Tracklist front / back album covers
Drones – Standard edition
1. "Dead Inside" 4:22
2. "[Drill Sergeant]" 0:21
3. "Psycho" 5:16
4. "Mercy" 3:51
5. "Reapers" 5:59
6. "The Handler" 4:33
7. "[JFK]" 0:54
8. "Defector" 4:33
9. "Revolt" 4:05
10. "Aftermath" 5:47
11. "The Globalist" 10:07
12. "Drones" 2:49
Total length: 52:40
Drones – Deluxe edition (DVD)
1. "Psycho" (Live at Glasgow Barrowlands) 5:44
2. "Dead Inside" (Live at Brighton Dome) 4:38
3. "The Handler" (Soundcheck, Exeter Great Hall) 4:45
4. "Reapers" (Live at Exeter Great Hall) 6:18
5. "Bonus Studio Footage – The Globalist / Defector" 10:00
Total length: 32:57
Notes
"The Globalist" contains music based on "Nimrod" from the Enigma Variations, composed by Edward Elgar.
"Drones" contains music based on the "Benedictus" from Missa Papae Marcelli, composed by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina.
Muse Band Members / Musicians
Matt Bellamy – lead vocals, guitars, piano, keyboards, arrangements, production
Chris Wolstenholme – bass, backing vocals, production
Dominic Howard – drums, production
Robert John "Mutt" Lange – production, backing vocals ("Mercy" and "Aftermath")
Rich Costey – additional production, mixing
Tommaso Colliva – additional production, engineering
Adam Greenholtz – additional engineering
Eric Mosher – engineering assistance
Giuseppe Salvadori – engineering assistance
Jacopo Dorici – engineering assistance
John Prestage – engineering assistance
Tom Bailey – engineering assistance
Marlo Borgatta – mixing assistance
Giovanni Versari – mastering
Bob Ludwig – mastering ("Dead Inside")
Matt Colton – mastering (vinyl half speed)
Olle "Sven" Romo – additional programming
Durand Trench – dialogue recording ("[Drill Sergeant]" and "Psycho")
Audrey Riley – string arrangements, conductor
Matt Mahurin – art direction, illustration, package design
Will Leon Thompson – dialogue (Drill Sergeant) ("[Drill Sergeant]" and "Psycho")
Michael Shiloah – dialogue (Recruit) ("[Drill Sergeant]" and "Psycho")
John F. Kennedy – recorded dialogue of April 1961 Secret Societies speech ("[JFK]")
Alessandro Cortini – modular synthesizers
Edoardo De Angelis – concertmaster, violin
Sarah Cross – violin
Freiherr von Dellingshausen – violin
Anna Minella – violin
Elia Mariani – violin
Gian Guerra – violin
Gian Lodigiani – violin
Gianmaria Bellisario – violin
Marco Corsini – violin
Michelle Torresetti – violin
Tommaso Belli – violin
Valerio D'Ercole – violin
Maria Lucchi – viola
Serena Palozzi – viola
Valentina Emilio Eria – viola
Andrea Scacchi – cello
Eliana Gintoli – cello
Francesco Sacco – cello
Martina Rudic – cello
Linati Omar – contrabass
Massimo Clavenna – contrabass
Drones is the 7th studio album by English rock band Muse, released on 5 June 2015 through Warner Bros. Records and the band's own Helium-3 imprint. The album was recorded between October 2014 and April 2015 at the Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, with orchestral sections recorded at Officine Meccaniche in Milan, and was produced by the band and Robert John "Mutt" Lange. Drones is a concept album following a soldier's abandonment, indoctrination as a "human drone", and eventual defection. It also comments on the Obama administration’s drone program. After their previous albums incorporated orchestral and electronic music, Muse aimed to return to a more straightforward rock sound musically.
Drones received mixed reviews from critics, who praised its instrumentation but criticised its concept and lyrics. It topped 21 international charts, including the UK Albums Chart (where it became Muse's fifth consecutive number-one album) and the US Billboard 200. It sold over a million copies worldwide in 2015, making it the year's 19th-bestselling album. At the 58th Annual Grammy Awards, it won the award for Best Rock Album. The album was listed on 41 in the NME albums of the year 2015. Diffuser.fm named it the 42nd best of the year.
It was supported by an expansive world tour with appearances at several festivals and arenas, lasting from 2015 to 2016 and grossing $88.5 million from 132 shows. A concert film of the tour, entitled Muse: Drones World Tour, was released in cinemas in July 2018.
