ian hyland gave "road rage" a rating of nine out of ten in his review for the "sunday mirror". he said that if "matthews sounded any more welsh she'd be a dragon but this is a very excellent tune in any language." richard wallace called the single "magnificent" in an article for the "daily mirror" and praised the "seductive rolling rs in the chorus". paul cole, for the "sunday mercury", described "road rage" in 2002 as the best of catatonia's greatest hits and "the perfect pop song".