Play

El de Moby, familiar del autor de Moby Dick, fue sin duda un fenómeno a finales de siglo. Su álbum Play tuvo un fulgurante éxito, que por desgracia no fue capaz de continuar, aunque su talento para producir buenos temas siguió en menor medida con el siguiente 18 y ya luego con cuentagotas y algún cambio errático pero inteligente alejándose voluntariamente de los canales comerciales y suprimiendo una presión para el imposible que era replicar este éxito. Su carrera es bastante lóngeva, con un Always centered at night de 2024 y una reinterpretación de sus éxitos muy decente en Reprise. Paradójicamente tuvo más éxito en Europa que en sus USA natales, algo que les ocurrió a otros también (Jimi Hendrix sin ir más lejos) Luego fue derivando en música menos comercial, más ambiental y bandas sonoras (música de ascensor que algunos criticarían). El disco ha envejecido bien, se aguanta solo y se disfruta como el primer día. Sobre todo ahora que ya no está sobreexpuesto, uno de los problemas que tuvo el escocés fue precisamente que estaba sonando en multitud de campañas publicitarias, radios, teles, etc. y eso le penalizó mucho. Arranca como un tiro con Honey, con la que es imposible quedarse quieto. Find my baby fue un tremendo éxito, mezclando blues añejo con ritmos actuales, funciona como nunca. Porcelain fue el otro tema clave del disco, conformando una triada absolutamente magistral. Chill out o como quiera que lo quiera una catalogar. Es un temazo del que nunca podría despegarse, y nosotros tampoco. Natural blues es, al igual que Porcelain, otra de las joyas. El resto del disco sigue por los mismos derroteros, ya sea electrónica-rock como Bodyrock, Machete o South side, que estarían en cualquier videojuego. De hecho fue el primer disco que concedió su licencia para ser utilizado en cualquier ámbito. No en vano estuvo de gira con otros puntales de electro lo que sea como The Prodigy, Orbital y Aphex Twin (también con Red Hot Chili Peppers, pues toca todos los palos Hardcore-punk incluido). Run On es como Honey otro tema con el que moverse. If things were perfect y The Sky Is Broken, es Trip-hop, sin más. Everloving, Guitar Flute and String e Inside, ambient. El cierre épico con My Weakness avanza lo que será su trabajo para bandas sonoras. La verdad es que poco se puede decir de un álbum com más de 10 millones de ventas, al margen de sus mútiples usos, y que lanzó 8 sencillos todos ellos de éxito. Bueno, que incluye un panfleto con ideas, ensayos, que son independientes del álbum y que a la mayoría de la gente, obviamente, se la trajo al pairo.

Cultural appropriation??

Shite

Probably in the 3.5 range. I liked this but not enough to give it a 4

Alright lets see how badly this has aged. Its all just kind of fade in and fade out various looping sequences, with the occasional bar for a breakdown. There's no timbral progression which is the opposite of what good electronic music should be. Hell even guitar dudes have had pedals for 50 years. The sample in Porcelain is clever I guess. Some of the melodies are evocative but some of them (I'm looking at you South Side) are naff. Hell they would have been naff if the Happy Mondays sung them 20 years earlier. In 1999 breakbeat hardcore AND jungle AND trip hop had run their course and this would fail to have impressed anyone who was across those scenes (I took a break halfway through the album to check out some of his early 90s work and it feels like exactly the same concept as this album except way more taught and credible). The last half are just half realised sketches and random bits he pulled off the DAT and chucked together. Last track is like some shitty video game OST? Is this actually just library music? That explains the car ads. The album is a three until it gets to the bit where he just starts putting all his half finished sketches on it which pisses me off so I'm giving it a two. But then I remember Moby is the Morrisey of electronic music so I'm giving it a one.

I liked Moby in my early teen years back in the late 90s where Why Does My Heart..., Porcelain and Natural Blues had fun video clips and catchy melodies. I haven't actually listened the whole album before so it was my first listen and I liked it. It's a well made, consistent electronica album with many good, atmospheric songs. I enjoyed the album and I will definitely come back to it later.

A very very good album, Porcelain incredible

Oh Moby, so many people hate to love you. You’re such a dirty little secret, and this album is really good.

It’s the definition of fine

Elevator music

I got free tickets to see Moby play on this tour in my neighborhood at the time and only saw the last 30 minutes. It was far out.

The only good thing about this album is that I now know I never want to listen to it again.

This would be a much better album if it was cut down to 10-12 songs. Handful of bangers though, definitely worth a listen uninterrupted all the way to '7'.

OK - very good high notes, a bit tedious at times.

I don’t think this album has aged well however I understand that it could have sounded fresh at the time. Certain tracks really tap into a part of my brain that makes me feel nostalgic or even liminal. Others leave a lot to be desired.

Ég hef alltaf fílað Moby en aldrei gerst svo hugrakkur að næla mér í plötu þeð honum. Play var samt platan sem mig langaði mest í, því það eru rosalega góð lög á henni. Restin kemur svo hressilega á óvart. Hefði átt að kaupa plötuna á sínum tíma.

This album is deeply ingrained. Having never counted myself as a Moby super-fan, I was surprised as to how many of these tracks were very familiar, even beyond the singles. My main reaction to this record is surprise at the subtle variety of it. It has elements of pure dance music and trip-hop, but it also loops in so much jazz, blues and rock. And I assume that's Moby singing on a few of these tracks, but part of the mystery here is what is a sample, what is live instrumental, and what is something in between. It's an enigmatic record, and I'm not sure who he thought it was for when he was recording it (was it for DJ sets, live performance, crate-digging music wierdos?). It remains a mystery to me, but its a better album than I remembered at first blush.

Glad I finally took the time to listen to this, as I know it’s highly regarded, but it didn’t do much for me. Still giving it 3-5 stars, though.

2 albums in a row that really got me excited. Can we make it three?!

2.5

It's a bit of a surprise to me, I can stand this quite well. I genuinely like 'Everloving', I can stand 'Why does my heart feel so bad?'. It's an interesting nowadays take on blues and gospel. Once again, just like The Prodigy, the best known songs are my least favourite.

Good album. South Side is my favorite track on it.

Interesting listen. I remember having this on MD many years ago. A sound of its time but still listenable

Nice and flowy, a lot of the stuff within each song is repetitive but I like it. Synths and cool sounds. Very long album but its really good.

Super

This is a great album, a blend of electronica meets ambient, with elements of soul and blues. Some big hits on this album, probably a little long but definitely something worth another listen

När jag gick på gymnasiet valde jag ut artister och band och lyssnade igenom hela deras discografi tills jag inte klarade av whatever de började producera senare i karriären. Moby var på den listan men jag hann aldrig dit. Time to change this, I think. Machete var min highlight.

**An ok album

interesting, kinda weird but not in a way i vibe with much would listen to again, maybe while not megadepressed

Didn't know what to expect but okayyy! Might get tired of this eventually. 2 songs done, has some interesting ideas but they really just repeat themselves without leading to something more interesting? "Porcelain"'s nice. Real nice. Reminds me of a certain track. Can't put my finger on which one. It's "Holding On" by Tirzah! Not that similar but yeah. "Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad" is an interesting case, as it repeats the same pattern from the first two tracks but manages to keep my interest. "South Side" starts very interesting. Reminiscent of some tracks from the second side of Talking Heads' "Remain In Light". Sitting pretty at third place for now. next track is nice. "Natural Blues" is interesting but I don't think I will ever have an interest in hearing it again, although the same can be said about this album as a whole. Machete is cool. Some LCD Soundsystem before it, and kinda less douch-y. Like "Run On". These tracks are really just happening without leaving a single mark on me. I feel like this second half could really benefit from some re-listens. It's much more subtle and tranquil. Almost like ambient music. Really nice actually. Really like "The Sky Is Broken". This last track is really pretty. Overall, I do think the album is a tad too long (even if, at the same time, it doesn't necessarily feel like it lasts one entire hour). Some tracks could have been shorter. Some could have been cut. It was still an interesting experience. Got some worthwhile songs out of it. My main grip with the album is its repetitiveness. It feels like the same formula is applied time after time, with some not that stellar results. From the very first song, my interest was peaked and then lost. Some great elements are brought up, without any actual interesting developments. Again, the second half definitely left a better mark. The slower, more subtle songs might actually be the record's best. Might revisit it just for them. Overall, worth the experience. At first listen, it's a 6/10.

