it received a positive review and received 3.5/5 stars from allmusic, who wrote ""[p]"itched somewhere between the postal service's indie electronica and the bedsit romanticism of belle & sebastian or the clientele, "painting over the dirt" fuses smart, melodic pop songwriting to a melancholy worldview exemplified by wolferman's barely there vocals and minor-key tunes." a separate review stated, ""[w]"hether through words or sounds, it never feels artificial and never overriding. this, in a sense, is indie-pop's equivalent to willie nelson's "red headed stranger"".