[3] On April 25, 2015, when asked if his album was done, Brown responded: "Almost, I took a break from it cause I'm so ahead of schedule with it knowing it ain't coming out no time soon.
[10][11] On September 21, Brown debuted the track, called "Tell Me What I Don't Know" during his interview on Zane Lowe's Beats 1 radio show.
The track features vocals from Kendrick Lamar, Ab-Soul and Earl Sweatshirt, with the production that was handled by Brown's longtime collaborator Black Milk.
[26] Hugh Leask of Clash said, "Yet beyond this wired mix of post-punk anxiety, splintered techno elements and haunting soul samples, it's Danny Brown's rhyming ability that ultimately sees the LP flourish".
[27] Kevin Ritchie of Now said, "Thematically he might travel into dark and desperate places, but the idea that one can find salvation in music is made vividly real by the rush of energy that is Atrocity Exhibition".
[38] Damien Morris of The Observer said, "Normally you'd change carriages to avoid someone sounding this unhinged, but the 15 dosages Brown dispenses here are worryingly addictive".
[30] Matthew Ramirez of Pitchfork said, "Atrocity Exhibition finds Brown back behind the lens, capturing raw emotion with grainy 16mm".
[39] Sheldon Pearce of Spin said, "With help from frequent collaborators Paul White and Black Milk, UK electronic producer Evian Christ, and crate-digging maestro The Alchemist, Brown brings his persistent terrors to life".
The propulsion of certain tracks seems designed to irrevocably drag the listener into Brown's contemplative, paranoid psyche and deep-welled emotionality and, though stylized, intimates the horrors he's seen and felt".
[42] Scott Glaysher of XXL said, "At times, he comes across as brilliantly unorthodox with flows, genre-crossing beats and meticulously honest lyrics but those unfamiliar with his outré style may be pushed even further away from the album's peculiarity".
[43] Nick Hasted of The Independent said, "This fourth album is produced by south London's Paul White, and a shared taste for Talking Heads and especially Joy Division (the LP is named after their song, more than J. G. Ballard's novel) takes it way off the mainstream hip-hop map".