''Baby Monkey'' is the second studio album by Voodoo Child, an alternate pseudonym of American
electronica
Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that came to prominence in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mos ...
musician
Moby
Richard Melville Hall (September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, disc jockey, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "amo ...
. It was released in January 2004 by record labels
V2 and
Mute.
Release
''Baby Monkey'' was released on January 27, 2004, by record labels V2 and Mute. According to the album's liner notes, Moby released the album under his pseudonym so he could concentrate on the music without having to worry about promotion or record sales.
Two singles were released: "Light Is in Your Eyes" in November 2003 and "Take It Home" in December.
Reception
''Baby Monkey'' has received mixed reviews from critics. ''
Mojo'' wrote: "''Baby Monkey'' has a strangely nostalgic feel – as if he's reanimated his old raver's soul, with its favourite beats and bass lines intact."
''
Uncut'' called it "An interesting addition to the artist's varied oeuvre."
''
Blender'' wrote: "As self-indulgent side projects go, this could be a whole lot worse."
On the other hand,
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
wrote that it "Often sounds virtually identical to a generic dance record circa 1992."
''
Q'' wrote: "''Baby Monkey'' has nothing of the danger, adventure or indeed chemical frisson that defined rave culture—it's just smug sonic wallpaper."
''
Spin'' noted: "These tracks lack the energy to power a glow stick."
Jonathan Zwickel of
Pitchfork
A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials.
The term is also applie ...
wrote: "There's no life breathing through these 12 flaccid tracks, each of which would've seemed regressive even in Moby's early-90s heyday—today, each is a total anachronism."
Track listing
# "Gotta Be Loose in Your Mind" – 4:39
# "Minors" – 4:54
# "Take It Home" – 5:09
# "Light Is in Your Eyes" – 6:14
# "Electronics" – 6:24
# "Strings" – 6:50
# "Gone" – 5:14
# "Unh Yeah" – 4:27
# "Obscure" – 4:11
# "Last" – 3:53
# "Harpie" – 5:24
# "Synthesisers" – 9:15
References
{{Authority control
Moby albums
2004 albums
V2 Records albums
Mute Records albums
Albums produced by Moby