This was pretty horrible. Just a drum and piano on repeat while nonsense is mumbled in the background. One of the worst albums on the list.

One of my faves

There’s a five-star album in here, but the back end, although still interesting, doesn’t fit the vibe of the early stretch of the album. That said, some absolute tunes on here.

Car adverts rejoice!!

Good but goes for too long

I don’t think that I have listened to this full album before. I have heard the singles. It was a nice listen. Seems like a good album to put on as background noise. Overall I liked it but not a favorite.

I feel like an idiot that I've avoided Moby as much as I have. I really enjoyed this album. Not sure if it's a full-blown masterpiece, but I was surpassed and impressed by the diversity of experiences here. I'm not much of a fan of short pieces that don't become anything, but there are plenty of pieces here that are wonderful to listen to.

Good artist. Likes to press the limit on all different kinds of music, and he usually nails it. Has set the standards for electronic/alternative sounds. Good music.

Some great tracks but got a bit strange and experimental in parts, overall, very strong

prefer avalanches

Je ne connaissais Moby que de nom mais je ne connaissais pas du tout son travail. Dès les premières secondes, cet album m'a donc surpris : ce mélange de vieux samples blues / gospel avec ces arrangements modernes de musique électronique, ça capture tout de suite l'attention ! Malheureusement une fois passée la surprise et la curiosité du début, je me suis vite ennuyé : la plupart des chansons sont très, très répétitives. Et je ressors de cette écoute avec une drôle d'impression : celle d'avoir écouté une musique "sans vie", distante... le côté répétitif et électronique me donne l'impression que tout est robotique, automatique... Content de l'avoir écouté car c'est un album intéressant et surprenant, mais ce n'est pas un style de musique que j'écouterais régulièrement.

Really interesting. Bodyrock was a vibe

a 90s classic. solid album & still stands up pretty well today.

TWO-AND-A-HALF HOURS AND THIRTY FOUR TRACKS? Dear god, this should count as three albums to listen to before I die. Hope I don't die before I finish this odyssey. I lived through to the end and would listen again. It really is a LOT of electronic music but there's cool elements of gospel, jazz, and rock all rolled in. It gets repetitive for sure, but that is kind of the whole genre after all.

solid tape, i see you white man

This was great. Melodic, funky in places, super groovy and just an awesome listen. Even had some awesome smooth atmospheric stuff in the b-sides on YT Music. Five stars.

Unique original sound, tracks are too long and repetitive

Didn’t give this a full listen. It’s 2 hours that’s too much for one album imo. Used to listen to a lot of the songs in high school on here. Great stuff Moby, maybe a little more concise and I’d be all about it. But overall great, could be incredible for all I know just not listening to that much electronic blues Moby music.

Я не знаю. С одной стороны здесь есть такие мега-бангеры, и такая ностальгия. С другой стороны всё это звучит страшно бездушно. Из-за того, что половина альбома звучит в рекламах воды, машин и проч? Или потому что на самом деле эта формула, на которой альбом построен - это действительно какое-то паразитирование на талантливых музыкантах с бессмысленным бит-фоном? Я не знаю, но этот альбом сыграл большую роль в формировании моей любви к инструментальной и электронной музыке. Лучшая песня - Natural Blues.

Samples: the Album. Great groove and a few recognizable tracks. Excellent for background music. Fav - Natural Blues Resonance - 9 Hooks - 7 Yield - 6 Technique - 8 Heart - 10 Momentum -9 49/60

It isn’t something I’d ever listen to again. Good for background music. Would be better if the songs were all 1-2 minutes shorter.

Artiste inconnu. Musicalement peu intéressant. Chaque morceau est terriblement ennuyeux car trop répétitif. Et 18 morceaux répétitifs sur plus d'une heure .... trop pour moi. Des instrumentaux vers la fin le sauvent cependant de la note minimale. =>2/5

Electronic music is not my style

As I was traveling, I didn't have much time to listen to Play. Of course, I was sentient in 1999, so I've heard every track thousands of times. I did hope that it would prove to be more than the sum of its hacked off and traded parts, but being altogether does the tracks a disservice. Similarly, looping and mechanising the samples does them a disservice too, neutering the humanity that would be apparent in variation. It doesn't help that Moby composes such bog-standard progressions underneath - far too reliant on swelling pads, awful slides, rumdimentary drumming, and, on Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?, a terrible, dead piano sound. 18 years after My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts, there is nothing innovative in this approach. Even the cynicism is uninventive: Paul Simon had already done it beautifully with Graceland. Moby's real genius was in going all in on selling out - marking the end of the 90s. I can't be too harsh on the record though. It worked in every placement, because there are hooks, perhaps only hooks and few of them Moby's own. There is a dark rush of nostalgia that carries the record through to South Side, the chorus of which illustrates why Moby had to harvest hooks from elsewhere. I don't mean to suggest that there is anything wrong with sampling. There's not, even when it may be culturally exploitative. But when it highlights the musical paucity of the supposed headline artist, it doesn't do them any favours. Apart from raking in millions of dollars. 2.5 This was a miserable listen. An hour of dull drum loops, one-bar-two-finger piano loops that would annoy if a child was playing them at a school concert, and worst of all Moby himself occasionally popping up to mutter some excruciating lyric. I can’t believe I bought 17 copies of this album in 1999. 1/5

Just didn't find this interesting....

already thought moby was so cool and this album just confirmed that wait this shit is long asf

I forgot Gwen wasn’t originally on South Side! I love that song — it’s so dumb. Even better and dumber with her. Overall, this was so weak today, compared to how massive it was when it came out. I can see this being really baffling for people who weren’t around at the time. Very “her?”.

Cerramos semana con éste más que tremendo trabajo de Moby. Inmediatamente mi mente viaja a MTv y a los videoclips rarísimos de los singles de éste álbum, por lo menos para mi yo de niño. Impensado un disco de 18 canciones en los tiempos actuales: celebro éste viaje al pasado y espero que vuelvan a editarse trabajos similares. Hasta el lunes.

Just couldn't get through this album

I bought this album for the timeless classics (Porcelain, Why Does My Heart Feel so Bad? & Natural Blues) and it has some other very lovely tracks like Everloving and Inside. I appreciate this album more now than when I reviewed it for my own collection.

Some classics on here!

Is three musical ideas - grab a vocal sample, lay some nineties trip-hop style beats under it, add some ambient synth washes half-way through enough. it would appear so. Has not aged that well and there are half-a-dozen tracks no-one over 40 needs to hear again. 2.5 but rounding down.

Love this album I’ve got it in my car

I don't think Moby did anything unique or revolutionary with this album, but he did it incredibly well. Every track is super solid, even if he was not the first to go this route.

Already heard this before and loved it. Never knew it was featured in this list. Good to hear this again. Songs like porcelain and natural blues are really soothing to hear

Nostalgic album for me, his music used to get me through some tough times. Still enjoy it

Mhh

My memory of the first play of this was that it was innovative and different - stands the test of time with some great songs still

Pretty good. I think he was a victim of his own success at points. I recall an interesting podcast with the fellow who lent him the Alan Lomax field recordings that feature throughout. Moby never returned them....

While some appear to have criticized Moby for simply collecting and repackaging samples with slick beats, I can't help but thoroughly enjoy the end result. I should note that I'm a sucker for this type of ambient/electronic music (huge fan of Röyksopp) and admittedly some of it does feel like background noise, but as a whole these vibes just speak to me.

