Sore Thumb was envisioned as a way to relieve the pressure of following up on its predecessor; to experiment and have fun without the prospect of it being released.

[1] Lilitri spent a month recording with his cousin Tavish Maloney, and reunited with engineer Billy Mannino, whom he had worked with on The Yunahon Mixtape (2017).

[5] Pitchfork awarded it its Best New Music tag, with reviewer Arielle Gordon calling it "adventurous": "Knowing that these songs were likely meant to be reworked before their release makes the record seem contoured by imperfections [...] Sore Thumb is Oso Oso when no one's watching, still casually sincere and effortlessly earnest.

"[6] Stereogum columnist Chris DeVille viewed it among the best albums of its year, commenting that Sore Thumb is "another study in startlingly melodic aching splendor, stripped-down in feel yet loaded with dazzling lyrics and fascinating sounds".

[7] Zach Schonfeld at Spin also ranked it among the year's best, writing, "Sore Thumb is considerably looser and more eclectic [than past efforts].