AllMusic thought that "The Golden Dove puts the 'independent' back in indie-rock: It's beautiful, weird, and difficult to love."[2]The Washington Post wrote that "the songs jump from poetic fantasies accompanied by British-folk arpeggios to earthy resentments over choppy punk chords."[1] The Chicago Tribune praised the "beguiling instrumental color and gentle lyricism."[8]
In a 2017 Pitchfork feature, musician Sadie Dupuis dubbed Dove "one of the most influential records to me" and called its songs "creepy and sad and surprising." She singled Dove out in particular for exemplifying Timony's "adventurous talent for arrangement".[9]
