[11] The Indianapolis Star wrote that "Bryan Harvey's guitar glides while Johnny Hott seems to have just found his drums in the garage, infusing hyperactive beats and even pounding on garbage can lids.

"[15] Trouser Press determined that "the diverse, often busy (but occasionally spare, as in the offhand acoustics of 'Magpie Wing') arrangements could have dandified even plain material, but the pair’s writing, notwithstanding a lyrical shift to more personal reflections, is right on track.

[14] The Washington Post thought that "the lyrics still have a Southern gothic quality, but they've lost their literary density and better resemble the country and blues sources Harvey draws on.

"[8] The Milwaukee Sentinel deemed the album "lively and occasionally even rowdy, but it's also a mature piece of work that draws gently on the roots of everyday life in a Southern town.

"[17] The Chicago Tribune concluded that "an off-handed charm pervades Cakewalk, which has a similar feel to Paul McCartney's first solo album but skirts overbearing preciousness.