Moby – Hotel
Label: V2 / Mute London
Style: Electronic
Released: 2005
My Grade: 3 stars
AMG: 1.5
Sounds like: Orbital, In A Lonely Place, The Chemical Brothers


This year Moby released his follow up to his multi-platinum release “18.”

“Hotel” comes in two formats a single disc and two disc edition. On the first CD Moby sings or has vocals on every track except two. This was not a good thing since I’m not too fond of Moby’s singing ability. The music is very upbeat, would be perfect for those days you slouch around the house and do nothing. Unfortunately beautiful, melancholy downers like “Porcelain” and “I’m Not Worried” from the last two albums are all gone. Though I appreciate that he is always trying something new and does everything possible to shatter that techno label that keeps following him, he hasn’t done anything remotely techno since “The Go Remixes.” Laced throughout are positive lyrics and music that uplift the soul. This music is safe a place to curl up inside and relax for awhile making the title the perfect fit for the theme of the songs. The most surprising song is the sexual “I Like It.” The sultry-breathy voice of Dawn as guest vocalist is absolutely delicious. Definitely a track for lovers to enjoy together. Imagine hearing the line, “so put it inside…” in a Moby song. Moby the chance taker strikes again. The album covers other subjects as well such as our relationship to the Divine as explored in “Spiders,” respecting everyone as a human being in “Beautiful.” “Hotel” does have some down moments like the heartbreaking “Love Should” this is such an emotive ballad. Back to the singing, sometimes the vocals work and sometimes they come off as mechanical (I’m sure the studio touch-ups have something to do with this) and do not form an emotional connection with the audience. “Dream About Me” is an example of this I’ve listened to the whole album four times and maybe upon future listens I will be able to appreciate them more. But as a fan of Moby I can attest to the fact that he does have a tendency to have a lot of hits and misses and this first disc contains mostly misses.

The saving grace to “Hotel” is the second CD named “Hotel Ambient.” All eleven of these tracks are pure gold (and they are all instrumentals). It’s best to turn the lights out, light a few candles and crank this baby up. They all flow together as one massive masterful symphony. It starts with the shimmering, poetic “Swear” seven minutes of electronic bliss. The track list is assembled perfectly. Listen to “Homeward Angel” and then “Chord Sounds” they just melt into each other seamlessly. It’s hard to pick one favorite here because hearing them you will start to think of them as movements in a larger composition. I know Moby has stated in the past that he composes albums to be listened to as a whole, he hit the mother load on this one because that’s just what “Hotel Ambient” is, a finely crafted piece of music. Too bad many will miss out on this disc because it’s only available with the Limited Edition set. If you can procure the Japanese import version it has a few extra tracks left over from the last album. The first disc earns a grade of 2 stars and the second scores 4. If you plan on getting this record please make sure you get the two disc set. If you can’t find the two disc set don’t waste your time and money on the single disc.

Reviewed by: Aaron

Official Website: moby.com