Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | |
| Robert Christgau | C |
| BBC | Positive |
| Drowned in Sound | |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+ |
| Rolling Stone | |
| Spin | |
Upon its release, Henry's Dream received generally positive critical acclaim. David Browne of Entertainment Weekly said the album "sets Cave's deep, dolorous voice and scab-picking lyrics to windswept, tote-that-barge arrangements" and that "Henry's Dream may finally demonstrate what the fuss is all about", awarding the album a B+ rating. Allmusic editor Ned Raggett noted that the album "showed the band in fierce and fine fettle once more", describing Cave's lyrics as "a series of striking, compelling lyrics again exploring love, lust and death" and said the songs "showcase the Seeds' peerless abilities at fusing older styles with noisy aggression and tension." Raggett also called "Loom of the Land" "one of Cave's best songs ever" and awarded the album four out of five stars. Spin and Rolling Stone both awarded the album four out of five stars. However, Robert Christgau, editor of The Village Voice's Pazz and Jop section, rated the album a C and said "if this is your idea of great writing, you may be ripe for his cult. Otherwise, forget it--the voice alone definitely won't do the trick." The remastered edition of Henry's Dream was also well-received. BBC reviewer Mike Diver referred to the album, and the remaster of Tender Prey (1988), as "anything but poor albums" and said that even without former member Roland Wolf "the instrumentation loses little of its potency, and religious imagery remains prominent in Cave’s wordplay." Alexander Tudor of Drowned in Sound called the songs "a masterclass in narrative songwriting" and referred to them as "favela-punk", adding that "the album’s atmospheric centrepiece conveys the mystery of faith (and the weirdness of folk traditions), rather than just rattling out a pretty tune."
Henry's Dream was listed in a number of album of the year lists, particularly in the United Kingdom. Melody Maker listed it as number 7 on their End of Year Critics List in 1992, NME ranked it at number 5 on its end of year list behind PJ Harvey's Dry, and Vox listed it as number 14 in its Albums of 1992.
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