69
04:05
7

Butterfly

3 mentions
97
03:34
8

Nowhere

3 mentions
20
03:32
9

Hell

6 mentions
87
03:47
10

Ricochet

2 mentions
10
04:34
11

Reverie

4 mentions
69
03:32

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What Critics Are Saying

Deep insights from 13 critics who reviewed this album

Critic's Take

On Snail Mail's Ricochet, Sam Rosenberg zeroes in on the record's best tracks as proof of Lindsey Jordan's emotional precision, citing “Dead End” and “Tractor Beam” as standout moments. He writes with intimate specificity about the album's pull — the way “Dead End” rings with wakeful regret and “Tractor Beam” likens uncertainty to UFO light — and that close attention makes these the best songs on Ricochet. The review retains a warm, elegiac tone throughout, arguing that Jordan's lyrical clarity and now-steadier vocals elevate the best tracks into quietly stunning syntheses of past and present. Overall, Rosenberg frames the album's strongest moments as proofs that growing apart can paradoxically bring you closer to yourself, which is why listeners hunting for the best tracks on Ricochet should start with “Dead End” and “Tractor Beam”.

Key Points

  • The best song is "Dead End" because it serves as the radiant lead single and emotional touchstone of the album.

Themes

growth moving on nostalgia self-discovery healing

Critic's Take

Snail Mail's Ricochet feels like a coming-of-age in sound and thought, where highlights such as “Tractor Beam” and “Dead End” show Lindsey Jordan moving from private ache to broad-eyed reflection. The reviewer's voice delights in the record's polished orchestration and restrained power, praising “My Maker” for its haunting, hazy production and calling the title track a spiralling moment that connects the album's dots. This is a record of clarity and acceptance, so queries about the best songs on Ricochet point naturally to the shimmering opener and the converging midpoint that make the album feel like a cohesive journey.

Key Points

  • The best song is the shimmering opener "Tractor Beam" because it combines high production, strings, and anthemic hooks.
  • The album's core strengths are restrained orchestration and lyrical maturity that shift Jordan from private ache to broader existential clarity.

Themes

existential inquiry growth and maturity production and orchestration hope vs melancholy

Critic's Take

In his measured, admiring tone Tobias Furlong frames Snail Mail's Ricochet as a stirring reintroduction, praising how “Tractor Beam” opens with a surge of urgency and inventive guitar-work, and singling out “My Maker” as the record's anchoring single. He writes with affectionate authority, noting that “My Maker” generates the biggest sense of what has been missing from Jordan's output and calling the album a raw portrayal of artistic ego, alienation, and failure. The narrative is concise and celebratory, pointing listeners searching for the best songs on Ricochet toward “Tractor Beam” and “My Maker” as the album's clearest high points.

Key Points

  • The best song is "My Maker" because the reviewer calls it the lyrical jumping off point and anchor of the album.

Themes

artistic ego alienation failure reintroduction guitar prowess

Critic's Take

Snail Mail's Ricochet feels like a deliberate broadening of Lindsey Jordan's palette, with bright moments such as “Tractor Beam” and the alt-rock charge of “Hell” standing out as the best tracks on Ricochet. The record leans into shoegaze and dream-pop textures while keeping Jordan's lyrical introspection front and centre, so the best songs on the album are those that marry that atmosphere to muscular arrangements. “Tractor Beam” opens with jangly guitars and power-pop momentum that makes it feel like a clear highlight, while “Hell” supplies the alt-rock drive that punctuates the record's breadth. Overall, Ricochet's best tracks reward repeat listens by balancing influence and invention in Jordan's most assured work to date.

Key Points

  • The best song, "Tractor Beam", is powerful for its jangly guitars and pop momentum that open the album convincingly.
  • Ricochet's core strengths are its expanded sonic palette and lyrical introspection, blending shoegaze textures with clear songcraft.

Themes

change introspection sonic expansion influence from 90s dream-pop/shoegaze

Critic's Take

Snail Mail returns on Ricochet with a sound that has broadened into lusher strings and shoegaze-like electronics, and the best songs - notably “Tractor Beam” and “My Maker” - show Lindsey Jordan shifting from wounded detail to existential reach. The record lives in a contemplative midtempo register where melodies blur but a few anchors, like the churning “Dead End” and the uplifting closer “Reverie”, give weight and resolution. This is an album of grown-up concerns, textured production, and songs that linger rather than strike immediately, making the best tracks on Ricochet the ones that pair lyrical reach with those denser arrangements.

Key Points

  • The best song is "Tractor Beam" because its jangly, shimmery textures and processed vocals mark a striking expansion of Snail Mail's sound.
  • The album's core strengths are lush arrangements and mature, existential songwriting that give weight to midtempo, contemplative tracks.

Themes

maturity existential questioning disassociation mortality relationships

Critic's Take

Snail Mail's Ricochet finds Lindsey Jordan sharpening her craft with patience and care, and the reviewer's voice rewards the album's fussed-over songwriting rather than instant gratification. He singles out “Hell” as the standout for its grit, while praising “Butterfly” and the closing “Reverie” for their muscular second-half payoff and gorgeous chord work. The tone is admiring but measured, noting some repetitiveness early on yet arguing the record ultimately earns its moments. Searchers asking for the best songs on Ricochet will find the review pointing them to “Hell”, “Butterfly” and “Reverie” as the tracks that most reward repeated listens.

Key Points

  • The reviewer calls "Hell" the standout for its grit and impact.
  • The album's core strengths are careful songwriting, broadened vocal range, and 90s-influenced arrangements with string flourishes.

Themes

maturation 90s alternative influence recovery and resilience wider vocal range string-enhanced arrangements

Critic's Take

Snail Mail's Ricochet often finds its best tracks in moments where lyricism meets atmosphere, and the review privileges “Agony Freak”, “Hell” and “Cruise” as standout moments. The record's hazy romantic glow - the opener “Tractor Beam” - gives way to the more urgent tension of the title track, where darting strings and a drowning crescendo underline restless anxieties. There is tenderness in Lindsey Jordan's direct confessions, especially on “Hell” and “My Maker”, where orchestral touches complement fiery emotion. Overall the best songs on Ricochet are those that balance blunt colloquialisms with the album's newfound grunge-infused edge.

Key Points

  • Agony Freak is the best song because its meandering riffs and push-and-pull structure most vividly embody the album's emotional tension.
  • The album's core strength is balancing intimate, direct lyricism with richer, shoegaze and orchestral textures.

Themes

self-reflection broken relationships mortality shoegaze textures orchestral touches

Critic's Take

In a voice equal parts elegy and appraisal, Snail Mail’s Ricochet finds its most affecting moments in tracks like “Dead End” and “Ricochet”, where Jordan’s crisp delivery and sonics feel sonically breathtaking yet slightly restrained. The record often substitutes volcanic passion for a quieter disillusionment, which makes songs such as “Nowhere” and “Reverie” land with genuine emotional clarity even as the album favors digestibility over eccentricity. This is the best songs on Ricochet showing Jordan’s voice and arrangement skill, though the collection as a whole trades adventurousness for lush, unremarkable beauty.

Key Points

  • The best song is "Ricochet" for being the most sonically breathtaking and emblematic of the record's restrained power.
  • The album's core strength is lush, well-composed instrumentation that sacrifices experimental edge for emotional directness.

Themes

disillusionment loss friendship fading mortality sacrificed experimentation