In his review for "Sounds" magazine, Jerry Gilbert thought Genesis "almost achieved the perfect album". At times he noticed "the overall sound does lack the required vitality" and moments where the band "are trying just that little bit too hard", but such moments "are sporadic", and considered it more interesting than "Trespass" and "Nursery Cryme". Welch thought "Foxtrot" was "a milestone in the group's career", "an important point of development in British group music", and that the band had reached "a creative peak". A short critical review from Rich Aregood in the "Philadelphia Daily News" read: "Genesis still has trouble putting songs together, but they play and sing beautifully."