Play

prob grunge

Here’s my thing with Moby. I find him to be a pretentious fuck and really far up his own ass. And his obsession with Natalie Portman is so weird and creepy. Clouds my feelings about his music. Also his voice is terrible. I actually liked a few songs on this album, but it happened they were all ones where he sampled the vocals of black artists. I understand sampling and generally don’t have problems with it, but this felt like appropriation to an extent. I mean, the production was good? And the non-Moby vocal songs were generally enjoyable. But overall I didn’t care for this album (or him).

I admit, I only listened to half the album. Pretty repetitive, so I don't feel I missed anything earth-shattering

Quite literally what others have said: blues sample, drum loop, synth, repeat.

Down the middle for me, nothing too terribly memorable, but also not offensive either. Not one that I will actively. Reminds me of high school.

Honey 3 Find My Baby 2.4 Porcelain 2.2 Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad? 2 South Side 2.1 Rushing 1.7 Bodyrock 1.9 Natural Blues 2.5 Machete 2.3 7 2.4 Run On 2.2 Down Slow 2.4 If Things Were Perfect 2.3 Everloving 2 Inside 1.8 Guitar Flute & String 2 The Sky Is Broken 2.1 My Weakness 1.7 Score: 2.166666667

Another album that shouldn't be on the "must listen" list.

Honestly I thought this album was incredibly boring and repetitive. It's like rock for people who either think they like rock or are just getting into it. The vocals were abysmal.

I didn’t hate it, but I also didn’t think it did anything groundbreaking. Not really my kind of music, super repetitive

I've heard this so much it feels like white noise now. There are some really excellent tracks in the middle, but i'd never choose to listen to the whole album. 2.5

I think the songs that have made it off this album into my general knowledge are the ones with staying power. The rest was just drum and base.

After listening to an entire Moby album for the first time I firmly believe this is all music made to be in the background on movies/TV shows and in commercials. With the exception of South Side, I cannot see myself intentionally listening to any of these songs. Only South Side feels like an actual song. The rest? Cool sounds…..but they are a collection of samples with some piano, drums, and guitars added. I sorta get where Eminem is coming from…….i am just not as angry about it.

Late to the party - Vini Reilly and Colourbox and others had been masterfully mixing in vocal samples in the 80’s. Moby marketed it better and sold it to everyone for commercials, but that doesn’t make it a great album. Too repetitive and way too long.

Why??? Mediocre, repetitive and uninterresting music by a pathetic creep. So why is this on this list???

it was ok but mostly didnt interest me that much. some good songs

I would instantly be suspicious of anyone who got excited about dancing to this aural wallpaper. It is fine for what it is - a load of other peoples work over a beat, but it is greige in the extreme Fat Boy Bald

It was honestly very surprising to me to hear that this album was so big. I truly truly did not see the hype surrounded by it and I found it rather boring. I tried to understand but it just kept going and so could not find any interesting part. Props to them for making such a big album, but not for me.

Pas écouté en entier mais nice en ambiance sonore

Did not like this

The whole album just feels too long and pretty discontinous. However, I did enjoy a few of the tracks, such as 'Bodyrock', 'Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?' and 'Machete'

This was pretty bland - just repetitive loops of songs that sound like they would be better as a whole piece rather than a 15 second sample. It also massively gives up in the last 5 or so tracks, and meanders off into almost nothing.

2.5 idk there were definitely some tracks on here I really like and would listen to again but the album overall eh not for me

Elegantly constructed - a relentlessly commercial sheen over solid beats and blues/gospel samples – it is all very familiar, having been used on so many adverts and so many tv beds. Sometimes in this listening process there is a very familiar album that, when I listen to it as an album, sounds much better than I remember it (for example - Rumours). Not the case here.

Maybe inventive for its time, but felt mundane and flat listening today. Some cool flow but otherwise just left me wanting.

The soundtrack to too many late 90s bar shifts.

Like one very long ad.

Honey Natural Blues I really wish this was a hip hop album because some of these tracks would absolutely slaughter with someone spitting on them. Just about as repetitive as every other electronic albums. Snooze fest

I like Moby. But this album felt more repetitive than I remembered, and went on way too long. Guess fro me - it didn't age well.

Music you’d hear in an empty bar that you’d want to walk through and not stay in

I knew it was a mistake letting this guy out of prison.

2.5. Nothing about this record sounds revolutionary to me. Sure, the songs are catchy, but a lot of the songs get old after about 2 minutes, especially given how repetitive some of them are.

Strange collection of songs. It was bearable.

Meh. I remember a few of these songs from back when they came out. I was deep into my late teenage punk phase at that point so this wouldn't have done much for me then. Can't say a lot has changed in 24 years tbh. There's a bit of nostalgia here but honestly I don't think that I would choose to listen to any of these songs again. Top tracks: South Side, Bodyrock

Far enough into this list where ratings are becoming less about a given album and more how it compares to the others. Not my thing but it ain’t Kid Rock 🤷

I reeeeeally don’t like constant repetition so this album is quite annoying for me. Every song could be about 30 seconds and I would get the picture. There are some bangers but they ALL go on too long and are one idea again and again. I can imagine someone who thinks they ‘know about music’ absolutely insisting that this is an amazing album at a party but… nah.

It’s funny to me that there are people that actively choose to listen to Moby

There was a bit of good stuff on this, but it really wasn’t worth trudging through everything else to get to

Man, Moby wasn’t kidding when he said he stacked the back half of this album with songs to put you to sleep. I thought the album was fine in the first half, but that kinda ruined the whole experience. I enjoyed the unique synthesis of old recordings with modern digital sequencing in the first few songs, but it just goes so downhill after that.

