Published on Oct 30, 2003
What an album! – Amicable and brilliant. This album reminds me
of a four-wheel drive SUV bought at a rock-bottom price. This album
can please anyone, of any music taste. When
Play was released, Moby was kind of an underground artist /
producer. His earlier albums like
Animal Rights enjoyed very little popularity and success.
Even
Play was a sluggish starter. It had its own unique sound:
disco (nothing extravagant) songs, with sampled vocals from songs
of antediluvian age. In a way,
Play was meant to be an ‘underground’ album.
Well,
Play ultimately turned out to be one of the hottest dance
albums of the last decade. How then could a supposedly offbeat
album become such a humongous success? The answer is its
universally appealing sound. The music is so uncomplicated and
unpretentious that you fall in love with it, the very first time
you listen to it. Dance music has never been so simple and humble.
It seems as if techno has finally found an answer to Bob Dylan.
None of the eighteen tracks on
Play extend beyond the four-and-a-half minutes length – the
length of a standard ‘single’ song. Though Moby has experimented,
as far as the inclusion of ‘retro’ sound-bytes in some of the songs
of the album is concerned, he hasn’t gone overboard with the
experimentation-bit, as far as the musical complexity of the album
goes – simple, but richly melodious tunes, is the formula behind
every song on
Play.
Play is an album, which can be listened to, whilst one is
going on a long drive. It also fits snugly under the rubric of
those albums, which are supposed to be taken seriously. Also, it is
a fantastic party-album. In addition, its songs enhance the appeal
of a good visual – as is evident by the fact that almost all the
songs on
Play have found themselves as background scores for a good
number of commercials. Adding to all this, the well-written essays
included in the cd booklet, written by Moby himself, and the
enlightening quotes of famous people, also included along with the
essays, come as perquisites to the quality numbers in this album.
Considering its well-mannered nature,
Play is a ‘concept’ album’s greatest nemesis. With a mixture
of style, substance and versatile appeal, and of course the
interesting reading material on the cd booklet,
Play is indeed a four-wheel drive SUV, as far as music is
concerned.