 Spiderland received positive reviews from music critics, including Spin, NME, and The Village Voice. In a contemporary review for Melody Maker, Steve Albini, producer of Slint's 1989 album Tweez, gave the album ten stars and called it "a majestic album, sublime and strange, made more brilliant by its simplicity and quiet grace." Albini found its unadorned production impeccable and said that it vividly captures McMahan and Pajo's playing so well that their guitars "seem to hover in space directly past the listener's nose", while "the incredibly precise-yet-instinctive drumming has the same range and wallop it would in your living room."
