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 (Little Idiot/EMI)
Wailing songs, coming from Moby’s more downbeat reflections
Though regarded by some as po-faced and nerdy, Moby survived this long because he’s taken risks that, on balance anyway, paid off, regularly changing tack with each new album. This one appears to have started the same way. Inspired by a talk about keeping the creative process personal by enigmatic filmmaker David Lynch, Moby downsized his ambitions and hunkered down in a home studio, occasionally calling on a few non-famous female friends for vocal contributions. The result is what Moby calls a quieter, more melodic, more mournful, and more personal record, reinforced by a number of references to death, misgivings and the loss of hope. For all that though, what’s here is recognizably Moby, from flowing instrumental soundscapes like Slow Light and Division to what appear to be period samples of a preacher in Study War. Only one track, Mistake, features Moby’s voice (doing his best disembodied Bowie impression). The song itself builds in intensity through a rock-like use of guitar and drums, elements that regularly turn up in other guises, from the manipulated guitar sample of Shot On The Back Of The Head to the cymbal shimmer in Ghost Return. Even so, whether it’s the duodenal gurgles of the hymnal Walk With Me or the heavenly choir of A Seated Night, Moby’s forte for undulating synths and eerily cinematic feels is what really colours these pieces. Yes, it’s gloomy in parts, but Moby is still a master of mood.
*** ½
BILL HOLDSWORTH
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