Reviewing the album on "Bandwagon", three critics called this "proper follow-up to "Oscilla"" "challenging and disconcerting", "sinister, raw and explosive", and praised how the production, especially the drums, "sounds great". "Designed to grip you and shock you out of apathy and just make you think––that's the sense of hope," they noted, singling out "Everything is Vibration" and "The Weight of It All" as highlights of "their strongest album yet", giving it ratings of 8/10, 7/10 and 8.5/10. In a review of their album launch gig, "Bandwagon" also noted that the album "doesn't just see them at their most sonically intrusive — they're pissed off." "Time Out Singapore"'s editor Iliyas Ong called "August is the Cruellest" a "seething, fire-breathing monster", declaring this "soundtrack for our times" "The Observatory's – and possibly the local scene's – tightest and most mature effort to date". Interviewing the band in "TODAY", Kevin Mathews called "August is the Cruellest" a "multi-layered work", while he declared it "their most accessible of their recent releases" and "progressive rock with a conscience" that "succeeds at every level" on his blog.