Malvika Padin of The Line of Best Fit felt that the "11-track production builds as the culmination of Elderbrook's life experiences and consistently ascending career graph", calling it "euphoric and sombre in equal parts" and a "companion on good days and bad" with "finely crafted music".[3] Reviewing the album for Clash, Sidney Franklyn wrote that "The more we delve into Why Do We Shake..., the harder it becomes to justify Kotz's insistence in writing exclusively vocal-driven dance music. Lyrics range from the bland on 'I'm a Fool' and 'All My Love' [...] to the downright bizarre", going on to say that "it's towards the end of the record that Kotz's potential as a producer really begins to shine".[2]