Animal Rights (album)
Animal Rights is the fourth studio album by Moby, released on September 23, 1996. It marks a move away from his electronic music toward an alternative rock sound inspired by the hardcore punk he enjoyed as a teenager. The album was recorded in Manhattan from summer 1995 to spring 1996 with producer Alan Moulder.
The UK version runs 53:13, while the US version is longer at 72:38. It was released by Mute and Elektra. The first single, a cover of Mission of Burma’s “That’s When I Reach for My Revolver,” came out August 26, 1996 and reached UK chart position 50. The second single, “Come On Baby,” released November 4, 1996, did not chart.
UK copies of Animal Rights included a 49-minute ambient bonus CD called Little Idiot, full of drum-free ambient tracks and reworkings of album songs. The US release, issued February 11, 1997, featured a different track listing.
The cover photo shows Moby as a two-week-old baby being held by his grandfather, and the liner notes include essays on basic rights, Moby’s views on the Christian Coalition, and “last minute maxims” such as “cruelty is unacceptable.”
Critical reception at the time was largely negative or mixed, though some critics praised the experimentation. The album’s shift away from electronic music alienated some fans and confused the music press, and it nearly damaged Moby’s career. Despite this, the album has since been seen by some as underrated, and Moby later called Animal Rights his favorite of his albums.
Commercially, Animal Rights did not chart on the US Billboard 200 (though it reached #31 on the Heatseekers chart), and in the UK it peaked at #38. By 2002, worldwide sales were around 100,000 copies. All tracks were written by Moby.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 18:35 (CET).