Wasnt huge on this, made decent reading music though 😎

Some nice individual tracks but overall meh

It was fine, but I got bored and didn't bother finishing the album, and already can't really remember a single song from it

Too repetitive for me. Could have branched out a little. 2 stars

Maybe I just don't get it

not exiting or good

Didn't listen let me see the fucking reviews

Didn’t hate this but never need to listen to it again

Not for me

Most of the album is like secret Lofi girl mix. I never knew that.

I guess it’s whatever.

Holy repetitive batman. Glad the genre evolved beyond this or it would be long gone by now. Lots of catchy beats but the repetition kills me.

Some of it is OK, a lot is boring. Favorite song: Run on

Harmless toe tappers. Nothing remarkable. You will know 1 or 2 songs...

Escutei um pouco e achei legalzinho, mas achei muito genérica, música de elevador

2.5/5 cool album that’s made well. However, not an album I would listen to for anything besides a party. Definitely gets a little repetitive and stale for an everyday listen.

It's a good album, but not to my taste. It's mostly calm, it has songs that I liked, such as "Porcelain", "Inside" and "My Weakness", but I didn't like the others as much because of their repetitive rhythms and lyrics.

If it’s from the late 90s, the music put me to sleep. For an album with 8 singles released, I recognized 1. Must’ve been a deep sleep.

okay so a few of them were too dreary or too 80s but most of this was TIMELESS. the harmonies… what can be said. Women win every time it copied my review of trio into the review for play by moby which i think is great so i’m leaving it. that said i was incredibly bored by this and don’t care. men lose every time

Immediately after pressing play, I have the answer to what that song that mumbling that gets stuck in my head is from. I've been trying to figure that out on and off for a few years, but it's difficult to google a mumble. That might be the most positive thing I have to say about this before it's over. Ok, I suppose I should give Moby some credit for not making each track drag on for 7 minutes like so many other electronic albums on this list have done so far. However, it's still too long as a whole, and that's without the b-sides they've tacked onto the end of any streaming copy of this album I could find outside of youtube.

The singles brought me back to high school and driving aimlessly around smoking cigarettes. The rest of it - meh. Lots of a filler for a record that probably could have been 35 minutes and a good listen.

он не плохой но как он меня достал, не могу это слушать

Sounds like a never ending apple commercial.

Repetitive most of the time, that made me get bored at the middle of it, but i have to say that it's not bad, but there was nothing special for me to love this.

I grew up with this album, but I'm not ignorant of it's many flaws. A ton of the songs are repetitive and rely too heavily on their samples. This makes some songs unlistenable (looking at you "Find My Baby"). Three of the big hits are pretty great: Porcelain, Run On, and Natural Blues. South Side isn't my favorite, the simplistic lyrics, short little verses, and Gwen Stefani feature stinks of generic soulless radio fodder for the time A number of the other songs are pretty good, but now that years have passed, on relisten, this record scores below the 50th percentile for me. 2.4/5 -> 2/5.

Eh, okay

Thoughts before listening: This came out my senior year in high school and was a very big deal. Moby seemed like the future of music, and while EDM is still certainly popular, Moby has completely disappeared from popular culture. This style of music was never really my thing, but I do tend to enjoy it more as an adult than I did 25 years ago. Review: This is just okay. The best songs are the hits: "Porcelain", "Southside", and "Natural Blues". The rest of the album is either background music or blues samples with techno beats. It reminds me of the music playing in a Gap changing room or something. 2-stars.

Zzz

Electronic music, too repetitious for me. Good for dancing or background maybe.

A few good tracks with a lot of filler. The blues vocal samples got repetitive, but then the droning vocals came in and I wanted the blues samples back.

Better than some of the other electronic albums on here so far, but still kind of weird listening to electronic music while just sitting around. 2.5/5 Probably won’t listen again

I liked the songs Porcelain Natural Blues

What a weird artist for Eminem to have beef with.

I could maybe see the appeal 24 years ago? Some decent samples in there but the drums feel watered down and don’t carry enough weight on the majority of the tracks. Pretty underwhelming album.

Dance, electro, pop, keys, beats, samples, so many singles and radio/musicTV airing, but non of it touched me once, still not really. Solid album though, aged ok, a little bit too long.

I would never personally listen to this but it had some fun moments. Honey was the standout to me, likely because I've heard it before.

In 1999, the album was nondescript music for bland people. Now it’s that, plus it hasn’t aged well…

I liked many of the beats, however Moby is no lyrical genius. Most of the lyrics are highly repetitive.

Some amazing songs, most filler though

meh

The songs don’t sound the same but they all use the same formula so it gets a bit repetitive

Advert music, through and through, with a weird few bits of spoken word towards the end. It's perfectly fine as background music (and most of it is pretty familiar, I reckon I've heard most of it but never listened to it before beyond Porcelain and Natural Blues), but there's not a lot of depth. 2/5.

No thanks

I don’t have a lot to talk about for this one, mainly because there’s not much to talk about. It’s kind of just empty. It’s just an audio loop, typically of some sort of revivalist preacher or old folk song with a light techno beat on top of it. Occasionally Moby will come in to do his best, if underwhelming, impression of Leonard Coen. He’s always talking about the weather though. lol No, this isn’t close to the best on this list, but it’s fantastic background noise. All music has a purpose one way or another. 4.5/10 Best Track: Southside

Unfortunately, if you were paying attention to music when "Play" came out, it's been overplayed. There are good songs, and there are songs that sound like Enya with harder drums. I wasn't into electronica back then, and there's maybe a handful of songs out of that style that I would willingly listen to.

