18 is the sixth studio album by American electronica musician, songwriter, and producer Moby. It was released on May 13, 2002, by Mute Records in the UK and on May 14, 2002, by V2 Records in the US. After the unexpected commercial and critical success of his previous album, Play (1999), Moby started to write songs for a follow-up during its supporting tour. He started work on the album at its conclusion in December 2000, using fewer samples than before. Guest vocalists include Azure Ray, MC Lyte, Angie Stone, and Sinéad O'Connor.
Following its release, 18 went to number one in 12 countries, including the UK, and reached number 4 in the US. The album went on to sell over 4 million copies worldwide. 18 B Sides + DVD, a collection of the album's B-sides and live video footage, was released a year later.
Background
In December 2000, Moby finished his world tour in support of his previous studio album, Play (1999), which had lasted for 21 consecutive months. He wanted to start on a follow-up as soon as it was over, by which time he had already recorded ideas for some new songs. This process was under way in the spring of 2001, with Moby using a Power Macintosh G3 and G4 to write and record with Pro Tools. He felt no pressure in delivering an album that matched the commercial success of Play, but an "artistic pressure" to make a record that he and others could enjoy. He said that Play and 18 were structured around the same motivation: "The desire to make compassionate records that meet a need in someone else's life." Moby had written "Harbour" in 1984, at nineteen years of age; Sinéad O'Connor was surprised upon learning this, as she initially thought the song related to pre- and post-September 11 events. O'Connor was too afraid to fly to New York City to record her vocals at the time, so she used a studio in London.
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| rev2 = Blender
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| rev3 = Entertainment Weekly
| rev3score = A−
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| rev5score = 4/10
| rev6 = Pitchfork
| rev6score = 2.6/10
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18 received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has a weighted average score of 61 out of 100 based on 21 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Track listing
Sample credits
Music
- Moby – instruments, vocals on "We Are All Made of Stars", "Signs of Love", "Extreme Ways" and "Sleep Alone"
- Azure Ray – vocals on "Great Escape"
- Freedom Bremner – vocals on "At Least We Tried"
- MC Lyte – vocals on "Jam for the Ladies"
- Dianne McCaulley – vocals on "One of These Mornings"
- Sinéad O'Connor – vocals on "Harbour"
- Shauna Phillips – vocals on "The Rafters"
- Lorraine Phillips – vocals on "The Rafters"
- Jennifer Price – vocals on "In This World"
- The Shining Light Gospel Choir – vocals on "In My Heart" and "I'm Not Worried at All"
- Angie Stone – vocals on "Jam for the Ladies"
Production
- Moby – production, engineering, mixing
- Tony Dawsey – mastering
- David Calderley – artwork, design
- Danny Clinch – photography
Charts
Weekly charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+Weekly chart performance for 18
!scope="col"|Chart (2002–2005)
!scope="col"|Peak<br />position
|-
|-
!scope="row"|Australian Dance Albums (ARIA)
|align="center"|1
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"|European Albums (Music & Media)
|align="center"|1
|-
|-
|-
|-
! scope="row"| Irish Albums (IRMA)
| style="text-align:center" | 1
|-
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"| Portuguese Albums (AFP)
|align="center"| 4
|-
!scope="row"| Russian Albums (NFPF)
|align="center"| 10
|-
|-
!scope="row"|Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)
|align="center"|15
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
|}
Year-end charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+2002 year-end chart performance for 18
!scope="col"|Chart (2002)
!scope="col"|Position
|-
!scope="row"|Australian Albums (ARIA)
|align="center"|41
|-
!scope="row"|Australian Dance Albums (ARIA)
|align="center"|4
|-
!scope="row"|Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)
|align="center"|53
|-
!scope="row"|Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)
|align="center"|8
|-
!scope="row"|Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)
|align="center"|10
|-
! scope="row"|Canadian Albums (Nielsen SoundScan)
|align="center"|66
|-
!scope="row"|Canadian Alternative Albums (Nielsen SoundScan)
|align="center"|19
|-
!scope="row"|Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)
|align="center"|39
|-
!scope="row"|European Albums (Music & Media)
|align="center"|13
|-
!scope="row"|French Albums (SNEP)
|align="center"|17
|-
!scope="row"|German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)
|align="center"|35
|-
!scope="row"|New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)
|align="center"|31
|-
!scope="row"|Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)
|align="center"|94
|-
!scope="row"|Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)
|align="center"|15
|-
!scope="row"|UK Albums (OCC)
|align="center"|41
|-
!scope="row"|US Billboard 200
|align="center"|160
|-
!scope="row"|US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)
|align="center"|1
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+2003 year-end chart performance for 18
!scope="col"|Chart (2003)
!scope="col"|Position
|-
!scope="row"|Australian Dance Albums (ARIA)
|align="center"|24
|-
!scope="row"|Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)
|align="center"|61
|-
!scope="row"|Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)
|align="center"|90
|-
!scope="row"|Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)
|align="center"|96
|-
!scope="row"|French Albums (SNEP)
|align="center"|120
|-
!scope="row"|US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)
|align="center"|23
|}
Decade-end charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+Decade-end chart performance for 18
! scope="col"| Chart (2000–2009)
! scope="col"| Position
|-
!scope="row"|US Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)
| style="text-align:center;"|5
|}