Optical Delusion is the tenth studio album by English electronic music duo Orbital, released on 17 February 2023.

Reception

Optical Delusion ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.1/10
Metacritic71/100
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic
The Arts Desk
Clash8/10
The Guardian
Louder Than War
Mojo
PopMatters7/10
Record Collector
Slant Magazine
Uncut7/10

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, Optical Delusion received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 71 out of 100 from 10 critic scores.

Year-end lists

Optical Delusion on year-end lists
Publication#Ref.
Louder Than War80

Track listing

All tracks are written by Paul Hartnoll except where noted.

Optical Delusion track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Ringa Ringa (The Old Pandemic Folk Song)" (featuring Mediæval Bæbes)4:14
2."Day One" (featuring Dina Ipavic)5:16
3."Are You Alive?" (featuring Penelope Isles)Jack WolterLily WolterPaul Hartnoll7:49
4."You Are the Frequency" (featuring the Little Pest)Jimmy DayLily De BrouwerPhil Hartnoll4:39
5."The New Abnormal"5:05
6."Home" (featuring Anna B Savage)Anna B SavagePaul Hartnoll5:18
7."Dirty Rat" (with Sleaford Mods)5:16
8."Requiem for the Pre-Apocalypse"5:20
9."What a Surprise" (featuring the Little Pest)Jimmy DayPhil Hartnoll3:51
10."Moon Princess" (featuring Coppe)Jimmy DayMiller Y. CoppePhil Hartnoll4:19
Total length:51:07

Personnel

  • Orbital – producer (1–8, 10)
  • Paul Hartnoll – producer (7)
  • Andrew Fearn – producer (7)
  • Mediæval Bæbes – vocals (1)
  • Dina Ipavic – vocals (2)
  • Penelope Isles – vocals (3)
  • The Little Pest – vocals (4, 9)
  • Anna B Savage – vocals (6)
  • Coppe – vocals (10)

Charts

Chart performance for Optical Delusion
Chart (2023)Peak position
Australian Physical Albums (ARIA)32
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)70
Irish Albums (IRMA)83
Scottish Albums (OCC)4
UK Albums (OCC)6
UK Dance Albums (OCC)1
UK Independent Albums (OCC)2