at "the a.v. club", chris mincher graded the album a b+, saying that ""supernova" is a surprisingly bold, enterprising follow-up from an artist who could have easily ridden out the rest of his career on adult-alternative autopilot." in addition, mincher remarking that ""supernova"'s experiments aren’t all triumphs by any means, but, given how painless it would have been to stay the course, lamontagne is to be commended for taking on a challenge at all." at "paste", hilary saunders rated the album a 7.5-out-of-ten, stating how ""supernova" sounds like a foray into the exploratory sonic terrains created by those who simply can." saunders closing with saying that ""supernova" represents the idealistic (and exospheric) possibilities for lamontagne after 10 years in the industry, what gets lost in the experimentation is the emotional connection previously forged though clear playing and exposed lyricism." at "knoxville news sentinel", chuck campbell rated the album three-and-a-half stars out of five, observing that "change is constant" with the release that "results in a chameleonic" and this "will attract some and repel others."