Letter to Self
Studio album by
Sprints
Released5 January 2024 (2024-01-05)
Genre
Length39:00
LabelCity Slang
ProducerDaniel Fox
Sprints chronology
A Modern Job
(2022)		 Letter to Self
(2024)

Letter to Self is the debut studio album by Irish band Sprints, released on 5 January 2024 through City Slang. The album was produced by Daniel Fox of fellow Irish group Gilla Band, and received acclaim from critics.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.4/10[1]
Metacritic87/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
Beats Per Minute74%[3]
Clash9/10[4]
DIY[5]
The Line of Best Fit8/10[6]
Loud and Quiet8/10[7]
Mojo[8]
NME[9]
Uncut8/10[10]

Letter to Self received a score of 87 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic based on 11 critics' reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[2] Uncut felt that "Sprints' debut delivers on thrilling live shows, with singer, guitarist and songwriter Karla Chubb providing a visceral fury, not least on the furious 'Adore Adore Adore', unheard since their label released Hole's Pretty on the Inside".[10] Mojo stated that "from Ireland's proliferating alt-guitar pack, these intense runners could go the distance".[8] Julia Mason of Clash wrote that "Sprints have produced an album brutally honest and personal. They have not been afraid to express the feeling of being an outsider, of looking for validation, of attempting to overcome self-doubt".[4]

NME's Rishi Shah opined that "for all its heavy-hitting subject matter, the beauty in Letter to Self is the optimism it leaves you with, the noise well and truly drowning out the pain in an empowering fashion", calling it "a dynamic album that is reflective of the muddled world we find ourselves in".[9] Ben Tipple of DIY described it as "musical exorcism at its very best, rallying against socially-imposed doubt and anxiety and – in its unique horror – finding welcome moments of inner peace".[5] Reviewing the album for The Line of Best Fit, Joshua Mills summarised Letter to Self as a "punchy, indignant collection of raucous garage rock, packed with vitriol, self-reflection, and the occasional burst of light. They’re tunes of real heft and fantastic energy, performed with intensity and commitment by singer Karla Chubb".[6] John Amen of Beats Per Minute concluded that Letters to Self is "a perilous yet fertile exploration of existential dissonance", with Sprints "striving for and often achieving an urgency and vision strikingly their own".[3]

Track listing

Letter to Self track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Ticking"3:06
2."Heavy"3:27
3."Cathedral"2:59
4."Shaking Their Hands"3:42
5."Adore Adore Adore"2:37
6."Shadow of a Doubt"4:10
7."Can't Get Enough of It"4:19
8."Literary Mind"4:32
9."A Wreck (A Mess)"3:36
10."Up and Comer"3:46
11."Letter to Self"3:20
Total length:39:00

Charts

Chart performance for Letter to Self
Chart (2024) Peak
position
Irish Albums (OCC)[11] 11
Scottish Albums (OCC)[12] 4
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 20
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[14] 2

References

  1. ↑ "Letter to Self by Sprints reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Letter to Self by Sprints Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  3. 1 2 Amen, John (8 January 2024). "Album Review: Sprints – Letter to Self". Beats Per Minute. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  4. 1 2 Mason, Julia (2 January 2024). "Sprints – Letter to Self | Reviews". Clash. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  5. 1 2 Tipple, Ben (4 January 2024). "Sprints – Letter to Self review". DIY. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  6. 1 2 Mills, Joshua (4 January 2024). "Sprints: Letter to Self Review – rollicking catharsis". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  7. ↑ Edmunds, Natalia Quiros (2 January 2024). "Sprints – Letter to Self". Loud and Quiet. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  8. 1 2 "Sprints – Letter to Self". Mojo. February 2024. p. 89.
  9. 1 2 Shah, Rishi (3 January 2024). "Sprints – Letter to Self review: noise-rock ripe with melodrama". NME. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  10. 1 2 "Sprints – Letter to Self". Uncut. January 2024. p. 36.
  11. ↑ "Official Irish Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  12. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  13. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  14. ↑ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
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