Hét album dat je associeert met Moby. Maar wat een langdradig verhaal zeg. De eerste helft van het album was lekker, en ik kon niet anders dan concluderen dat het 'Fatboy Slim was met soul'. Dat humane en emotionele heeft Moby goed weten te verpakken in de elektronische beats, iets wat ik wel miste bij tijds- en genregenoot Fatboy Slim. De songs sloten ook goed op elkaar aan door het overkoepelende bluesy thema. Sowieso wel uniek hoe hij samples benaderd, en uit welk tijdsframe hij die trekt. Maar de tweede helft gaat het nergens meer heen en ben ik het 'verhaal' een beetje kwijt. Het duurt een minuut of 20 te lang voor muziek met herhaaldelijke loops. De atmosfeer redt de nummers in die laatste fase nog wel een beetje. Uiteindelijk gekomen voor de classics, en dat zijn ook de enige songs die achteraf gezien echt overeind blijven. Toch een 7 omdat de eerste fase (t/m song 8) echt wel sterk was. 7/10 Highlights: Porcelain Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad? Natural Blues

Moby is één van de weinige electronische 90's artiesten waarvan de muziek tot op de dag van vandaag nog wel vet is. Dat zit 'm deels in de nostalgie van de bangers, maar ook wel in de kwaliteit. Machete is zo'n track die ik niet kende maar ook nu best wel dik vind. Verder leunt de plaat natuurlijk op de grote hits en waan je jezelf in Natural Blues even Jason Bourne. Toch leuk. 7/10 Porcelain Natural Blues Machete

77/100. Play by Moby is a chill, calming, and relaxing trip-hop record that creates a truly soothing atmosphere. The pleasant production and mellow soundscapes make it a beautiful and immersive listen. It’s one of those albums that’s easy to get lost in.

Honestly better than it has any right to be. That Heavyweight episode about how he refused to return those Lomax tapes he borrowed is one of the great podcasts imo.

so fun! not all tracks are great and gets a bit repetitive, but pretty solid album. its like, really good background music

Enjoyed this, there are some iconic tracks in it, I felt the album may of been a couple of tracks too long though

De adolescente amaba este disco, lo escuchaba una y otra vez, pero creo que en esta escucha me di cuenta de que no lo oía completo. La primera mitad me parece una absoluta gloria, con hits tras hits sin parar. Pero esta vez, su segunda parte me pareció que baja mucho, hasta la sentí un tanto aburrida, cosa que no me había pasado antes con este disco. Pero bueno, lo sigo disfrutando mucho, la cosa es que cuando me salió, estaba seguro de que le daría 5 estrellas, y esta escucha me hizo reconsiderar y dejarlo en 4.

I had this album in high school, and the same holds today as I felt then. I love the first half of the album, it flows, it moves and makes me feel emotions and the experiences in the music. The sounds are so big that you feel like you are floating in some beautiful world while dancing alone but in a beautiful group of people at the same time. But the second half just drags. It is not just the rhythms but the lyrics too. The Sky is Broken is just so bad and so long. In the second half some sounds still feel big and beautiful, but then just completely empty but not in a good way. I get the same feeling in My Weakness, it wants to be deep and meaningful but it kind of ends up no where. Its like he thought he was creating something impactful but it just felt unfinished. First half solid high marks and second half not great....so I will end up in the middle.

Cool beats. I like how he works the piano into several of the songs & how he blends roots blues into a couple of them. All the songs after Run On kind of drop off to me and aren't as good as the rest of the album.

This is a good album, definitely overhyped at the time, with a LOT of filler. His formula is to take that old blues singers sample and extend it into a 3 to 4 minute modern electronic dirge, just like Primitive Radio Gods did with “Standing Outside A Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hand” three years earlier in 1996. It works stunningly and brilliantly on Porcelain, Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad, and My Weakness. Bodyrock and Machete feel completely out of place being hyped up dance tracks, but they are still great songs. As the album marches to its second half, songs feel more like sketches of ideas he just didn’t finish. I always got the sense that Moby was better at promoting this great idea of blues being mixed with techno than he was at actually pulling it all off flawlessly. Whittle this down a bit and it is a 5 star album.

I had this album and played it a fair amount back in its height of popularity. I've loved revisiting it. It came out at a time when I had just graduated college, with life and adulthood spread out before me like a blank canvas, and I'd probably consider this part of my life soundtrack at that time. What Moby was doing felt fresh and interesting and inspiring and emotional. He creates beautiful soundscapes in songs like Everloving, Inside, Porcelain and Guitar Flute & String, but then has total bangers on here too, like Machete and Bodyrock and South Side (such a great song!). And then you've got the fun little ditties like Honey and Run On. Some pretty great variety, and I find the music behind the lyrics to be the star here. The lyrics he writes are great though too, they're just sometimes repetitive -- it's the soulful beats he puts together that give this music its life. Play is almost like a storybook, and feels like an explorative journey of the human spirit through its beauty and pain. It feels meaningful and nourishing, love it!

Really enjoyed the variety and every track was good despite the changes. Reminds me of a 90’s equivalent to Fred Again

Cool ambient 90s high production 2 hours long is nuts can’t say u listened to it all tho

Enjoyed this. Definitely going back

Electronica is not my usual vibe but this album was a treat to listen to. It's thoughtful, downbeat, and soulful while still maintaining the energy that one associates with the genre. It was cool to hear some songs that I'd enjoyed before but didn't realize were Moby until just now. It's a darn good album.

Not for me. 2/5. Couldn't get thru it

Really enjoyed this, I can understand why this album really took off in the 90s. This is not usually my kind of music and usually I prefer songs with more lyrics and narrative but Moby has done a really good job of combining simple lyrics and in depth sounds for really enjoyable listening!

Simply stunning.

It's good and experimental, but I started feeling like I was listening to a movie soundtrack instead of a normal album. Speaking of movies, the album is the length of one. I think it would have been better if it had been shorter.

This is an absolute piece of shit. I like Porcelain and wasn't prepared for his music to be so terrible. Who is this kind of music for and when do you put it on? I wouldn't want to dance to it but I wouldn't want to play it at a coffee shop either. It is too repetitive and lacks the energy to be paid attention to, but it's also too distracting to be background music. It's gimmick music. Every song is a gimmick. Why does this album exist?

Ein bis zwei hörbare Songs, der Rest Einheitsbrei. Fastfood!

7/10 First time listening to the whole album, although so many of these songs have permeated popular culture that it doesn't exactly feel new to me. It's a pretty consistent album, although maybe it does fall into a bit of a repetitive formula. Nonetheless, it's a good listen - I like Moby more than I'd previously thought. Listens: 3

was tempted to give 5 stars but i can’t put this above my beatles rating haha. i fucking loved this, i’ve heard the name moby like once but holy shit this album is so cool and not something i would usually listen to either. kinda want this on vinyl now hahahaa

I loved some of this, I liked some of this, and I didn’t care about some of this. A very solid 3 for me. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Some interesting stuff, could’ve maybe been shorter but still interesting. 4 stars

This album sounds more dated than some much older albums. That said it is representative of a particular sound and style from the time. Interesting to revisit but it won’t make it into rotation.

Songs are a bit repetitive, but kind of unique for its time. South Side is still a banger.

Pretty good music. Not a fan of his voice, personally I think he should have more guest vocals. Overall still a good record.

It's a little too scatter-brained sometimes, and the over-exposure to this music in the past probably influences my judgement, but this is truly great stuff.

I feel that music like this, meaning made with synthesizers, keyboards, sampled vocals, and essentially a repetitive track for 2-3 minutes, is what makes people think this type of music isn't real music. I understand that argument, but I feel it is a little unfair as some unique sounds and enjoyable tracks can be created from this type of medium. There are a few tracks that I enjoyed, but the album can get quite repetitive.

Biggest selling electronic album of all time.

This was great at the time and has actually aged really well too. Some intoxicating tunes that might be heavily associated with adverts of the early 00s, but did so because they were catchy, rhythmic, purposeful songs that would be massive earworms.

Fabulously chill

Pretty decent music, especially for an easy listening day

Never found Moby to interesting, and I still don't. Most songs are pretty boring and repetitive.

Liked, listen to semi regularly any way

Like a time capsule within a time capsule, not only for the extensive use of blues samples but also because this album feels totally tied to 2000. The first half of the album feels stronger to me than the second which gets looser and more ambient and the theme of using blues samples is abandoned. The grooves on the big singles elevate this well beyond the ordinary though. A happy piece of nostalgia through over-licensing has made it feel like sitting through a loop of perfume commercials.

Boring and way too repetitive. No track is memorable

Ok

I think we used to have this cd but I have no idea why. It's dreadful. Really boring. And ambient music was around before Moby so I'm not sure why it would be considered influential.

