Rolling Stone (12/25/97, p.164) - "...McLachlan favors maternal patience over bombshells, whipsered intimacy over a quick payoff. Her songs are cast in deep-blue tints and gray-day moods; she soaks her voice in warm echo..."
Entertainment Weekly (7/25/97, p.70) - "...Her best tunes recall the sinewy clarity of early Joni Mitchell....Never have McLachlan's recordings sounded so dense and alive. Yet the album's centerpiece remains the star's voice--an instrument rich and knowing enough to redeem even the poor souls her lyrics embrace." - Rating: B
Rovi(2009/04/08)
Surfacing was released as the first Lilith Fair tour hit the road, and Sarah McLachlan benefited enormously from the timing. As the organizer of Lilith Fair, McLachlan was on the cover of magazines across America and Canada, which helped Surfacing debut at number two on the U.S. charts -- a particularly remarkable feat since its predecessor, Fumbling Towards Ecstasy, peaked at number 50. Although Surfacing didn't offer anything new from McLachlan and wasn't a particularly strong consolidation of her talents, it certainly wasn't a bad record and featured several fine songs, including the single "Building a Mystery." ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Rovi