Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt
| Moby
Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt
Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt is the fifteenth studio album by American electronica musician Moby. It was released on March 2, 2018, through record labels Little Idiot and Mute. -Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
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Everything Was Beautiful, And Nothing Hurt
With a long list of guest vocalists, Moby’s latest more melancholy album is lush but feels anemic and minor compared to some of his best work.
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Rolling Stone
On his latest, the veteran electronic producer explores the end of all things with subtlety and grandeur.
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Consequence of Sound
The electronic mastermind's 15th studio album is a bitter, beautiful pill to swallow.
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Spill Magazine
A heavy album to listen to, perhaps, but worth doing so more than once.
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The Irish Times
While Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt is not exactly a lark in the park, Moby has tragically captured the unique sadness that both drives and restricts us.
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SPIN
Moby’s Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt is an uninspired take on trip-hop.
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Spoiled Cabbage
Moby creates a despondent calm in advance of the determined storm. It is the best thing Moby has done in a long time.
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Renowned for Sound
Despite the intriguing female vocals by Raquel Rodriguez scattered throughout the entire album, Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt feels interminable.
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Telegraph
Despite its relentlessly downbeat content, then, Moby’s music is just too satisfying to be depressing. The same might be said of Yeats’s poem, where the sheer beauty of the language overpowers the pessimism of his vision. Rather than evoking political dissent, Moby offers the solace of shared sadness. And perhaps in such hectic, angst-filled times as these, empathy is an end in itself
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Music OMH
Expressing those feelings in music is the best thing he can do – and as a result, everything is beautiful – and it hurts less by the end.
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The Times
Moby’s latest offering is all rather portentous and, frankly, a bit boring.
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Cryptic Rock
Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt is unarguably another worthy addition to his ever-elongating list of musical works that not only entertain but also challenge the senses.
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Spectrum Culture
Deals in the more abstract and profound dilemmas of the human condition .
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Express
For a very long time, on Richard Melville Hall’s latest album, one’s spine remains shiver-free.
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Off The Tracks
If telling you that this brand new album is his best since the glory days means absolutely nothing to you, well, then, fair enough. Move on. But Everything Was Beautiful contains plenty of heart, some heart, far too much weariness and just enough musical gorgeousness. It’s a return, of sorts, one of Moby’s finest. And if you couldn’t care less that is totally understandable. But if you were interested but ultimately disappointed in albums like 18 and Hotel then Everything Was Beautiful should be the album for you.
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Bearded Gentlemen Music
Everything Was Beautiful, And Nothing Hurt isn’t a total misfire or completely unlistenable, but it lacks the amalgamative charm of some of his other, more recent efforts. For the long time fans who have stuck with him through his various shifts in sound and style, there is probably something here that will resonate with you; for the casual fan, or for the person who read this review and thought, ‘Whoa, Moby’s still around?,’ this gets a hard pass, and your time is better spent dusting off your old CD copy of Play.
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Northern Transmissions
As he really captures a lot of what made his early work turn heads on this record, it’s refreshing to hear him fusing genres like never before. Though some songs don’t shine nearly as brightly as others, the few that hit the mark remind you why Moby is still held in such high regard.
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Under the Radar Mag
This is going to be the background music of every independently owned Vegan restaurant in the world before summer, but Everything Was Beautiful, And Nothing Hurt deserves better than that. Fifteen albums in, Moby still delivers the goods.
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Kef Direct
Those into Moby I am sure will love it, but for me the great promise of Mere Anarchy and the wonderful album cover faded to deliver ultimate disappointment.
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The Young Folks
There is a statistical chance that if you listen to this record, you might find it enjoyable or insightful. If this happens to you, more power to you! I’m glad Moby’s vision is speaking to you. If you’re like most people, though, you might find yourself thinking something more cynical when it’s over: “Good; now I can be happy again.” Sometimes there’s power in darkness, but this album’s largely a sky of storm clouds with no thunder nor lightning.
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Smells Like Infinite Sadness
Everything could have benefitted from more variety–its less dynamic than its punchy, caustic predecessor, lacking any propulsive dance numbers some fans might expect. But for those who prefer their Moby dark and low-key, it will soothe jangled nerves in these troubled times.
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Record Collector Mag
Passionate, eccentric and unafraid of speaking out or baring his ever-beleaguered soul, Moby remains a welcome presence in modern times and certainly does himself no harm with this highly personal statement.
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Sputnik Music
A glimpse of the world Moby envisioned, but this time after the apocalypse . . .
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Arena
Perhaps it will take a few times listening to the album in its entirely to really hone an appreciation for its sound and what Moby is really trying to express-- for others, though, it may just be an overdone political flop with not nearly enough gospel renderings.
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Independent
Moby may be recovering from the past year of political turmoil like the rest of us, but he’s found solace in what he knows. With his latest release, Moby is back in his trip-hop comfort zone and looking inwards, and for the most part it suits him.