And Moby? You can get stomped by Obie You thirty six year old bald headed You don't know me, you're too old, let go, it's over Nobody listens to techno

Don't know what to expect with this one, I know like one Moby song and then jokes on Community and HIMYM Listening in two parts, first on the way home from the office in Novi. Was not ready for the first song, pretty weird but not too out there. Ok, so it's kinda bluesy? But with a beat. Songs repeat a lot, harder to engage with after Bob Dylan yesterday. Feels very 1999 but not necessarily in a bad way. All of these songs sound like they belong on a soundtrack and I guess they all got licensed out for shows and movies and such. Instrumentation is very good, arrangements are very nice. Second half doing dishes at night Run On is one of the strangest covers I've heard in a bit. I kinda love it but my version would be so different. Things are getting a bit less dynamic, I feel like this album isn't the strongest being played front to back. Everloving is solid though. Came on right when I was feeling not so great about the second half. Ok, so I'm not the best at giving low scores. I am much better at seeing good stuff and overlooking bad stuff. Against an average album this is pretty good. And I see why it's so influential. I think the album itself is not that strong as a whole (no idea of it was meant to be) I'm gonna go 2/5 just because I'm feeling it and I don't know how many scores I'll give out below a 3. Positives: there are a lot! Some great individual tracks, and even more interesting ideas. It sounds really good, and there's a great mix of a huge variety of sounds to enjoy. Very fun to listen to and keeps you guessing. Negatives: I still can't shake that most songs sound like they were written for a movie or game soundtrack. A lot of meandering tracks, and not enough connective tissue between the variety of ideas. Pretty front loaded as well. May go back to a few of the tracks, but I can't see myself putting it on front to back anytime soon. Doesn't help that I just listened to Massive Attack and Bob Dylan and those left such a strong impression. I still think it deserves a place on this list, but against some of the best albums of all time it doesn't hit me the same way.

Interesting, but not my kind of music.

Very repetitive, wich I understand is done purposly, but still makes me not want to listen to the album

Good for the genre I guess, not my style at all

Great hits, but know them only by listening to the radio or from bars. Nothing personally.

No matter how many times I tried today to stay focused on the music, inevitably this album receded into the background. Beyond the first few tracks, which I liked okay, all I can say is it's fine but not memorable.

It is simply not my taste!

A lot of these didn't even seem like actual songs, just some beats or dance music repeated many times. It didn't sound awful or anything, but I'm just confused as to what this was even supposed to be

Boring and repetitive. Got through 3 songs and just had to give up. You can literally skip to anywhere in any song and you will be at the same point

Yeah it’s ok. Like this is sometimes how it goes for important songs in the history of EDM, you can tell it was forward thinking but it sounds a little dated. Go by Moby, not on this album is fireeee tho

Midby

Heard it before?: No Enjoy it?: no, didn’t care for it Favourite song: Track 3 - Porcelain

Opzich wel chill, maar het is gewoon niet echt mijn ding. Ik zou dit niet zelf voor m'n plezier gaan luisteren, hoogstens als achtergrondgeluid op werk, maar dan kan ik ook wel betere dingen verzinnen.

Electronic. Not my style

Long and meandering.

A number of these songs sound like hold music. It's listenable, sure, but do I want to listen to it? Not really. Rating 2.

Saving grace of this album a) some on the tracks are unobjectionable background jams and b) just a hint of nostalgia.

I mean I guess I'd rather listen to this than kings of leon but only barely

I found all these songs super repetitive, wanted every song to be over by about 1/2 way through

Weird and eclectic.

Not used to/into this music much Ok experience Tough to get through Too long Not gonna listen to this album again

Interesante. Es una oda al sample, un laburo muy interesante para entender como funciona esta técnica. siento que es un álbum que cualquier productor (amateur o profesional) TIENE que escuchar. Aun asi, el disco es mas aburrido que sacar a pasear a la tortuga [NOTAS POST INVESTIGACION]: Es un disco importante para el techno Primer album de la historia en tener TODOS los temas licenciados para peliculas, comerciales, etc.

Never heard of Moby before. The lyrics didn’t catch my attention but not bad. Of the songs with lyrics, many seem to repeat over and over, but with no real meaning. The ones without lyrics seem to slow the music down to an almost boring level. The tracks seem to get worse as the album goes on, with the first 3 tracks being the best/most interesting. The album should have ended about 12 tracks before it did. This doesn’t make me want to go find more albums by Moby, but I could put this on and not have a bad time. However, by the end, I might have forgotten I was even listening to anything.

Ugh. More techno. Endless techno. It just goes on and on.

It was aweful...

Innovative and interesting sounds. Seemed like a random collection of songs

The 90s/2000s influence is so strong, this album feels like a relic of the time. I wonder what Moby is trying to say with this album. Machete is a standout right now, it doesn't feel time-stamped like the rest of the album does. The tension of tempo drives this story and adds some real angst I haven't felt the whole album. That speedy 2000s action movie drum sample keeps getting used, I wonder if this is where it's popularity originated? What else came out in 1998? Blade? The middle of the album is more interesting to me, it's less generic and has tactile sonic emotion I can feel. Weird that i'm just noticing there's a lot of Christian undertones in the lyrics, I'm going to assume he converted from being an addict? Machete into 7 feels like a breakdown into understanding and enlightening. Followed by Run On where there's a lot of happy chord progressions and lyrics about God cutting sinners and hypocrites down. Just read the wikipedia page about this album and apparently it's based off of vicious sampling of blues and soul songs. Someone called it millennial-core and they're correct. I think this album isn't my cup of tea. First off, I can't place myself into the context of underground techno/electronic music of the late 90s. Second, I grew up watching movies that this music may have been background music for, for all I know—it certainly sounds like it. Everloving could be placed into an emotional Cher running to meet her lover before it's too late montage in a romantic drama about missing out on life standing in front of you. It's not bad music, but I personally think it's overhyped for what it is. It's kind of stuffy and dirty, something to play in the background of a gallery opening for an NFT I don't like. My beef is that this doesn't say anything or move my world forward in any way other than sonically. I can hate it for being uninspired and drab, but it did revolutionize the 2000s motion picture soundtrack genre, that's for sure.

Really boring and not my style. Had one or two fun beats but majority was very repetitive and ambling. It doesn’t really evoke the energy depicted on the album cover.

