Home > Los Angeles Music > CD Review > Moby, 'Last Night'

Backstory: After a number of electronic artists—including the Chemical Brothers, Daft Punk and the Prodigy—scored big crossover hits in the ‘90s, Moby capped the decade with the genre’s biggest breakout album, 1999’s ubiquitous “Play.” The record sold nearly ten million copies, and Moby briefly dated Natalie Portman and made an enemy out of Eminem. “Last Night” is his third album since becoming an A-lister; the previous two failed to make much of a mark.
 
Why you should care: “Last Night” returns to the hyper-dramatic heights of early Moby albums, combining beat-heavy bodyrockers and blasts of gospel with austere ambient tracks.

Verdict: “Last Night” is meant to convey the somewhat bipolar experience of a wild night on the town, from euphoria to ennui, from lust to loneliness. Moby may not be an innovator, but he is an apt pupil, and his affection for nightclub culture is palpable. The late stretch of the album is a moody, ambient comedown, which has always been one of his strong suits. Sometimes his homages to the past 25 years of dance music sound sterile, particularly when he incorporates hip-hop, but there are kicks to be had in raved-up, big-voiced tracks like “Disco Lies” and “Everyday It’s 1989.”
 
X-Factor: A new website, mobygratis.com, allows independent, student and non-profit filmmakers the opportunity to access some of Moby’s music and use it in their projects—free of charge.

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