Moby may have done more to promote the work of Alan Lomax to the general public than Pete Seeger; too bad they're all on X when they hear it. I'm somewhat seduced by its propulsive catchiness and then I listen to a couple of real songs and think nah, this is well-marketed trash.

Seems mad that this album was so popular in its day. Some really insipid rubbish on here. It doesn't help that the few ok jams are completely played out. Plus Moby is such an unlikeable Celebrity I find it hard to admit there's any value in anything he touches. The typical expression on his face belongs on an old man in the local paper complaining about dog poo on the pavement outside his house. Didn't he rip off some old black lady?

1. Each song is a reasonable length. Something very rare in electronic music. But the record itself is too long. 2. Yeah yeah yeah he sold out or whatever. Anyone who cares about that is just jelly. 3. Yeah he used music created by black people to enrich himself. Somewhat problematic even when used to good effect. 4. This record is entertaining! Heaven forbid a record is a fun listen. 5. It's not aging well sonically.

thoroughly enjoyed, fun listening experience but felt like a task to listen to whole album

9.5/10

el reimy en calvo y boomer

I remember these tunes being everywhere at the time - soundtracks, adverts, trailers... What I remember is lots of songs based on samples of black singers of blues, gospel and soul over these very basic drum and synth tracks. I was always a bit suspicious of the morality of this - giving your basic simple computer-created song "soul" through these samples. But there was a bit more variety than I remembered. Overall, it's fine. A little bit boring and annoying. But perfectly fine to put in the background whilst you clean the kitchen, which is what I was doing.

Classic from its time…

the length scared me a bit at first but wow. If i can enjoy it this much sitting on the couch then i can see how cool it is on the floor.

2 and a half, leaning towards a two

Expected to like this a bit more. Think there’s a fair bit of good on there but not much great, and some tepid stuff mixed in.

This album sounds ancient now, I have been transported back to 1999. When an album defines an era of music you've gotta give it some credit for it's influence. There's so good songs on it, but it's way too long. Probably won't listen again.

There's a few good tunes. It defined it's genre but doesn't do a lot in the latter songs for me to keep me coming back. Bit repetitive.

I was kinda dreading this coming up. It has some tracks I really liked growing up, and were early taste makers. But since then, I've found learning about Moby a little difficult, he seems at best strange bodering on creepy. So, it was somewhat of a relief to listen to this again now and find that, while it does have some standout tracks, I don't like this as much as something like Fat Boy Slim or Mr Scruff. It's like the American imitiation that's not as fun or interesting.

Very good... but not my thing.

Soul and gospel hooks and samples are doing A LOT of heavy lifting here for Moby. Compare “Southside” and “natural blues” for example. The former is Moby laid bare, which isn’t bad. But the latter embraces so much of what this album brings to the table, other people’s magic moments. Ultimately not a bad thing for human race to have, but not something that needs to be revered outside of its original context.

Listened to The Complete Recordings by chance, and it was very worthwhile. Love ya, buddy ❤️

OVERALL: I have been putting this off like crazy. I also just keep forgetting to go here. Anyways, the very sample heavy beginning is pretty good, however can get a little jarring and corny. It's very upbeat, ethereal, and shows off Moby's great production. Then we get to the more ambient and experimental second half. Quite literally the only song that I would probably revisit fairly often is Machete, which is still pretty weird. The second half is a lot more calmer, and while there are a lot of good stuff, it's mostly boring and not much is really going on. I would recommend skipping 7, Down Slow, If Things Were Perfect, Guitar Flute & String, The Sky Is Broken, and maybe My Weakness. Really good album for just vibes, other than that it's okay I guess. SONG AVG: 6.55222/10 PERSONAL RATING: 5/10 Honey: This sounds like a guilty pleasure song. It's pretty fun, but the sample is a bit annoying and is also the only thing that isn't instrumental. The instrumental slaps, although it is pretty simple. 7/10 Find My Baby: I'm beginning to think that this is going to be a very sample-heavy album. The sample here is more annoying, and the instrumental starts off pretty bad but gradually gets really good. The sample doesn't get better though. 6.75/10 Porcelain: I saw a video breaking down this sample, and it's pretty impressive. Absolute banger, the instrumental is perfect and the sample is used very well and fits in. The last verse has a pretty weird effect over it, but it's fine I guess. Also there are actual unsampled lyrics, and they're lyrically good, but sound weak in comparison. 9.25/10 Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?: Pretty good, very similar to Porcelain. The sample is used pretty well, and the instrumental is better than Porcelain's imo. It goes back to doing the repetitive sample thing he did in Honey and Find My Baby, but a bit better. The "He'll open doors" is kinda weird the more I hear it, but it's fine. 9/10 South Side: Incredible production and chorus, but the vocals in the verses sound like Moby was either bored or on his 90th take. The guitar rocks though. It is definitely a more safe song, also why did Gwen Stefani show up on this song. 8.25/10 Rushing: Pure instrumental with an occasional sample. Sounds really good, great build up and the sample is used very well. Since it's just instrumental, and Moby has really good instrumentals, this is obviously really good. It does feel like it's lacking something, but I don't really know what. 8.75/10 Bodyrock: I can't tell if I like this or not. I think the sample kinda sucks and doesn't really fit with the songs before it, but it works really well with the instrumental when it's the "we rock the body section. The instrumental is pretty good, nice rock usually. When the guitar does it's own weird drunk thing it kinda sucks, but it's usually really good. 8.5/10 Natural Blues: Nice. Nice sample, nice instrumental, just the most nice nice can get. I don't really know what else to say, but it's very ethereal. 9.2/10 Machete: What happened between Natural Blues and Machete. That was such a jarring transition. It goes hard, but still. Is this what a DMT trip sounds like? I really like this, and it's probably one of the most memorable songs, but that transition from Natural Blues was very weird. 9/10 7: huh. How do I even rate this? I feel like this is a bad omen for what's about to come. Pretty weird ambient stuff, not entirely sure why Moby went for this but I guess it works?????????????????????? 2.34/10 Run On: Better than 7 by a mile. More of the sample-heavy old soul remix stuff, although the verses don't sound that good. Really good chorus. I don't know what weird instrument he pitched down and annihilated at the end, but it brings the rating down a bit. 7.8/10 Down Slow: literally just 7 but a little better. Good choir vocals, and it sounds less drunk than 7. Still nothing much to rate. 2.75/10 If Things Were Perfect: ngl this kinda sucks. The instrumental is dead :(. Moby also sounds dead, that or he hasn't slept since the gilded age. The sample is the only sign of life on this entire song, that and maybe a few parts of the instrumental. 5/10 Everloving: I feel like my standards have been lowered after the last 4ish songs. Nice guitar, and the overall instrumental is super good. The only real complaints are that the guitar is basically the only thing for like an entire minute, and Moby's humming is weird. 7.28/10 Inside: how did we go from honey to this. Very calm and relaxing, although it isn't really doing a whole lot. I actually was surprised by the piano, not because it's really good (even thought it is) but because it is actually something different. Sounds good and that's kinda all I need at this point. 7.82/10 Guitar Flute & String: Seriously, how DID we get here from Honey. Apparently this is Moby's favorite on the album? It's okay I guess. Good ambient music that a teacher would play in the background. 6.35/10 The Sky Is Broken: There is not a single thing that is happening in the instrumental. I really don't wanna hear Moby tell me his poem while he's actively drifting off into a 20 year coma, which has pretty okay writing. The only notable thing in the instrumental are the strings that appear when Moby finally sleeps and the two piano keys that are on loop. Way too long. 3/10 My Weakness: You know what? This is good I think. Very cinematic strings, and the weird ass distorted vocals fit pretty well for a beautiful, yet haunting song. It's so much better than ending on The Sky Is Broken, but it's still not really too interesting. It does use a fade out outro, which I usually hate, but it works in this scenario because the album gets progressively more calmer. How the hell did we go from Honey to this. 6.25/10

I really liked this album. Normally techno isn’t my thing, but this is different. It’s not just mindless beats, there’s a lot more variety to it.

meh. I don't know about this one. repetitiveness doesn't bother me, simplicity doesn't bother me, but it feels like there's something missing that would make it more compelling. For sure there are good moments here and there. wish there were more of them given the length. Best tunes: honey, porcelain, south side, rushing, bodyrock, machete, 7, down slow, inside, my weakness

Doubt and hopelessness seem to be a common issue with creatives. But Moby pushed through. PLAY is so well done and there is 60+ minutes of music. A unique approach to marketing the release. I think PLAY needs to be listen to several times, as there is so much there. "Porcelain" was the track that was familiar.