A few good songs but a lot of boring songs.

Got weird in the second half

Lisäsin toisen tähden Fifa 2001:n tunnarista

A couple bangers don't make up for the otherwise uninspired downtempo tracks. I only like electronica when it goes hard

Way too repetitive, even for techno.

Remains interesting, but bears more than a little resemblance to background music.. It's a good sound. lyrics are simple and basic, not to relatable--phrases on equal footing with the beat. Whoops was Paul McC borrowing a bit of Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad for his latest album? Best: Natural Blues

So repetitive. Not a huge fan

i guess its ok but too long and not that much going on

Atheletic music... well.

Much like Moby's memoir, Play has not aged well. In the early aughts, you were practically guaranteed to hear songs from this LP in hotel lobbies that were desperately trying to appear fashionable.

Too much techno

A variety of different beats and samples, but ultimately pretty forgettable.

Not my thing. Found it boring and repetitive

Fav Songs: Honey, Porcelain, Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?, Everloving, My Weakness Least Fav Songs: South Side, Bodyrock, 7, Run On, The Sky Is Broken

I've heard a couple of these. Not bad.

I actually enjoyed this album more than I did on first listen, a few years back. But it's still pretty meh! Samples and a few notes on a keyboard over droning synths and a drum loop. Ad infinitum. Occasionally, maybe a little guitar is thrown in for flavour. Some of it is pleasant enough, but it still sounds like background music, outside of a few notable tunes. It's just all too repetitive and goes on far too long.

Very difficult to listen to. Takes me back to a weird headspace that I'm happy to no longer be in.

Moby is wild, unlike what I was expecting. All I knew about Moby was that he's a bit of a dork, a bit of a creep, and that song "South Side" which seems like it's a big outlier. He is very much his own thing. This was fine.

shrug

Achei o álbum com pouca harmonia, mas com algumas músicas escutáveis.

What essentially amounts to a sample-based beat tape. And a solid one at that. Nothing spectacular but a few really great jams

20+ years later, I am still suffering from Play fatigue.

Could have been the same 3 songs on repeat. Some overstayed their welcome first time through. Dull and uninspiring. Natural Blues one of the few highlights but it's reliant on an interesting sample.

This album is good background music and that's about it.

Underwhelmed: it was just boring an I wasn't a massive fan of it. I know this may come as controversial as this album is rated relatively high but it just isn't all of that. I get the similar aspects to a Daft Punk record which I would love but I found this lacklustre in it's approach to the seen. Wasn't the worst thing I have ever listened to but I don't think I'll be going back anytime soon.

Dick?

Another album I've not heard or desired to hear in probably 20 years. I liked it at the time, along with lots of people. His creeping over Natalie Portman didn't improve that. Some of its aged ok, some of it's aged terribly (Bodyrock). Absolutely a time capsule for 1999/2000. Fine in small doses but it's repetitive and I can't really see me ever digging the album out in its entirety again. I also remember there being quite a lot of nothing at the end of the record even back in the day (Everloving, Inside, Guitar flute strings, the first 2 minutes of Sky is Broken). The Sky is Broken and My Weakness are probably the best aging ones still, and a good example of his talent for soundtracking, his best work is still the theme from Heat, God Moving over the Face of the Waters. More useful these days as a reference point to jump off from into some blues belters.

This is just never going to be my style. With that being said, I like Play a little more than the usual fare in this genre because of how heavily Moby leans on blues, gospel, and soul. I'd still rather listen to the original recordings, but that's just a matter of personal preference than a judgment on the album.

Rant: I really hate when Spotify doesn't host the original album or doesn't distinguish between original and extra tracks. Long original listing (63 min) ends at My Weakness. Album opens with Honey which is centered around a blues/roots inspired vocal sample. Mixing lacks any sort of depth and doesn't have much in the way of progression. Find My Baby goes back to a similar well and honestly is nearly indistinguishable. Porcelain is the most immediately recognizable song here, and it steers away from the sonic profile of the first two. This song is rooted around some sterile drum and bass with twinkling keys and an indie-inspired vocal overlay. Not something to get super pumped about, but its a fine enough song. Bodyrock stands out as another track that grabs more attention than the rest. Weird to me that the album goes from Run On (a hokey upbeat roots inspired song) to a pre-trap downbeat instrumental with Down Slow. The latter is one of the better songs on the album but it ill fits against the rest. Moby is clearly a talented dude and that shines through in glimpses throughout this album. The problem is that the runtime is bloated which distracts from what he does well. He pulls on a lot of inspiration, but on many songs it feels like something is missing. I found this most compelling on his more somber and sparse arrangements: Down Slow, If Things Were Perfect, Porcelain. I doubt I'll come back, but am glad I listened for some of the high points. This is a 2 leaning 3 for me. I'll err on the low side because I had a strong urge to switch albums early.

Mehby

There’s absolutely no cohesion on this schizophrenic Moby album. Starting with the glorious “Porcelain” the album reveals its qualities for a while and I start to think that we just got off on the wrong foot after the horrible opening tracks. But after “Bodyrock” and “Machete” I’m forever lost and just kinda waits for the album to be over. There are glimpses on light shining through the cracks of the tunnel along the way. But Play ends up being quite a long walk.

Pretty poor offering, starts strong with Honey and Body rock is alright but most of the album is shite

I've never been much of a fan of Moby, though I've never really given him much of a chance. Now I have, and now I know that I'm still not much of a fan of Moby.

I find it hard to give a true rating for this style of music - while I know it takes skill and talent to make music around samples and create electronic music, the parts that stood out and had depth were the vocals clips he used of other people's music. The rest was very repetitive and fine for background music but didn't make an impact. Also, I think if it had been a shorter album, it would have rated higher for me.

