As I mentioned here yesterday, I've never listened to any of Moby's music before, so I was quite surprised that I liked his new CD, 18, as much as I did.

I was strolling down Broadway last week when I came across a huge Moby billboard in Times Square, and I started wondering -- how does a plain-looking white guy become a mega-celebrity without my knowing about him? I'm not a big fan of electronica, but the billboard convinced me to investigate the hype.

Boy am I glad I did. The CD is mellow and relaxing at times, and invigorating and refreshing at other times. With a range of music from gospel to house to rock to folk, I didn't know whether to dance, shout, pray, or light a candle and meditate.

As much as I liked the CD, I have to confess that I'm not sure exactly what Moby contributed to it. The CD jacket says "all songs written by Moby . . . except" and then goes on to list seven songs out of the 18 that he didn't write. That's about 40 percent of the CD. In addition, he samples liberally from various artists and uses vocals from everyone from Angie Stone and MC Lyte to Sinead O'Connor. The list of vocalists also includes Jennifer Price, The Shining Light Gospel Choir, Azure Ray, Dianne McCaulley, Freedom Bremner, and Shauna and Lorraine Phillips. So I'm thinking, what did Moby do here? According to the CD, he "produced, engineered, and mixed" all songs and "performed" all instruments.

I still don't get it, but at least the music is good. Hauntingly good. The title track, 18, is peaceful and reflective, giving you the impression of floating on air. The various featured female vocalists add humanizing beauty to the music. All music has its place (I suppose) but I guess I've heard a few too many "niggers, bitches, and hos" integrate their way into the lyrics of some new music. If you're looking for something fun, peaceful and uplifting, give 18 a try.

© Copyright 2002 by Keith Boykin.