Albums to watch

Optical Delusion

Orbital

Optical Delusion

Tenth studio album from English electronic duo Phil and Paul Hartnoll, with a number of guest appearances including Anna B Savage and Sleaford Mods

ADM rating[?]

7.1

Label
London Records
UK Release date
17/02/2023
US Release date
17/02/2023
  1. 8.0 |   Mojo

    Orbital remain a comforting presence, and still have plenty to say. Print edition only

  2. 8.0 |   Record Collector

    It’s deliciously danceable, but Ringa Ringa (The Old Pandemic Folk Song), a collaboration with the Mediaeval Baebes, masks a darker heart
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  3. 8.0 |   The Arts Desk

    Their first to feature a welter of guest vocalists; it could have been a disaster, but it’s not
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  4. 8.0 |   Clash

    Orbital’s revised sound sees them cement themselves at the forefront of electronic music
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  5. 7.7 |   Northern Transmissions

    Instead of the recycled beats the many of their EDM peers have been spinning their wheels too, no pun intended, over the last few decades, Orbital sound energized, fresh and as original as when they started
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  6. 7.0 |   All Music

    Even at their most dystopian, Orbital never lose their excitement for exploring new sounds, and Optical Delusion doesn't get bogged down in cynicism or nostalgia
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  7. 7.0 |   Slant Magazine

    They’ve explored spacey atmospheres and grim, political content before, but Optical Delusion feels more like a document of the times than a sci-fi fantasy: a rave just before the end of the world
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  8. 7.0 |   PopMatters

    Orbital’s Optical Delusion is what we have all grown accustomed to with them, but there are plenty of bold moments that skew the imagination with each revisit
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  9. 7.0 |   Uncut

    They add multiple voices, such as Dina Ipavic and Penelope Isles. this can result in a slightly disjointed and incohesive listen, but sometimes, as with Anna B Savage on the pulsing "Home", they get the alchemy just right. Print edition only

  10. 6.0 |   musicOMH

    The electronic duo are back with beats, synths and an army of vocal guests on an album that’s rarely far from a musically inspired moment
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  11. 6.0 |   The Observer

    A flurry of guest vocalists all have things to say on the duo’s potent 10th album, and yet the real magic happens when they’re left to their own devices
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