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Back Seat Mafia
It’s never overproduced like so many modern works and retains a minimalist vibe which works so well throughout. It’s hard at times to tell what is original work and what is samples (we all know Moby loves a sample).
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The Arts Desk
U.S. electronic music perennial makes the end times sound musically luscious.
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FLOOD Magazine
Everything Was Beautiful, And Nothing Hurt is a delicious—if occasionally troubling—new wasteland for him to uncover.
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Young Post
The electronica artist’s latest album is a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy – everything really is beautiful, and nothing hurts at all.
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Everything's Gone Green
Moby’s own production is superb - it was recorded at home - and I think the word “lush” probably best describes the wider feel of the album, which clocks in at just under an hour.
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Amino
Just like every Moby album, there's a number of different messages in there. While you might not understand them at first listen, you will, subsconciously. Heck, there even is a message by just looking at the track listing (in every order possible). But most of all, Moby manages to pass his messages through the music itself.
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Exclaim!
It's a tasteful and mature evolution for one of the genre's key names, and long-time fans will have no problem assimilating this well-crafted, down-tempo album into Moby's already eclectic body of work.
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Roots Music Report
Moby is for all music lovers a safe rock on which we can take shelter in moments of greater storm. Let us entrust ourselves to his music in order to go ahead.
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The Fire Note
On his 15th studio album, Moby creates an atmospheric soundtrack for the post-apocalyptic age to come.
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QRO Magazine
Moby has long been a great predictor of music, from his own before-today’s-heyday electronica to foreseeing iTunes before there was iTunes. Admittedly, Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt doesn’t push his envelope, but he’s got a great letter.
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Mxdwn Music
Everything is a powerful message that challenges the endless stream of terror flooding through social media and around again, Moby is directly addressing how this is all weighing on him, and it deserves your consideration.
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Immortal Reviews
Moby dives deep into sensual electronics in Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt, keeping each song unique and his sound even more so. There's a lot of variety under one umbrella on this album, showcasing Moby's sly and creative mind.
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star2
So maybe Everything Was Beautiful, And Nothing Hurt isn’t an epiphany when it comes to Moby’s catalogue. Luckily, its tunes and gospel comforts are.
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Gulf News
The album ends with a brilliant flourish with A Dark Cloud Is Coming, reminding everyone he is a master at creating hypnotic soundscapes. One thing is clear: In Trump’s America, Moby may be beaten but he’s not broken.
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Radio Public
Moby is back in the business of electronic pop music. And what has poured out of him on his 15th studio album are equally dark visions rendered with music and performances that feel softer. Like the warm cushion of a goose down pillow as it settles on your face to suffocate you.
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Sacred Exile
Defenseless without any powerful modern production techniques, cookie-cutter song structure or any real dynamics, the album will wash over you slowly and methodically. Whether or not you’re ready for an hour of rip-your-heart-out emotional splendor, is entirely up to you.
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The Red & Black
Moby is just one of many artists to use music and performance as a means to make a social or political statement. There is no denying that his message in this album is crystal clear, as it reflects Moby’s view on America’s current situation.
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Vintage Vinyl News
For the most part it’s a solid LP that uses a few effective tools to drive home its sentiments. sadly though, after 12 tracks the album not only feels bleak, but a little one note.
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The Line of Best Fit
Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt, Moby’s 15th album, harks back to his earlier releases, taking its influence from orchestral music, soul and trip-hop in equal measure. The result is a record uplifting and otherworldly, but not without a definite degree of darkness that throbs beneath its surface.
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Walker Words
But, being Moby, despite the weary melancholy inherent throughout, he produces moments of great beauty, even transcendence.
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Mixmag
Too often – as on ‘The Last Of Goodbyes’, with its limp rap and doleful Burialisms – it sounds like Moby pastiching his old self. On the flip side, ‘Welcome To Hard Times’, a sunny Balearic soul shuffle, is lovely, and the ghostly piano haunting ‘The Tired And The Hurt’ contains the muscle memory of his masterpiece ‘Porcelain’, but they’re isolated sparkles. Stephen Worthy.
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The Diamond Dog
After almost 30 years in the music business, Moby is still willing to adapt and reinvent himself. However, Everything Was Beautiful, And Nothing Hurt is a return to what he knows best. Within this beautifully choreographed album, Moby is able to express the feelings many of us are experiencing in a unique way. If this is the music of the post-apocalyptic world, then I think we’ll be alright.
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The Inquirer
Everything Was Beautiful, and Nothing Hurt isn't an epiphany when it comes to Moby's catalog. Luckily, its tunes and gospel comforts are.
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Hotpress
[Moby is] on more fertile territory with his 15th long-player – a moochy rumination on death, renewal and cultural strife, which comes with the unlikely twin inspirations of WB Yeats and Kurt Vonnegut (the title is a line from Slaughterhouse Five).
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edinboronow
Moby is back with one of his most strongly conceptual albums to date, nailing down a theme of dark, oppressive and impressively layered tracks over its almost hour-long runtime.
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