The parts I enjoyed were because they were other songs. There were some good beats but the album was way too long and didn't do it for me.

meh

People on this site must have some sort of nostalgic attachment to this album because it’s not very good. 4/10

I already knew Flower from the Bring Sally Up/Down push up challenge. I'm happy the other songs weren't as annoying as that one, but dang what a long album (was I supposed to also listen to the B sides?)

A lot of catchy songs that all feel familiar since they sold out so much with this album. It made me feel like I was in one of those classic late 90s/early 2000s movies with Brad Pitt, Ben Affleck, George Clooney, etc. Definitely more enjoyable than some of the other techno/electronic we've listened to so far, but also not a fan of how they exploited and didn't credit the vocalists from Alan Lomax's tapes.

moby, you can get stomped by obie

Here we are now on the south side

Not a big fan of Moby. But there were 4 tracks on here I have heard a lot more than I realized. Felt like I was watching a montage of the credits of several movies

Jesus Christ….That’s Jason Bourne

Quite liked it to start with -- although how much of that was nostalgia I'm not sure. But it really tailed off toward the end...

Los van een paar bangers was ik vrij snel uitgekeken op dit album. Beetje eentonig en saaaaai

Not great

way too stripped down and repetitive

I make it a point to listen to every second of every album that is up on the list. I have never been into Moby, after listening to this again I maintain my feelings. It’s music that doesn’t really appeal to me. I know his hits, but I didn’t want to listen to them before and now they have even more of a cringe factor. I know Porcelain is like his main hit, but if it were to pop up on my playlist I would skip it immediately. I know it’s not terrible music. I will slide it through with a 2 and no playlist adds.

Nah. I guess it's fine background music, but this one isn't for me.

not too shabby for borrowing a lot of other folks’ music.

Moby more like Moboring

Pretty repetitive first track. Boring. Same for second. 4th track holds up Some tracks have a decent groove. Mostly boring by modern standards. Even when considering only other ambient music. Also...like..a lot of cultural appropriation?

I guess the loop music was more innovative when Moby did it, but for me is very quickly incredibly repetitive. Again couldn’t understand how this would work in a live setting

Meh, a couple of songs i knew with a *lot* of filler

Bit Marmite isn’t it … I enjoyed it back then… but is a bit overplayed and doesn’t stand up to re-listening … Massive Attack

My first time ever listening to Moby and I found this album incredibly repetitive. There was one or two songs I didn't mind, but nothing that I'd listen to again.

Dunno!

This album fucking sucks

Meh. All the same - a beat to start, some electronica gets added over it, then the vocals adds some sort of blues variation. But the blues does not mix well.with synths. The worst version of Run On I've ever heard - the Blind Boys of Alabama certainly don't need to worry, there's no competition here.

I have survived this album, barely. Favorite track: Inside

white boy samples the blues

This album does a great job of making you feel cool whilst listening to it, at least it did for me. It started off well, I didn’t mind the music, however we’re now a day on from listening and I couldn’t really identify anything specific that I liked. Probably wouldn’t go back to it any time soon, but I didn’t hate my time listening to it

Interesting. David Lee Roth basically ripped off this version of “Just a Jigalo” inflection for inflection. Enjoyed listening to it.

Way too repetitive

The first two tracks sounded like Moby was lifting songs, throwing an extra beat or two into the track, and calling it done. “Porcelain” though was different and still has that iconic mellow sound, while I forgot that the catchy “South Side” was on this album too. Overall there is an interesting medley of tracks here, but they sound more like they come from a “Much Dance” mix than a single influential artist. Moby’s spoken word songs were noticed due to their slow nature, but then kind of forgotten about. If I was to hear almost any of these songs, I wouldn’t have a clue who made it (as it doesn’t seem Moby sings enough of them). Emphasizing this point, Spotify carried on after the album to a Röyksopp song, and I thought I was still listening to Moby here.

Tracks listed below are cool but the rest is kinda boring and basic. First Listen?: Y Fav. Tracks: Honey, Bodyrock, Natural Blues Rating: 2.5/5

While not my normally preferred genre, I was pleasantly surprised by much of this album. I'm not sure how much of it was sampled from other artists but I did recognize a few. I kind of felt like it was a nice little group of tracks that could all be used as TV opening songs. Once "Machete" started with the heavy on electronica, I was over it.

Can get stomped by Obie

The highlights were due to the strengths if the sample (which, I believe, all come from the Sounds of the South album - which is excellent) The authenticity of the original field recordings disguise Moby's cringey try hard bullshit. I don't think you can just add a drum beat to a song, cut it up and call it your own. kinda musical colonialism. I did enjoy parts but other bits were really quite dreadful

When listening to this album a situation would arise often where I enjoy how a song sounds, and am thoroughly enjoying it, then it goes on another three minutes. That's not to say the songs are long, because they all don't really surpass five minutes, other than the B-Sides, but they don't go anywhere. Often I'll be waiting for the song to heighten or have some sort of climax, and that just never happens, and I understand this is not necessarily something that needs that "drop", this isn't Dubstep or anything, but even comparing it to something like Fatboy Slim, it just comes off as weak, and it really loses steam in the second half, mostly being over prolonged atmospheric music. I mean, three stars is still pretty good, because I didn't dislike the album, it's just hard to praise the album when we live in an age where this style of music has only been improved. Who knows though, perhaps I'm not smart enough for it.

I would’ve thought the album this guy used to catapult himself to mild fame and then be a massive creep would’ve been way better

shmeh

Not a fan, for some reason most tracks gave me anxiety.

Didn't resonate with me. Felt like the blues minus the soul. Just seemed like the album was made for radio play without a lot of substance.

I really wanted more from this album. Listening after its been a few years, it just really feels like walking into the studio of an artist that is incredibly talented but can’t seem to finish what they’ve started. Unglazed vases, half-painted sketches, and unfinished novels strewn about. Lots of enthusiasm in the next project in the center of the room. The only thing finished are the cigarette butts heaped beside the mattress on the floor.