Not sure how this manages to be both very good and terribly lame at the same time. 3/5

I appreciate the minimalism in most of the tracks. They're very easy to listen to, and don't feel overly in your face. Definitely like it most when it feels like an ambient album, the more repetitive dancey parts I can definitely miss. I like the second half of the tracklist better than the first with the exception of porcelain.

I winced a bit when this popped up but it's solid. Well-made, various, the Lomax thread holds it together (great sample choices), accessible and entertaining. I remember the scene grumbling and the licensing everywhere; he should be credited with killing the idea of Selling Out. WikiTIL: His family gave him the nickname, and while his middle name is Melville, he's not related to that Melville.

Säkert fantastiskt att dansa till! Lyssna rakt igenom, not so much. Trea!

I really liked the upbeat first half. The downbeat back half (everything after "Everloving" more or less) was ok but kind of a bummer after the first half. I feel like if this had been an album and an EP the album would have gotten rated higher.

If I’m being honest I liked this better than I expected, but it did not keep my attention. I skipped through quite a few of the songs, there is no way I could have sat through almost 2.5 hours of this.

It's fine - it's just slowed house music though. There's some fun snippets, but it just feels like a really long album.

Jesus going from NWA to Moby is like running into a brick wall at 80 mph. Fine background music, a few more interesting tracks but nothing special. I kept on waiting for something, anything to make a change, a bass drop perhaps, a different BPM? anything....

Just didn’t hold up for me. Dated sensibilities and not enough soul.

I'm into this style of older electronic music where it's just a lot of stuff being sampled. Reminds me of Fat Boy Slim or The Avalanches. A handful of these songs are very nostalgic for me. I don't think this is as good as some of the Fatboy Slim stuff or The Avalanches stuff I've heard but it wasn't bad.

I can’t ever think about Moby, without thinking about Charles. Charles gave this album to me in 11th grade. At the time, this just totally felt like Charles music. It’s kind of weird, but kind of cool. It’s easy to listen to but also not pop. Cool drum beats and samples. This does feel like music that the world forgot and just kind of moved on. EDM became something entirely different. I really the vocal melodies and blues elements of this record though. It’s unique!

I listened to the first 18 tracks of the 2 1/2 hour long version on Apple Music which appears to correspond to the original release. You know, this was better than I expected. Some songs get a bit repetitive which is par for the course for this kind of music. It also got boring and kind of pretentious and creepy at the end. Best track: Run On I think I heard this guy was cancelled for something or other. I don't know exactly what for, so it's not affecting my rating.

I get that it's a little dated sounding now and it was in so, so many commercials but this album rules. It's possibly the best sequenced album of all time. Starts real hype and then gets darker and more moody.

Good tunes

I remember hearing South Side, but nothing more from him. Perhaps I skipped the necessary influence.

Moby might be one of THE toughest challenges facing both my actual music preferences, and my admitted biases. When I was younger, I didn’t understand Aphex Twin. I thought it was just bleepy noise, that dubstep and electro house was where it’s at. Not too long ago, this list even broke through my preconceptions about how whiny the smiths were (to an extent, at least). But Moby…Moby was and has been a tough nut for me to crack. All I ever heard was wallpaper music that sat in the boring middle ground between music for ambience and actually palpable electronic music you could move to. ‘Electronica’ has been a tough moniker in general for me that I’m only really getting over my dispositions for in the past year or so. All of this to say, I have been waiting for this one, for better or for worse. Did Moby deserve the success this album brought on? Have I aged enough to ‘understand’ Moby? Does age = broader taste? Is it a ‘me’ problem? Well, it's complicated. The music on here is very fundamental. I wouldn't be mad at you if you just called them beats. And the beats take a downturn once "Southside" hits in the tracklisting. The classic 90's slowed breakbeat doesnt change, but the singing on this track isnt it. I liked the new age, surreal moments on "Porcelain" and "Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?" well enough, but this just wasnt it. A song like "Machete" is a good example of what I feel this album lacks: impact. There's just no punch in most of these songs. They're more vibes than songs, or somewhere stranded in the middle between a vibe and a song. "Down Slow" works better as an interlude, becuase it's jsut that - an interlude. A short, hazy beat that knows when to leave after a minute and a half. I think DJ Shadow's Endtroducing... does everything this record fails to do. Endtroducing is additive and wandering, sometimes randomly frenetic, always engaging and/or mysterious. Play is just a bit too wallpaperish, too frequently. Maybe good for a kickback, that's about all. I can't say my opinions totally changed on this album, and on Moby so far. While I understand the appeal a tiny bit more, and recognize this music has its place, I still dont know that we all lifted the right guy to such great heights during his peak. Nothing sticks.

Had to skip through the first two songs cause the repetitiveness was a sensory nightmare for me but Porcelain was a recognisable tune so it started to redeem itself. But then I remembered how much I used to hate 'Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?' and had to skip again. But then it got brought back again with two good songs, so I started having a change of heart. Ultimately, it was a bit of a mixed album. Half of it I got irritated by and skipped, the other half was reasonable

soulless piece of trash

I actually listened to this not too long ago, partly out of nostalgia but also out of curiosity to see whether it held up. And I had a surprisingly good time: it's really not deep, important music and Moby is a bit of a douche but this had every right to be as ubiquitous as it was. Competently crafted sample music that isn't just interested in making your booty shake but to provide some feels along the way. It's nice. And I don't see a good reason to amend this feeling now and today.

Good ambient music but that's about it for me.

This album is a moment in time... But felt kinda scrungy and repetitive to me.

I feel like every song is the ending of the first Bourne Identity movie. It’s a moood.

I like this. But I don't love it. I wouldn't rush to listen to the whole album again. But pretty cool. And he seems like a pretty cool person, too.

Interesting one this, I bought it on the strength of Porcelain and Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad, and I played it a lot but always skipped a few tracks. Listening for the first time in years it's still three tracks deep into the album that I love: Everloving, Guitar Flute & String and My Weakness. The samples and beats work well elsewhere but these instrumentals have so much depth and emotion. Too patchy for a 4 :(

Instantly recognisable and quite timeless too. A good listen with some definite highs, but admittedly not one with a lasting impact on me, and therefore I am unlikely to listen from front to back often. Good music, and a good album - not a great album though.

Moby is pretty great. Porcelain is beautiful, always gives me goosebumps. Lots of other really good tracks throughout too. I also really enjoyed the techno tracks like Machete - I would’ve liked a bit more of this. Guess I need to check out more of Moby’s earlier techno stuff. Marking it down a star because it’s not the most cohesive album, and particularly towards the end it just seems like a few experimental tracks thrown together a bit. And I didn’t care much for the ambient sound collage type tracks like 7 and down slow. Still a great album - reminds me of when I studied Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad in GCSE music

Great, classic album!

The bluesy, mid-tempo songs are good. Techno in a personal way

Okay, get this. I had a truly terrible day on Thursday. But in the car I heard Natural Blues on the local alt station and it brightened my mood a little. Then at 10 p.m. I submitted my rating for the day and saw that THIS was going to be the next album. Out of the 1,089 albums on this list... Are you kidding me!? The universe has a sense of humor, I tell ya. This felt deeply healing to me. I understand this might be a love-it-or-hate-it thing, but I'm firmly in the "love it" camp.

Another good in the 90s artist

I have a soft spot for this album. It was on the playlist when I was really discovering music for myself, and it’s still just so cool and unique.

No

Chulada

Porcelain is one of the best song ever, such a vibe! Moby is like a more mystical disco version of pitbull

This album is so long! Overall pleasant electronic music. Some of the songs would make good background music for commercials. I like how it takes from different oldie styles like in Run On. A lot of soundtrack vibes for some of these tracks. No idea how his concert might look like tbh.

A bit too repetitive for me. Could see how this would be revolutionary in the 90s.

Pretty good

PORCELAIN

Good background music.

Super nice album.

I just love it

Absolutely brilliant!!!

