In 1989, Jon Pareles wrote that "Field Trip sometimes sounds like other bands - among them the Meat Puppets, Camper van Beethoven and the Descendents - but its fervor, precision and tunefulness are striking." Two years later, he wrote that Field Trip "plays bright, driving songs with memorable guitar riffs". The Los Angeles Times Bill Locey wrote that Field Trip "...plays sort of countrified folk rock that just keeps getting better every time you listen." A The Hollywood Reporter article wrote that Field Trip's "...main redeeming qualities were its enthusiasm and a watchably hyperkinetic drummer."
Individual albums
In a mixed review of the band's debut album, Beautiful, Nancy Dingley wrote, "There is nothing particularly new about Field Trip's version of folk/rock: it's that familiar combination of well-mixed, tight tracks and honest, spunky and downright odd lyrics." She concluded her review by writing, In the St. Petersburg Times, Steve Millburg wrote that the album "...shows how punk can evolve into something accessible, even catchy, without losing its edge," and described the album's sound as "...pop-punk, or maybe punk-influenced pop, with a touch of country sprinkled in." Trouser Presss Ira Robbins wrote that "With fine playing and tunes that make fast friends on one spin, Headgear is a delight." Greg Sandow was less favorable in his review of the album, giving it a B– grade and writing, "Teen pop and knife-edged hardcore rock make a lively, if sometimes dour, blend." The Chicago Tribunes David Rothschild gave their third album, Ripe, a 2.5 star rating, writing, "Field Trip's energy and enthusiasm are as contagious as a case of the chickenpox in a kindergarten classroom. Too bad the album isn't consistent." A review of Ripe in the Gavin Report wrote that because the band "enthusiastically lay down one bouncy, tenacious hook after another, it's easy, during the course of Ripe, to take the band's excellence for granted- or, perhaps, overlook it all together." Deseret News gave Ripe3 stars out of 4 and called it "more accessible than the band's previous two efforts", adding that the band "still has more than enough rustic charm to pull off folky rock numbers like "Wake Up Alone" and "Another Lonely Day," which should be a truck-driving anthem." In the Village Voice, Robert Christgau gave Ripe a "choice cut" rating, identifying the song "Ballad of Field Trip" as the only good song on the album.
