[3] Tom Breihan of Stereogum noted elements of "toothy Wire minimalism, mid-period Motown strut, Kinks-y melodic twinkle" in the album's sound, even going on to suggest the influence of Timbaland "since (his music) brought the same sense that empty space was a virtue, that a perfectly-placed sound-effect could be the most memorable part of a song".

[10] "The Way We Get By", the lead single from the album, is "built on a rollicking piano line and handclaps" with lyrics that "had its roots in the (Daniel)’s more recent memories of scraping together enough cash to go to shows, alter his mind and find salvation in Iggy Pop".

[3] The former has been described by the Stereogum article as a "nicely knotty, a too-short spurt of sass" whilst the latter track "sports a human beatbox rhythm"[8] or "just a guy breathing funny",[9] the music on top of it described as being "made up of Depeche Mode type flourishes and Prince meets Bowie vocals"[11] The song "Jonathan Fisk" is based on a bullying middle school classmate of the songwriter Britt Daniel.

[9] "Paper Tiger" has been singled out by many critics as being the album's best track, Tiny Mix Tapes describing it as "a minimalist ditty [...] With orchestral swells, reversed effects, rim clicks, piano chords, and a haunting vocal melody".

[13] Doug Wallen of PopMatters wrote that the song breathed "sweet new life into classic love-song fodder -- "I'm not dumb / Just want to hold your hand" and "I will be there with you when you turn out the light"".

[10] "Someone Something" features a heavy Elvis Costello influence (of whom Daniel is an "ardent admirer"[3]), Delusions of Adequacy describing it as " jump(ing) and hop(ping) along [...] a neat piano and nicely placed drum fills".