I just can't stand this. It was ruined by repetition for me at work in the 90s. I thought I would enjoy it after all this time but it gives me a nauseating headache.

10/10 One of the most listenable albums ever. 2/28/2025

BEST SONGS: - Rushing - Natural Blues - If Things Were Perfect - The Sky Is Broken

14 y/o eminem-obsessed me would be embarrassed I liked this, but it was actually great! Far too many songs though; a lot of boring filler songs. Would have been a strong 4 if there would like 5 less tracks But the good songs were great. I want to be driving down the PCH on a warm summer's night listening to these. Best Tracks: Honey Porcelain Bodyrock Natural Blues Flower Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad 3.75

honey was in holes. 3.5

-kind of reminiscent of Since I Left You with the plunderphonics / downtempo sound, but…. Not as good imo -had some really phenomenal moments, started off very good but ultimately couldn’t hold my attention much at the end. definitely gets 3 stars just for how catchy it is though, I was moving -Favorites are Honey, Bodyrock, and Machete

Highlights: Honey, Run On. In a nutshell: taking and running with it. It’s obvious Moby read from Fatboy Slim’s playbook: find samples you like (in this case blues vocals), add loops, stick to a template. Repeat. Porcelain is universally recognised as a chill-out radio “classic”. Body Rock would’ve been on a gym playlist. Overall: 5/10

The important thing to remember about sampling vocals, is that you don't just loop them constantly for an entire track because then they get annoying. So why would you do that on your opening two tracks?

É um bom álbum de eletronica, mas não parece ser um álbum, e sim uma playlist feita por algum fã. Gostei de Porcelain, Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?, South Side, Bodyrock e Everloving. Mas o álbum em si é um 3

Play was inescapable in 1999, topping every music periodical's end of the year list of best albums in the era of rap-rock. Evidently Moby was so demoralized by a critically reviled and commercially unsuccessful previous series of releases, that he intended this to be his final album before going back to college to study architecture. Every song was featured in diverse advertisements and on the soundtracks to television shows and movies. The first half of the album is comprised entirely of licensed hits and postmodern blues sampling euphoria, the second half tends to drift off into instrumental territory. I don't know that I ever made it through all sixty-four minutes of the original record, in fact I thought that "My Weakness" was an obscure Sigur Ros track whenever it was featured. "South Side" is better with vocals contributed by Gwen Stefani, but that mix appears to had faded into obscurity (it's not even featured as a b-side appended to the Deluxe Edition), "Honey," "Find My Baby," "Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad," and "Natural Blues" all feature samples of blues singers and are incredible. "Bodyrock" is hip-hop inspired.

This is already a whole experience. I don't think I'm going to be able to listen to this whole thing...

Okay, I know I've crapped all over electronic music here but can we agree this is different? Moby has a real feel for not just beats, but songcraft. Reading about the journey he and this album went on was WILD, he almost quit altogether when the album landed with a thud. There's a really good podcast called Heavyweight about the guy who loaned him the recordings that led to a few tracks (including Natural Blues) and how he wanted the CDs back. I might go 4.5 here, just for South Side.

Cool electronic sample stuff and pretty decent energy.

Yeah..... no

This was surprisingly better then what I remember from Moby. 3 whales outta 5 🐳🐳🐳

One of my favourite electronic albums. Funky soulful pumping. Sample heaven. Some really clean stuff.

Electronic depth Tracks of emotional treks Full of dance rhythms

Cool

Love the old samples. Tried to listen to it, just can't stick with it through the whole thing. But fond memories

Man, Moby is white as hell. Southside is good, but I am white.

Still very early-wormy

One of my favorites

Heavily front loaded with the big singles. Was surprised by how much this petered out by the end as it shifts completely to downtempo chill. Also feels like every song is twice as long as it needs to be. By the time you've heard half of a track you've pretty much heard everything it has to offer. I can't deny it's impact and influence (both positive and negative) which certainly earns it a spot on this list but returning to Play was kind of eye-opening in how empty it actually is

Some bangers, but relys on nostalgia

How is possible that I forgot one song

Not my cup of tea but I listened all the way. “Natural Blues” was an ok song. Still kinda nostalgic hearing some of these tracks that I heard as a young kid.

I thought I would hate this, but honestly it was pretty good. A bit overly long, could have been tighter had it been shorter but enjoyable.

This album has got me really confused 'cause I really love parts of it, but some tracks (like the opening two) are simply atrocious. I guess I'm just going to go for the middle and give it a three. Moby's definitely not as bad as some people paint him to be. 3 stars

I know it well from my teens. I still like it but it is not the same. I see it more like me having grown in musical taste than the music not having aged well.

Each track is a single idea repeated ad nauseam, but at least some of the ideas are good.

good background music with an interesting mix of ideas from various genres. i admit that i probably have a bit of nostalgic bias when it comes to this album. i remember my older sister having this album and know ive heard many of the songs before, even if i only consciously remember "honey".

It didn't really strike something with me at first, but the further along I got in the album, the more I started to like it. Overall it was a pretty solid album with great sampling technique, and I would probably listen to it again.

I actually don’t think we need to take music from black artists and put beats on top of it

I really thought I was gonna like this…not only was it not great, I just don’t think this white man sampling all black music with very little credit to original artists was worth it

Thumbs up

Very good

Heard it before. It's a really good album, honestly. One of those things you listen to when you need to chill. But I'd remove a couple of songs because it's a bittttt too long 3/5

buen sonido.

So, by this point in the project, I was flirting with the possibility that I might hate electronic albums. Especially the ones around the late 90’s/early 2000’s. They always seemed to be a hour long and are filled with some of the most repetitive tracks. Most of the ones I went through tended to be very boring and felt more like background music. So seeing this album pop up, and not only having a hour’s worth of content, but mixing the blues into the electronics, I was fully prepared to hate this album. But I think Moby here might have cracked something because despite the odds, Play ended up becoming my favorite electronic album so far. Moby somehow found a way to take 5-second blues samples and integrate them in a way that doesn’t make it annoying or slow. The tempo is just right enough to cater to the beat. It feels less like a “party” electronic album and more like an actual ambient electronic album. But not in the way that it might fade into the background, like so many other electronic albums do. It’s ambient in the way that it sends you places. To me, the strongest aspect of Play is its ability to shuffle between the more jam-like tracks (Honey, Find My Baby) and the more chill tracks (Porcelain, Everloving). About more than halfway into the album, the blues mixing goes away and the album takes a calming, sort of more somber tone. Pianos become the dominant instrument and the drum beat and record scratching recede. I think this is the album’s vice is that the second half of the album takes away from the blues influence. Many of the tracks feel a bit like filler. Hell, the trinity of Everloving, Inside, and Guitar Flute and String take up 10 minutes of ambient filler. But personally, it’s not that bad. It adds to the album’s charm. Honestly, my biggest praise is that the album didn’t bore me. Looking through the reviews, some believe the album is mostly filled with generic, repetitive slog made for car commercials. I can see why they think that. The album can stretch into that territory. But for me, this album tapped a lot of emotions. From the smooth trip hop of the first half to the calming aura of the second half, Play didn’t fall into the point of no return other electronic albums have done prior to this. I never got bored and I never lost interest. It kept me invested for a hour. It might not be mind-blowing in any capacity, but it’s very enjoyable. And it didn’t annoy me, so it’s already leagues above the majority of electronic albums I listened to and will listen to. Favorite track: Porcelain Other hits: Honey, Find My Baby, Rockbody, Run On, Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?, South Side, Inside

Saw Moby as the headliner for the Area 1 tour in college ... and he sucked balls. Outkast ... as the warmup actually killed it. That's always how I've felt about this album. 90s kids loved it, but me, I was way more into classic hip-hop.

Iconic

I'm going to give Play by Moby a 4/5. I think it's a really good album, I was vibing while I was listening to it. It had some really good songs and I might be influenced by nostalgia but I was considering giving it a 5 for a while. It's not completely consistent though, there are a few times that are a bit boring tbh. Did enjoy it a lot though, listened to it two more times despite already knowing how I would taste it.