Nothing special about it for me

Real plunderphonics. Trivial.

Favorite Tracks: Porcelain Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad? South Side

don’t care

slow whispers of Moby is not what I would choose to listen to.

Ongegronde hekel aan Moby en zijn electro-beats voor alle leeftijden. Lekker die voetjes van de vloer bij de bejaardensoos.

Ja, dat was wel een plaat destijds, maar heeft het bij mij nooit helemaal gedaan.

So this is the 23rd electronic album that I am being subjected to. God help me... So.....the first 3 songs just repeat lyrics over and over.... HOW ARE PEOPLE SAYING THESE ARE BANGERS! It's so fucking repetitive I want to scream! Please tell me there are no more of these shitty albums

I dunno what Eminem had against this guy. This is just bland inoffensive stuff that runs on too long.

"why does my heart feel so bad?" cause I listened to all this album without pauses

too easy loungie from 1999

Better than some of the other electronica I have received on this list so far due to its great use of older samples and consistent style, but I ultimately found this one a bit dull despite its reputation as one of the top albums of all time from this genre. This might work better in a setting outside of listening to it through earbuds at work (I go through most of the albums on this list this way) as it does feel rather epic in scope at some points, but to me, it was just good background music with nothing really sticking with me after the first listen. I could see this being great music for commercials as every track is very ambient but fun with some blues/R&B elements thrown in here and there. Although I wasn't very impressed with this one, I will give it a slight boost in that it did not feel its length at all. I usually dread listening through any album over an hour, but this one really flew by. Probably will not come back to this one, but I didn't mind it. 2.5/5.

not terrible

Fine and sometimes good. Didn't ever dislike it, but overstayed its welcome--poor ideas:length ratio. Instrumentals better; spoken word stuff not so much. Other 90s groups did the trip hop thing much better; others before and after did D&B, soul sampling much better.

Niet verkeerd ofzo, maar begon me te vervelen na een tijdje

Very disappointing as a "must" album. Does not provide in a way that is worth the length. The hits I knew from the album have already pretty much faded and there are no hidden points that can save it.

I contiuously get Moby and the Chemical Brothers mixed up, even to this day, and that's not saying much in my book. The soundscapes are richer and not as entirely monotonous, but I still feel like I can see the repetitive layering and unlayering in every single track. The formula is laid out bare within a few songs, and then every track thereafter just feels like a reskin of the same thing. What ultimately kills it for me though, is Moby's voice. There was a time when the guy would get on any microphone within his greater radius and he would rant on and on about whatever political topic he felt compelled by at the moment. That's entirely within his right to do. Ultimately though his voice, in my head, became inseperable with the sense of impending agenda bombardment, and now I can't unhear it. I wonder what I would think of this album, if it was new to me again? As an aside, I swear the chorus and mid-song bridge on "South Side" is the musical and spiritual ancestor to "Friday" by Rebecca Black. That flasetto is horendous.

An hour long car ad soundtrack devoid of any heart.

Porcelain and Why does my heart feel so bad are great, rest was meh.

Börjar gött men blir för trökigt allt eftersom

Not that great to be honest

You can discover far better artists in the genre these days.

Nobody listens to techno

Background music that you could stick behind any moving image and it would fit. Made me listen to some of the songs he sampled.

my previous experience with moby is hating his live show at a festival and like two songs that were on the radio. I did not want to listen to this. but then to my surprise the first two tracks were actually sick as hell. and then as the album went on, the songs that weren't complete garbage were basically just the same song as the previous song that I liked. also every track where moby just talks over his music should be deleted from the internet and thrown into a volcano

It feels harsh to give two star but I couldn't enjoy the album. Grateful to listen to Moby, but its 20 minutes too long and difficult to engage with

Not generally a fan of this type of music. There were a couple decent tracks. Could really tell a lot of care was put into mixing this one.

Used to think some of this was alright but after about 20 minutes of this I found it dull as dishwater

Didn't finish it. Felt relatively generic in 2021

Collection of Beats to Rap to Viel Instrumentals und Samples Sehr Emotionales Ende

This is a rough bit of business, this is. The good songs are good for about one to two minutes and then I'm just waiting around for them to stop. It felt like this album went on forever and I didn't even listen to the B-sides on the dang deluxe version.

Gives me such strong 90s energy. Weird album progression, feel like I go from strong positive bops to slow moody ones over and over (tbh it was released during his drug era so I can understand) also fuck me albums are so long why can't they be like 4 songs long

Moby Dick

Meh, album muzyki reklamowo filmowej utrzymanej w klimatach downtempowym, bez calosciowego konceptu, bardzo bialy miks murzynskich sampli, nawet chorki gospelowe i skrecze rodem z dja premiera sie znajda, kawalki ktore najbardziej mi trafily, to te ktore sample juz znalem z innych materialow, same "wokale" mobyego to raczej liryczna recytacja, bardziej niz samego albumu jestem ciekawy jaki musial on miec marketing zeby osiagnac status "kultowego" i "rewolucyjnego", ale zarazem jestem w stanie zrozumiec czemu ktos niezbyt osluchany muzycznie moglby sie tym zachwycic, na plejke leci utwor pod tytulem porcelain, bo akurat go kojarze z najwiekszej ilosci reklam

Apart from the recognisable track of Porcelain, which is quite atmospheric, this album never really got out of the traps for me. Two stars for some pretty piano at times

Didn't age well

mehhhhchno

Whatever. Lol

If I wanted loops, I would search loops on GarageBand. It’s fine, but repetitive. Not sure what the artist was trying to achieve with this album but it unfortunately is not my cup of tea

Not bad but mostly boring.

repetitive and samey.

+ Porcelain + Flower (Sally Up)

Simple forgettable beats

Not my cup of tea electro music ain’t for me it seems

Woof.

