Moby’s Play – a 1999 album that was a massive electronic crossover hit – is getting a limited edition vinyl reissue.
Play is the fifth studio album by Moby, originally released on May 17, 1999. The album become the biggest-selling album of its genre, with over 12 million copies sold worldwide.
The album introduced Moby to a worldwide mainstream audience, not only through a large number of hit singles but also through comprehensive licensing of his music in films, television, and commercials. making PLAY one of the most commercially licensed albums ever produced.
The Play reissue is available for about US $38 for a double vinyl LP. Also available are vinyl reissues of Everything is Wrong and Animal Rights.
A purest would only ever have a CD copy.
Here is the odd thing, it states above:
“The album introduced Moby to a worldwide mainstream audience, not only through a large number of hit singles but also through comprehensive licensing of his music in films, television, and commercials.”
That is backwards. Moby was a quirky electronic underground artist, and a regular club DJ wouldn’t touch that back then. So he took this emotive electronic break music and licensed the crap out of it. It was everywhere, and these little soundbites became a part of the culture. Once the music was marketed as his songs it had a familiar and friendly feel, and sold big. Seems to be a very clever guy, he defined his world rather than conforming to its weakness – maybe a bit of the right idea at the right time, and bit of luck. But you need a lot of brains and talent to even get close to that kind of thing, especially as an underground artist.
You know, I’d be excited about this if it wasn’t for the fact that every time I hear a song off that album I associate it with an advertisement.