Das Lied was ich am meisten mag, Lift Me Up, ist nicht auf dem Album

Sheer class. Smooth, haunting, creative. Superb

I did have Play on CD so felt very nostalgic, had no idea what trip-hop was at the time. Quite enjoyed it but I think it'll only be a 2 as I can't see myself going back to it again and the second half dragged a bit, bumping it down a star. I didn't know at the time but If Things Were Perfect sounds like a massive rip-off of The Overload by Talking Heads.

this album has 34 songs..... ok surprisingly really enjoyed. v funky and good variety.

Really good electronic album.

Better then I rememebed. Has a few bangers. Very 2000's nostalgic

A great exploration of form and genre, Moby toys with all tools available to him to create some catchy choons

I have heard this many times over but it has some great tracks on there as well as a bit of fill. Its a little over long but the standout tracks Honey, Why does my heart feel so bad Natural Blues and porcelain are worth it. I also like the instrumentals like Everloving and the banging Bodyrock is also a grabber.

A bit bloated but the highs are very high.

I guess I like Moby. I was familiar with the singles but never gave the full album a proper play thru. Doubt I would have appreciated it when it was released in 1998 but I enjoyed it today. Good vibes from start to finish and an excellent album to work to. The opener, Honey was a great track I hadn’t previously listened to. Ended up listening to the extended b side release and that was great too. 4 stars

Pretty basic electronica compared to what I'm used to not bad and something I will absolutely play again.

3.5 stars. Moby and Fat Boy Slim are total 90s nostalgia.

Some hits from back in the day 3.5

You know I understand why the HIMYM gang would’ve been so excited to meet Moby on NYE. I actually really enjoyed his album compared to other electronic ones we’ve listened to so far. Moby did an amazing job at mixing it up and keeping me on my toes throughout the entire album, rather than just the redundant sound I’ve experienced with this genre in the past. Overall good album

What an experience of an album. For being electronic this still had a little bit of everything. There were few songs on this album that I didn’t enjoy, I’ve already downloaded it for listening to on flights. The first two songs in Honey and Find My Body were both great and Find My Body reminded me of Hozier at times. While it was electronic/house, there were times throughout this album such as rushing (great piano), everloving, and guitar flute that all bring in acoustic styles to the electronic space that was a great blend. Also, if I didn’t know, Everloving could literally have been a Chris Calhoun recording and I never would have questioned a thing. I was not surprised when I discovered that Moby helped out on the Jason Bourne soundtracks as I recently watched those and Machete reminded me of those movies. The second half of the album has great almost mellow, electronic songs in summer, flying foxes and sunspot that all shine in unique ways and while they’re the same genre, none of the songs felt repetitive and each new song brought a new listening experience. It was at this time during the listen that I went on a walk and as the sun was setting in my day, The Sun Never Stops Setting came on and that was an otherworldly experience for me. I stopped my walk for a second to look around and take in nature and the sunset as I listened to the song. (Unfortunately it was followed up by the significantly worse Micronesia but they can’t all be winners. This was a 2 and a half hour journey that I loved almost the entire part of. Whether I am working and need something in the background, on a drive with my windows down, on a plane going to some event or destination, this has been added to my repertoire and I will be listening to this again.

Love this album. Time to relisten.

A much better album than I expected it to be. Not amazing or anything, but just generally good electronica and ambient chill music with enough variety to keep it from getting stale.

An album I listened to many times as a kid and still holds up well

Incredibly nostalgic album. I remember Dad playing this as a kid. It’s dynamic and varied, with tunes for every emotion. Not a lot of thematic through-lines here, as far as I can tell.

Always struggle whether to give 4 or 5 stars - I could really go either way and really don’t even now as a write this what I’ll end up giving it. Honey, Bodyrock and South Side were the standouts for me.

(not) Moby's party Arranca aceptable y termina muy arriba.

Muy bien moby. Medio larguito nomas

Earworm central, slows down in the second half. Favorite track(s): Honey, Find my baby, natural blues Will I revisit?: low priority Current rating: 6/10

⭐️⭐️ i'd only ever heard Porcelain years ago, which was alright to me at the time, so I had high hopes for liking the rest of the album i just didn't like it, i'm afraid. the majority of this is looped blues samples over near-identical and repetitive drums and keyboards. on the few tracks that aren't samples, the vocals aren't great and the lyrics often sound very basic, almost sterile i guess can see how some people could get into this sound when it first came out, but it definitely didn't age well. there's plenty of albums from the 90s or older that feel timeless and innovative in comparison to this i'll give this a (very reluctant) 2/5

Some really great tunes and production on here - Porcelain and Why does my heart - but overall this serves rather as a demonstration of production and technology. Not enough owned music, too many borrowed feelings embedded in flawless production generate something like an advert for a DJ for any tomorrow's night. A testament to a culture of recycling that mistakes recycling for re-use and repetition.

Find cool 'preacher like' sample, put it over a cool beat... rinse and repeat. Man found a formula that worked. I liked this album more than I thought I would.

Pretty good collection of techno and electronic songs. Very long album though, and is tedious to listen straight through.

I get the importance of this album for electronic music but electronic music isn’t really my thing.

Not a fan sadly. I know even back in the day I didn't like it either

Simple but very unique sound. Album is 2hrs+ and not all tracks worth a listen, but you don’t figure that out unless you actually have listened to all of them. A few great ones.

A few good tracks but didn't feel as impactful as I remember

Actually pretty decent for house music. May need to put this on my background playlist, though would need to go through and cull the right vibes. But just overall, putting this on at a party would fit right in, I can totally see why this was here. Vibed with quite a few.

This was great for the first 30minutes or so

Great background. I recognized more of these than I realized were from Moby. Nice.

This is #day178 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and... it's a bleak Sunday morning in Lviv, 0°C outside, February 2nd. I'm watching my wife read a book, and what better soundtrack for this moment than Play? It’s wild to think this was meant to be his last album, yet it ended up becoming his breakthrough. Play is the epitome of Moby's style, an intricate mix of electronica and downtempo, layered with blues and roots music samples. Those raindrop-like house/dream trance keys are pure aural bliss... If I had to pick highlights, I'd say "Porcelain," "Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?," and "Natural Blues." I'm also a fan of the follow-ups, 18 and Hotel... that's classic Moby for me. Of his more recent work, Everything Was Beautiful And Nothing Hurt stands out, where he revisits his musical roots again. This album is a solid 5 out of 5 for me. Lucky to own it on an original UK cassette. Looking forward to #day179.

свободно и легко

Meh. Not sure how Moby got famous.

I mean it's pretty cool, but then it gets kind of repetitive towards the end. Eighteen songs is too many.

A great album, with every song memorable in one way or another. I was genuinely surprised how many songs I knew from this, and enjoyed getting to know the others too. Will always make me think of the XFM show, and how Ricky Gervais loves Moby but hates his music. Couldn't disagree more. 03/02/25

Atmospheric electronic music, very sample heavy but enjoyable stuff. I know a lot of the tracks already.

Love Moby. I own this and played it to death....

aburrido

Chill, but innovative and melodic.

This album helped me get through a very rough time in my life. There were a few years when I was very depressed over losing the first girl I seriously fell in love with, and this album really helped me cope during that period. It also had a few B-sides that were very strong tracks, and to be honest, I don't know why they didn't make it onto the final album because, if anything, they were better than some of the original tracks. Anyways, this album will always hold a special place in my heart.

Had some hits, unique style. Interesting album!

I enjoyed the vibe of the music just not my style :)

1.5 i guess. not for me

Didn't like it then, don't like it now either

Very tricky to rate. The "thing" is good and produces a lot of pleasant songs but does the lack of variety mean I'll not be back? I'm erring on the harsh side

Listening to this album I was surprised to find out how many songs I have heard already, and after reading the story behind "Play" it all makes sense - all these tracks have been licensed for films, TV shows and commercials for quite some time before the album was released. I really liked the way Moby combines downtempo and electronica with gospel, folk and blues vocal samples on some tracks - it feels like Moby aimed for something more nuanced and emotive, with minimalist approach to instrumentation letting the vocals carry the tracks. There is no shortage of more big beat stuff though, like "Bodyrock" tapping into the Fatboy Slim/Chemical Brothers style, or "Machete" which wouldn't feel out of place in a setlist of tracks by Crystal Method or Fluke. Overall, a pretty enjoyable album, with quite a few tracks to include in my daily rotation.

