"... a Y2K punk band, a fourth generation group who cherishes a clean attack as much as self-expression and who have never sneered at a mainstream wanting to get a little wild. All of these ideas feed into Youth Authority, a record that gleams but also roars, an album that still feels the pull of adolescent rebellion even as middle age sentimentality begins to descend. This may mean the record isn't perfect - the slower stuff often turns sticky - but the group wear their heart on their sleeves and, somehow, that tendency is more endearing as the Maddens turn into middle age warriors".