Drones marks a sharp pivot away from the synth-heavy experimentation of Muse's previous work, landing squarely in a world of serrated guitar riffs and high-stakes political drama.
Drones marks a sharp pivot away from the synth-heavy experimentation of Muse's previous work, landing squarely in a world of serrated guitar riffs and high-stakes political drama. Produced by Robert John 'Mutt' Lange, the album possesses a terrifyingly clean, punchy sonic profile that mirrors its themes of cold, calculated technology. It feels like a transmission from a near-future dystopia, where the warmth of human connection has been replaced by the hum of a remote-controlled aircraft.
Released in 2015, Drones represents Muse's seventh studio outing and a deliberate 'return to roots' following the diverse textures of The 2nd Law. The album is a conceptual piece following a protagonist's journey from indoctrination into a 'human drone' to their eventual rebellion. To achieve a more focused, hard-rock sound, the band enlisted legendary producer Mutt Lange, known for his work with AC/DC and Def Leppard. This collaboration resulted in some of the band's most aggressive and technically demanding material, notably the complex tapping and whammy-pedal pyrotechnics on 'Reapers' and the multi-part, ten-minute epic 'The Globalist.' Critical reception was polarized: The Independent praised its sonic weight, while NME and AllMusic questioned the subtlety of its lyrical metaphors. Despite the mixed reviews, the album won the Grammy for Best Rock Album in 2016, cementing its status as a significant entry in their discography.
Put this on for
pacing a small room while spiraling about digital surveillance and privacythe final mile of a high-intensity run when your legs feel like leadstaring at a city skyline at 2am feeling like a small cog in a machineneeding a sonic wall of defiance after a particularly draining bureaucratic encounterdeconstructing the layers of a complex political conspiracy theory alonenavigating a cold, industrial landscape under heavy grey clouds
Moments worth waiting for
The transition from the drill sergeant's shouting into the relentless, mechanical riff of Psycho.
The dizzying, Van Halen-esque guitar tapping solo that erupts halfway through Reapers.
The haunting, multi-tracked a cappella choral finale of the title track Drones.
Sounds like
2015s production with a 2010s soul
Lyrical territory
political, social_commentary, existential
03Deviation
Drones · vs · Muse
Artist
This Album
Solitude
Atmosphere · ↓ −12% less than usual
On this album, solitude sits about 12% less prominent than across the rest of the artist's catalogue.