“Nobody cares, Moby. Nobody cares” -Space Ghost

So corny

everywhere in 1999 and a losing cool for the multitude of corporate sellouts and overplayedness

3.5- for an electronic album it was pretty decent. A handful of songs I enjoyed and a lot of filter. Favorite songs: porcelain

such a massive album both for and against it. It seems similar to a fatboy slim record in terms of the fun mixes but it also at times takes itself seriously which gets a little meh and cheesy? But when a song hits it really does hit. Good production and some undeinably time capsule gems of the time. Good hip hop influence. Soul/blues samples. Beautiful orchestral piano. Crazy genre switch ups. I also listened to the extended version on accident so my bad. Definitely an overall good project. The singles are all good (hopefully you know them Honey, porcelain, natural blues) but deep cuts that are also good like run on, down slow, everloving, inside and my weakness. The extended edition has some similar but also decent tracks.

eclectic, cool synths

Weird men elsker lowkey vil nok sige 3,8 men vi runder op😉

Play has managed to become one of my favorite electronic albums. The album mainly employs a lot of different styles including ambient, techno, and even rock in some places with all the guitars. And somehow, every single element is handled beautifully with the songs managing to remain upbeat and catchy and having enough ambiance to make the album sound otherworldly. The album also managed to have very different sounding songs which kept me interested even at a 63 minute runtime and the songs still managed to fit well together. This is an absolutely beautiful album. Best Song: Bodyrock Worst Song: My Weakness

Love this album as a kid. Love it still as an adult.

This album sounds like 1999. I don't love dance music, so I had no problem listening to a minute of a track and then skipping. I do appreciate his use of old blues and gospel samples. Southside was a banger when it was on TRL. It still slaps now. Honey, Natural Blues, Bodyrock, and Run On are still great tracks. I didn't like Porcelain when it came out, and I still don't enjoy it.

Tragically I missed out on seeing David Bowie as a teen because I didn’t want to pay to see Moby (for whom Bowie was OPENING; what a travesty). I thought there would be more chances! And that’s middle-age disappointment in a nutshell. Anyway, this is music for commercials; it makes me feel less than nothing.

The man knows how to bottle up a cool sound, but it’s all just a preview for a song that never materializes. Seems like he would’ve been better suited to producing for a real band. This is my complaint about every hip hop record as well, so paste this review for all of those. Normally I give one star for anything I won’t listen to again, but I’m bumping it up because of some obvious talent and willingness to show some pasty skin on the album cover. He knows what we’re here for.

This album makes me realize I liked techno music that’s weird sounding before I knew I did. I enjoy the down tempo meladoic vibes. Some songs are out of place kinda weird. Some even being too damn boring for my taste.

I'd have a hard time doing a complete playthrough of Play these days, but if you include the B sides (they're like an entire second album), between the two you could make a decent album. It was something for '99, but the DJs that grew from this are making better stuff

Most all the songs are just 30 second loops stretched out to 4 minutes. And it’s just too long. An hour for the base album and an hour for the B-sides (the double album is the only version on Apple Music). Honey and Natural Blues are standouts.

I’m not really sure how to rate this album. It’s kinda cool music, but it sounds like I’m listening to a movie soundtrack. I wouldn’t choose to sit and listen to it, but I wouldn’t mind it on in the background while I’m doing something else.

jeder Track ein Banger!!!

Man this album was inescapable when it came out. The funny thing about it is that if you listen (closely) there are actually some pretty interesting things happening here. The not so funny thing about it is that it is that like all of this kind of music from this era (Fat Boy Slim and even Daft Punk I'd lump in with this among others), it is so repetitive it is hard to listen to for any length of time. But most of it is so simple you tune it out and it's sort of just paying in the background. It was a slog getting all the way through this album, I was ready to move on halfway through the second song. Generous 2/5.

First half of the album is a strong 4 second half of the album is a 2. Very typical sound from the era were you used sample and loops to create a ”unique” sound.

1/1089 - Mildly enjoyed it. Nothing super memorable.

Effortless cool.

There is a few songs on this album, that I can stand listening to

every song is just a repeated theme for 3 minutes dreadfully boring and dull

Liked it alot

Some good songs but not a compelling album.

Really fun to reminsce with this one. Flashbacks to 1999. Very happy time for me. Bodyrock and South Side were the songs i remebered from this album.

So much nostalgia is baked into these songs. My dad used to play this album so much when I was a child - so it's very difficult to remove the daggy dad energy from this album. Trying to be as objective as possible, the album comes out of the gate with a string of 3 songs which impose themselves onto the listener. Once Porcelain comes around, you can't help but be transfixed. Whole album is fairly consistent - easy to see how it's influencial and critically acclaimed. Might have rated it higher if not for the overexposure to it in my youth.

Never listened to a Moby album, although I’m sure I must have heard at least one of the eight (!!!) singles from this at some point. If I’m honest, I was busy and this passed me by. I don’t remember much about it. It seemed neutral enough. I suppose I should listen to it again really. But I don’t have any desire to just now. Maybe one day I might. We’ll see.

Album has every Moby song you will recognize

Just a bunch of samples repeated over and over for 3-5 minutes per song. Not interesting at all.

probably like 1.5, pretty meh not exciting

I keep talking about video games I played as a youth and once again, SSX Tricky comes to mind. DO AN UBER TRICK. And of course, the Australian (?) character in a wet suit, Moby is my reference point. I assume he doesn’t make an appearance. This sounds like the jaunty intro to an early 2000s family movie. This song could’ve been 1 minute. That would’ve been all I needed to hear. After that it’s complete garbage. This makes me want to listen to where the samples came from rather than the Moby song itself. This one is kind of funky but it again goes on too long. WAY TOO LONG. Let’s see what one idea we can stretch over 4 minutes this time. Guess what. He stopped doing that. He has gone ahead and just decided to do a song filled with different bad ideas. See previous track review. This one was actually a little better. The heart feeling bad was at least sort of emotion adjacent. Meh. Repetitive malarkey. I am “rushing” to get this over with. Oh man. Noooo. The pain. Look at this guy and listen to how corny this is. Please. Even if it’s some ironic commentary on the fleeting nature of youth and its expression through diasporic disparity or whatever, it still fucking blows. Moby is a troublesome guy. Is that what he’s saying? Who cares? Machete eh? Hmm. I could think of a few things I could do with that machete. Sugar cane fields mostly. Something happened on “7”? Didn’t catch it. I like this old timey shit, but it’s probably not this guys song. He just put his GarageBand piano and drum sample behind this gospel song that would’ve been better on its own. Are we going to hear that Fatboy Slim song? Is Moby Fatboy Slim? What a dumb sentence. There was a song here! Whoa. Hold on. Is this almost interesting? Still repetitive, but it has some semblance of atmosphere. It’s super pretentious and too close to the mic but I think I have Stockholm syndrome. Way to go Moby. Whoa Moby is really exiting the same sounding area. Oh wait never mind, that shitey piano has returned. Yup! Another song. This one is kind of nice. Gentle, soft, but ultimately a voyage of boredom on an already arduous trudge through electronic autofellatio. The Sky may be broken, but these are my favourite moments on the album. He sounds deranged. Like a captor saying these things to his prisoner. Terrifying. Well. A muted outro to a muted album. Not the moment I think he hoped it would be. The repetition kills these for me. I’m sitting here listening to a record. I’m not in a movie, I’m not at a weird dance. I’m sitting and listening to the same sound over and over again. It gets frustrating to endure the same sounds for an hour. If that’s the objective of the artist, then maybe I’m not prepared for the fast paced world of art studio electronics shows. The darker stuff was alright, and the gospel samples make me want to listen to old gospel, but as far as Slimboy Fat over here, a big pass. 1 HIGHLIGHTS: If Things Were Perfect, The Sky is Broken

Advert music

Not listened to this in years but really enjoyed. Will be putting on again

Sampling - bad start. If done well works well but feels a bit GCSE music. Feels like its dragging and frist song is only 3:30. Track 2 - I'm not going to enjoy this! Vibe was actually pretty good. I know this. Feels like Background music for an advert. Better. I know this once too. I don't remember liking it. Realised that my favourite part of each song is the sample itself. And not the drum machine and reverb...