Too long couple of good songs

ok but repetitive

Moby's Play during Lent seems like an appropriate listen for a few reasons. Off the bat, there's the nearly-too-obvious veganism, which I argue is fair to bring up due to its prominence in the packaging. Then there's the blend of melancholy with heavily sampled dance music, which over the course of an hour loses most of its power to invite dance. That last part is my perception this time, at least, which makes me uncertain about rating the thing. One part of me agrees that the album is a classic: The blend of sampled music and sadness into dance tracks is adept and unique. On the other hand, the concept wears thin quickly, leaving the melodies, which are catchy but fail to inspire beyond that. The last few cuts are especially flat in context, but taking too much context into account brings me close to review-as-reaction-to-popularity. There's something very good about Play, but I don't like it very much. That's something I don't think about music very often.

Liked it for a dance album. Just not my thing.

Entiendo la onda pero no el gusta. No me parece algo original “copado” creo que es un poco aburrido

#67 - Moby - Play ⭐️ Moby named this album from 1999 Play, which is one of the most commonly used controls on a CD player. I’d have personally preferred Stop or Eject.

6 songs were a 0 1 song was a 1 3 songs were a 2 1 song was a 3 3 songs were a 4 Average 1.57

2 and a half hours hahahahaha

I’m with Eminem on this—Moby kinda sucks. Not for me. DNF

No me gustó para nada, no es para todos ese álbum, es algo raro pero del raro sabor de boca, no niego que pueda gustarle a alguien más, sin embargo a mi en lo personal me resultó muy revuelto y forzado a una rareza no grata.

not for me, saw a review saying elevator music and i agree

I didnt like it. I didn't really just vibe with it and thats okay.

1.3/5 A couple of good songs but also a lot of boring and pointless electronic instrumentals. Especially the last half of the album nearly put me to sleep..first half was decent, second half not so much

ew!

I already hate what I know is his near constant use of old timey blues vocals repeatedly. 2 for 2. Porcelain was the hit, it was in ads and movie trailers all over the place. South Side was big too, no Gwen Stefani though? Eminem was right, this guy could get stomped by Obie. Natural Blues...more old blues singing with electronic music behind it. Why are these electronic albums all so long? Run On does it again...thank god Johnny Cash took that one back. This album feels never ending. I'm picturing Moby "playing" the flute on his synthesizer. It's probably the worst song on the album. It sounds like a cover of a track from The Princess Bride score. Thanks for the spoken word moment Suzanne Vega. My Weakness was the alternate music for The Truman Show when he's trying to escape on the boat.

mannnnnnn this dude is such a poser clown. every song on the first half is basically the same song. oh! youve heard a blues song! and you think its time to sample a blues lyric with some corny tepid key samples! oh my god! bless be! fuck this album. its trash. it came out in ‘99 and it was old fashioned and cheesy in ‘92. a truly vapid artist lacking any soul. except for the soul he smushed from other artists. yucko.

It takes me straight back to working in Virgin Megastore and people seeking out certain albums for collections that contain Moby, Dido, Enya and other BBC Radio 2 background music classics for people that like to be distracted rather than entertained. This is one of the most Vanilla albums ever made.

no just no 1/5

Remember when Moby wrote in his book about how he had a relationship with Natalie Portman and she had to come out and say that never happened? Anyway, this shit sucks ass. It's probably a 2, but Moby is such a pretentious douchebag I'm giving it a 1.

Porcelain is great. Otherwise it's just Moby ripping off more talented musicians.

First listened on 22nd and 23rd April 2026. This album is not for me, but I like Porcelain.

This is apparently a techno album relying heavily on blues samples. I have never heard of this album or artist. My original characterization of the album is slightly incorrect; it's literally blues samples looped with techno beats added to them. Essentially, that's like serving the reheated leftovers of a gourmet steak after they've been in the fridge for about a week. It's not going to be anywhere near as good as the freshly served steak(the blues originals) was. Steaks aside, this album lacks any form of real artistry. I, a random 15 year old kid, could recreate this incredibly easily. No real good lyrics, no real songcraft, just looped samples and beats that are usually uninteresting. It's not good, and it's definitely not essential listening. It's just a boring waste of time.

I was aware of Moby from the time I started being interested in music as a kid, because of dad's CDs. His music was underwhelming to me then, when I was enthralled by the contemporary electronic music being made, and it's still just as underwhelming to me now. It seems so uninspired; lazy beats with vocal samples doing most of the work on top of weak chords. I guess it works as background music? It really doesn't hold my attention

Repetitive garbage.

red lobster music is actually better

Okay.. I’m gonna be harsh with this one. I’m genuinely shocked at how good of an overall rating this album has and how popular it is in general. This is bad. There are instances in music where repetition can be effective… this is not an example of that. This album has no right being as long as it is. Even the stronger songs can be best described as dull and uninspired, and the album as a whole was a painfully mind-numbing experience. Over half of the songs follows the same formula: an old blues/soul sample repeated over and over again with some boring electronic beat behind it. It’s an insult to the actually talented people who made those samples. On this album, if you hear the first 10 seconds of a song, you’ve basically heard the whole song. No variation whatsoever. Needless to say, I was not a fan of this at all and will not be returning to it. “Favorite” songs: Porcelain, Run On

He seems to be a nice guy and has been vegan for a long time, but I really wish he would make better music.

Deeply cringe. Felt like the dance through time scene in Sinners.

Gracias por el pack de beats loco

Top álbumes malos. 0,5/10

Pedophile

Everything terrible about electronica in one album

Sweet, let's sample some blues music and loop that with a dance beat.

