"[11] Santiago explains that he had never been motivated to write for Pixies, as Black Francis was always competent to perform that role, but the downtime during the recording sessions resulted in the guitarist tinkering with these two songs and him presenting it to his bandmates.

Wilde also felt that "some choruses on tracks like Vault of Heaven do verge on feeling a bit bland" but that Black Francis's "inimitable vocal twangs still remain and he still has plenty to say yet".

[17] Reviewing the album for The Line of Best Fit, Christopher Hamilton-Peach wrote that Doggerel has an abundance of "riffs and rockabilly nods" and "finds the American alternative mainstays reinstating bittersweet peaks and ironic edge".

Hamilton-Peach elaborated that the album "revolves between the erringly melodic and angst-filtered", calling "The Lord Has Come Back Today" an "upbeat ditty" and describing "You're Such a Sadducee" as having "esoteric-themed acerbic punk bite".

[14] Ben Lynch of Loud and Quiet called Doggerel "the best Pixies record since they've reformed", writing that the band "rips through a range of styles, from furious grunge to acoustic pop swoons, often, if not always, with a gusto that on occasions almost gets you feeling excited again".

The band relies on chops instead of accidents to thrill, favoring production that's clean, burly, and without a lick of grit", and concluded that "there's no denying that Pixies are now an outfit built for comfort, not speed—a group that's found its personal sweet spot and is content to linger there".