Alan Jones from
Music Week gave the song a score of four out of five and named it Pick of the Week, writing, "With Kate at the helm any single would be quirky but by her own otherwordly standards this is Ms. Bush at her most direct." He added, "It's a rhythmic, almost raunchy, workout with the occasional outburst of
rock guitar, strange lyrics—'if I could twang like a rubberband, I'd be a rubberband girl' is as ordinary as it gets—and a weird vocal impression of said office accessory being stretched. It is also a very commercial rejoinder and will probably be Kate's first
Top 10 solo hit since '
Running Up That Hill' hit the spot eight years ago."
Everett True of
Melody Maker felt that the song is "a little too uptempo for my tastes" and noted that he prefers Bush when she is "all dreamy and mysterious". Despite this, he added, "It still has enough kookiness to draw me under, and she's still the only artist for whom the word 'kooky' isn't an insult." Another
Melody Maker editor, Chris Roberts, praised it as "a gorgeous, daft,
groovy single with a bassline to shame
Bootsy Collins". Terry Staunton from
NME wrote, "Kate's self-doubt emerges right from the beginning on 'Rubberband Girl', the relentless one-chord single where she wishes she could learn to give, learn to bounce back on her feet."
Billboard wrote that the song was "fun, funky, and full of appropriately flexible sounds, including the subtle vocal tricks Bush has made her calling card". Parry Gettelman from
Orlando Sentinel said that "Bush waxes positively perky as she struggles to forge a '
Sledgehammer' out of a flimsy tune, dopey lyrics and bouncy dance-floor beat." Richard C. Walls from
Rolling Stone noted the "pure pop" of "Rubberband Girl". Tom Doyle from
Smash Hits also gave the song four out of five, saying that it's "a bit of a shock because she's gone all funky with
Prince-ish drums all over the shop". ==Track listings==