Singin' To An Empty Chair

Ratboys

Singin' To An Empty Chair

Sixth album from the Chicago indie band led by Julia Steiner and David Sagan produced by Chris Walla ex-Death Cab For Cutie

ADM rating[?]

8.1

Label
New West
UK Release date
06/02/2026
US Release date
06/02/2026
  1. 9.1 |   Paste Magazine

    The Chicago band turns therapy’s in-between spaces into songs that resist neat resolutions, letting emotional maturity bite down instead of smoothing everything over
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  2. 9.0 |   Sputnik Music (staff)

    Emotionally and lyrically – if you look closely enough – it paints a hope born from ashes picture that is all too easy to resonate with and draw inspiration from. In all ways, Singin’ to an Empty Chair is a resounding success
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  3. 9.0 |   DIY

    At a time when country-tinged indie rock is by no means in short supply in America - Wednesday, Waxahatchee and MJ Lenderman all spring to mind - Ratboys have earned their seat at the top table
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  4. 8.5 |   Northern Transmissions

    Singin’ to an Empty Chair is steady and honest. An album from a band that is deserving of their praise
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  5. 8.4 |   Pitchfork

    Bringing their country-tinted indie rock to boundless new landscapes, the Chicago band returns with their most emotionally affecting and compositionally advanced songs to date
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  6. 8.0 |   Under The Radar

    What would you say to someone who isn’t there? The band spends their latest album breaking through these barriers, liberated by the knowledge that they tried
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  7. 8.0 |   PopMatters

    A wonderful album that shows Ratboys revving their engine once again, ready to take another long, curious lap around the block
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  8. 8.0 |   All Music

    Despite its multi-purpose recording approach, widely varying tempos, and ever-changing moods, it's Ratboys' most cohesive album yet and one that will likely connect with those fruitlessly seeking closure
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  9. 8.0 |   Far Out

    Ratboys show no sign of complacency with this album, as Singin’ to an Empty Chair challenges the very core of the group and manages to come out on top
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  10. 8.0 |   Record Collector

    Ratboys have definitively made one of 2026's first brilliant albums. Print edition only

  11. 8.0 |   Slant Magazine

    The album frames intimacy as a risk worth taking regardless of the outcome
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  12. 8.0 |   The Line Of Best Fit

    With the hooks, heart, and heaviness packed into Singin’ To An Empty Chair’s 50 mins, their time could well be now
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  13. 8.0 |   Exclaim

    Comfortably the most accomplished and self-assured Ratboys album to date
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  14. 7.5 |   No Ripcord

    It’s not a bad record — I don’t think Ratboys have got a bad record in them — but it just seems to be missing that extra gear at times, a problem that is particularly evident in its relatively sedate middle third
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  15. 7.4 |   Spectrum Culture

    The album's progression from near pop-punk to elegiac pedal steel gives Steiner's psychological explorations the multifaceted presentation they deserve
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