The album was described as "...a culmination of searing guitars that never collide and are always textured with the rhythm section's simple powerful backbone.

[5] AllMusic wrote that "once the listener gets past the distracting production ... this is probably the Straitjacket Fits' strongest set of songs.

"[2] Trouser Press wrote that if the production "occasionally yields mush, it also results in brilliance: a swooping, swooning, swelling, surging, soaring (and all that) rush that beautifully captures the intensity of the band’s live shows.

"[1] The Chicago Reader praised the "gorgeous sweet-and-sour vibe—lush and abrasive, peppy and mournful, thrilling and sinister.

"[9] The Guardian called Melt the band's best album, writing that "Down in Splendour" "shows off their exquisite vocal harmonies and twin-guitar interplay without losing any of the tension that would ultimately destroy the group.