No tiene nada relevante realmente

It's bland and repetitive and listening to it felt like being locked in an unfurnished room for an hour with only junk mail to read

Sorry I hate it

I have tried very hard in this 1001 conquest to remain open-minded and rate albums for their musicality and quality - even if the genre is not my favorite. But this no-talent ass clown repeats the same annoying lyrics sample over and over and over for every one of his tracks and it absolutely drove me mad. This is my first album to be rated a 1/5. To be fair, about half of the beats were acceptable and even catchy at times, but even the beats never really grew or transitioned or blossomed throughout the songs. If there were a 0/5 I would still rate this a 1/5 for the ability to at least form a simple beat. I will most certainly skip any and all future Moby albums that come up from this website. It is cyclical, repetitive, and masturbatory.

No chance, I lived through the time when this was EVERYWHERE. I'm not listening to it.

I don't think I've ever even heard of this artist before? Let alone heard one of their songs? I mean, maybe in a movie or commercial or something, and I just never realized, but we'll see. I have no expectations for this album. 1. Honey - I'm annoyed after the 3rd repetition of this refrain, holy fuck. This feels awful to my brain, like sandpaper to my skull the way NOTHING is really changing. It's just the same thing over and over again. AHHHH. I have to skip this halfway through, I don't have the patience for this. And i have the patience for my 2yr old niece singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" on repeat for 20 minutes. 2. Find My Baby - WHY IS IT JUST SAYING THE SAME THIGN OVER AND OVER AGAIN. I"M GOING TO JUMP. Also, what an uninteresting beat. Skipping halfway through again 3. Porcelain - Okay, this one is more okay/interesting. I don't love or even like, but it's fine. The repetition in the background between different verses is a good mix instead of just repetitiveness 4. Why Does my Heart Feel So Bad? - So, I'm vibing with the production of this one, but once again the repetition of the lyrics is like nails on a chalkboard to me. Like, it genuinely physically hurts me. This one is more tolerable than the first two tho. It actually changes it up a little. I didn't have to skip this one cause it's actually okay. 5. South Side - I'm really not vibing with his voice like this lol. I like the guitars coming in on the chorus. Okie dokie besties, I think I have to quit this album here. I'm REALLY not vibing with this I've not had a 1 star in a while. This might be one? Maybe there's gems hidden just a little further down the tracklist? I just...I don't have the mental energy to put up with this album for now. I'm sorry. Bodyrock just *okay*, I got to there, but honestly...yeah this isn't for me. It's funny cause I've been vibing heavy with electronic music lately, Porter Robinson, Ninajirachi (I LOVE HER STUFF SO MUCH), Madeon, Underscores, etc. and I grew up in the Dubstep/Avicii Era. This kind tho, idk what it is or whatever, this style does not vibe with my brain at all. God, that felt like a chore

This is the first album since the David Gray album that I was excited for it to be finished. This is just so extraordinarily boring. Moving on.

Disjointed and not enjoyable 1 star

Tf bro 😭

It's ok

absolutely not for me

Did not like this

No es un disco que encaje con lo que suelo escuchar; de hecho, algunos ritmos me resultan repetitivos y el estilo de ambient que propone no llega a atraparme. Muchas canciones serían un skip directo para mí. Sin embargo, debo admitir que la segunda mitad del álbum sube bastante el nivel. Natural Blues y 7 son, sin duda, las canciones que más me han convencido dentro de un repertorio que me genera sensaciones encontradas

Dnf this pissed me off too much Why tf is a dj on here and in what world is this a cohesive album

favs: down slow everloving flower arp rating 1/5

Eh

Not a fan

like whatever

Prefacing this review by saying I am not a fan of Moby. While there is a talent to DJing, sampling, etc., that’s what this is. It isn’t original music. It’s easy to bob your head to some of these songs but they weren’t the work of Moby. The obsession over the talent of mixing and matching songs and beats has always confused me. If the counter argument is that he plays some instruments, insta the point? Shouldn’t he be playing all of what he’s claiming to be his work?

Definitely a nope from me

DNF

First 3 tracks were boring and repetitive, 4th track almost had lyrics, but there again mostly repetitive. Gave up because I couldn’t stomach the idea of a whole hour of this slop.

I've tried to get into Moby's music... It's just not happening. :(

I didn't understand his popularity when this album was released. I REALLY don't now that I have listened to it. It's boring, repetitive, and unending. I ended up skipping to the next song halfway through each track because it was either that or my sanity. It was frustratingly repetitive. I understand breaking the mold of the verse, chorus, verse type of song but damnit this is a terrible way to do it. My wife said she had this album when she was younger and played me a few tracks she likes. I knew she liked to go clubbing but she always showed better taste in music than this. We might need couples therapy after 20+ years together.

music for people who think the breakfast club is a good movie

Couldn’t finish the album. It’s so long & most of the songs are very repetitive. Just not my cup of tea.

GOING IN: No strong feelings LISTENED WHILE: Cleaning house FAMILIARITY: Know a few songs SKIP RATE: Gave up entirely REPLAY VALUE: Once was plenty DISCOVERY CURVE: Never happened ALBUM ARC: All over the place VERDICT: Bit disappointing BODY'S VERDICT: Statue mode FAVOURITE TRACK: My Rating: 1 Cultural apropriation. Repetative. Ugh. So many things. This hasn't aged well at all. I listened to this while cleaning the house and felt like I was in an advert for a cleaning product or a kitchen appliance.

Dean Pelton has really let himself go

I did it. I listened to it. I don’t have to listen to it again.

The sound of every advert back when people used to watch television. Lowest common denominator soulful samples over derivative beats. Nothing music.

Not interested

I admit some of this is fine for a passive listen, and it's easy music to plug into a movie soundtrack or whatever. But for real, this shit sucked 25 years ago and it sucks now. The worst songs are the ones where Moby does "vocals."

tried to give this an honest listen, but never been a fan. 1/5

Over an hour of this shite? No way.

utter crap. strips down music to its worst parts and builds it back up to complete garbage