Composed as a recorded soundtrack for the 2019 stage production of the same name by Ayewa, the album features contributions from the free jazz collective Irreversible Entanglements and the Circuit City Band.

[1] AllMusic critic Fred Thomas praised the record, stating: "Unflinching and raw in both its sociopolitical content and musical counterpart, Circuit City is bluntly powerful."

Thomas further added: "Historically, some of the most inspired moments of free jazz were righteous responses to various forms of oppression faced by black communities, and Circuit City cements Moor Mother's voice in that lineage.

"[4] Alec Holt of Clash thought that the record "carries its narrative intensity consummately from the stage to album format and represents the most conceptually accomplished project of 2020 from one of our era’s most urgent voices.

"[5] Writing for Pitchfork, Andy Beta stated: "Putting avant-garde tactics to humanist ends, [Ayewa's] album is a powerful indictment of a vicious, racist cycle that needs to be broken.