Strangers from the Universe

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[7]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[8]
The Great Alternative & Indie Discography	4/10[9]
Spin Alternative Record Guide	8/10[10]
Sputnikmusic	4.5/5[11]

Trouser Press wrote: "Berserk rhythms are presented with deadpan simplicity, like the sickly funk riff of 'Socket' that keeps sticking a banana peel in its own path."[12] Spin opined that "for once the Thinking Fellers have made an album that you can comfortably hear straight through, and its dark mood deepens along the way."[13]

The Washington Post determined that the album "can be elusive, but much of it deserves the title the band bestowed on the closing track, 'Noble Experiment'."[14] The Santa Fe New Mexican noted that "sometimes stringed instruments, such as banjo or mandolin, are used as rhythm instruments, or to create a throbbing drone ... It's usually unsettling, but sometimes beautiful."[15]

Thinking Fellers Union Local 282

• Mark Davies – vocals, guitar, bass guitar, banjo, Optigan, brass instruments, percussion
• Anne Eickelberg – vocals, bass guitar, keyboards, percussion
• Brian Hageman – vocals, guitar, mandolin
• Jay Paget – vocals, drums, guitar, keyboards, sampler
• Hugh Swarts – vocals, guitar, percussion

Production and additional personnel

• Gail Butensky – photography
• Greg Freeman – production, engineering
• John Frentress – sculptures
• Margaret Murray – design
• Thinking Fellers Union Local 282 – production, recording

• Strangers From The Universe at Discogs (list of releases)