"Porcelain" is a song by American electronic musician Moby. It was released on April 25, 2000, as the sixth single from his fifth studio albumPlay (1999). Written by Moby, who also performs vocals on the recording, "Porcelain" is a melancholic song with lyrics reflecting on the breakup of a relationship. It features a lush musical backing that incorporates reversed strings and various synthesized elements. While Moby initially expressed disdain over the song and its production, he was eventually talked into including it on Play.
One of the most successful singles from Play, "Porcelain" became a top five hit in the United Kingdom and entered various other national record charts. Contributing to the song's commercial exposure was its use in several forms of media, including a notable placement in the 2000 film The Beach. Music critics have highlighted "Porcelain" as a standout track on Play, and it has also been included on several year-end and all-time lists of the best songs. Two different music videos were produced for "Porcelain", directed by Jonas Åkerlund and Nick Brandt respectively.
Background and composition
"Porcelain" was written and produced by Moby for his fifth studio albumPlay (1999).[1] Moby recorded the song, and the rest of Play, in his apartment in Manhattan's Little Italy neighborhood.[1] According to him, the song's lyrics were inspired by a personal experience: "I was involved with this really, really wonderful woman, and I loved her very much. But I knew deep in my heart of hearts that we had no business being romantically involved. So, it's sort of about being in love with someone but knowing you shouldn't be with them."[2] Moby initially disliked "Porcelain", finding his production "mushy" and his vocals "really weak".[3] He recalled that he "couldn't imagine anyone else wanting to listen to it" and had to be talked into including the song on Play.[3]
Andy Gensler of The Hollywood Reporter described "Porcelain" as a "lush" downtempo track.[4] The song features vocals performed by Moby,[5] and introspective, wistful lyrics that describe "loving someone, but having to break up with them anyway."[6] Composed in the key of E♭ major and running at a tempo of 96 beats per minute, "Porcelain" follows a constant four-chord progression (Gm−B♭−Fm−A♭) in the B♭mixolydian mode, with the exception of a bridge midway through the song.[7] The music incorporates several layered elements, including a reversed sample of strings from the Ernest Gold composition "Fight for Survival" (from his soundtrack for the 1960 film Exodus),[8] synthesizer chords, piano and cello lines, vocal samples, and a drum machine rhythm.[1][9] Pilar Basso performs additional vocals on the song.[5]
Release
The sixth single from Play, "Porcelain" was first released to radio on April 25, 2000,[10] then issued as a physical single on June 12, 2000.[11] Like other tracks from the album,[12] "Porcelain" was licensed for use in numerous commercials and films.[13] English director Danny Boyle featured "Porcelain" in his 2000 film The Beach, with Moby later crediting the film with significantly raising exposure of the song.[3] "Porcelain" was also notably featured in commercials for the Volkswagen Polo, Bosch, and France Télécom.[13] Spanish television channel TVE 1 also used Porcelain as its background music for idents from 2001 to 2004.
"Porcelain" became one of the most successful singles from Play, and Moby has since referred to it as "probably the most signature song" on the album.[3] It debuted at its peak position of number five on the UK Singles Chart.[14] The single also charted in numerous other European countries, including France,[15] Germany,[16] Ireland,[17] the Netherlands,[18][19] and Switzerland.[20] In Canada, "Porcelain" peaked at number 50 on the RPM national singles chart,[21] while in the United States, it placed on several genre-specific Billboard charts tracking popular records in dance[22][23] and rock[24][25] markets.
Entertainment Weekly's David Browne deemed "Porcelain" a standout track on Play, praising it as a "gorgeous" song anchored by Moby's "plaintive" vocal performance.[26]Chicago Sun-Times critic Jim DeRogatis found the song "emotional and gripping" and remarked that if it "didn't move you (in every sense of the word), then you probably had no pulse."[27] Alexandra Marshall of MTV described "Porcelain" as "a lush little snippet which sounds like a basement tape from a Magnetic FieldsEP."[28] The Birmingham Evening Mail said that the song's "sweeping melody and atmospheric vocals" create a "distinctive soundscape".[29]
Naming it the 26th best single of 2000, Playlouder referred to "Porcelain" as Play's "most crushingly heavenly track" and stated that "familiarity made it no less of a glorious single."[30] It was voted by critics as the 56th best single of 2000 in The Village Voice's year-end Pazz & Jop poll.[31] In 2003, Q listed "Porcelain" as one of the 1,001 best songs of all time.[32] The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame featured the track in its exhibit "The Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll".[33] Liana Jonas of AllMusic referred to "Porcelain" as "a groundbreaking recording", noting that the song's commercial success "helped bring electronica music into the limelight."[1] Moby named his 2016 memoir after the song.[34] Later, "Porcelain" was prominently sampled on rapper ASAP Rocky's 2018 song "ASAP Forever", with Moby being credited as a featured artist on the track.[35] For his 19th studio album Reprise (2021), Moby recorded a new version of "Porcelain" featuring Jim James of My Morning Jacket on vocals,[36] which was released as the first single from the album on March 26, 2021.[37]
Music videos
Two separate music videos were produced for "Porcelain". The first version, directed by Jonas Åkerlund,[38] is primarily a simple closeup of a human eye; various images are reflected onto the eye throughout the entire video, including Moby performing the song, people smiling, and a piano being played. This version only aired in European markets and was not released in the US until its inclusion on the 2001 video albumPlay: The DVD.[39]
The second video, directed by Nick Brandt,[38][40] follows a driverless 1972 Cadillac DeVille, in which Moby is a passenger, as it travels through a city and a countryside, passing various people in slow motion. The car drives through a field, a forest, past cattle, and finally down a hillside going into the distance.
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