"Thinning" Released: January 26, 2017 (2017-01-26)
Habit is the debut extended play by American indie rock musician Snail Mail, originally released on July 12, 2016 through Sister Polygon Records[1] and later reissued through Matador Records on August 30, 2019.[2] Its only single, "Thinning", was released on January 26, 2017.
Background and recording
Lindsey Jordan wrote the songs on Habit at age 15,[3] and recounted the process as "all over the place and messy".[4] She said she wrote the EP "almost hastily", believing it would not be heard by many people. She commented, "I wrote the songs about things that were so personal that I actually almost hoped nobody would [hear the songs]. I was like, ‘Uh oh, this girl is going to know it’s about her. This is deep, top secret.’"[5]
The EP was recorded live.[6] Jordan suffered from bronchitis throughout the entirety of the EP's recording process, which she said made tracking satisfactory vocal takes very difficult.[4]
Musical style
Jordan cited DC-area bands Priests and Flasher as influences on the sound on Habit.
In a review for Pitchfork, Quinn Moreland gave the album a score of 7.7/10. Moreland wrote that the album "wallows in uncertainty and transition – but their songwriting makes it feel both adolescent and eternal... Perhaps that is why Snail Mail sound so alive despite much tangible optimism: there's no person behind a curtain, the ugly resides in reality."[7] The single "Thinning" also caught the attention of NM Mashurov of Pitchfork, who included the song on Pitchfork's "best new track" list, describing the song as "lo-fi dream-pop/garage, flat affect carried by fuzzy guitars, indie-pop melodies... 'Thinning' feels lush, like the momentary satisfaction of crawling back into bed when the outside world is too much."[10]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Lindsey Jordan, except where noted.
