“My reason for putting together Area: One is that there is a lot of music in the world that I love that does not always get the appropriate exposure,” says Moby in the official press release for his Area: One tour, which hits the Tweeter Center this Wednesday. The traveling festival, a veritable Mobypalooza, boasts a mainstage line-up so incredible — dirty-South superstars Outkast, pomo-folkie Nelly Furtado, new-metal softies Incubus, and Mr. Moby himself — that publicity for the event seems unnecessary. The second-stage acts alone — trance maestro Paul Oakenfold, ambient-house pioneers the Orb, French house act Rinocerose, hard-house DJ Carl Cox, and Detroit techno legend Derrick May — are solid enough to warrant the $42 admission tag.

But Moby wasn’t content to sit back and assume the best, hype-wise. He’s been getting on the horn and, under the strict supervision of his publicist, doling out 10-minute interviews (absolutely no more than 10 minutes) to the press. We, of course, were more than happy to take the bait. We were told Moby was to be asked questions only about the tour. We had a little trouble with that restriction. But we figured what the heck — we’d pretend, at first anyway, to play by the rules.

So, uh, Moby: if you could have any line-up, living or dead, for the Area: One tour, who would it be? “That’s a tough question,” he says, the clock ticking. “I would love to have Björk, and Led Zeppelin, and Gwar, and Public Enemy, and the Sex Pistols, and [DJ] Larry Levan.” So while we’re on the subject of Zeppelin, which Moby Dick does he like better, the novel or the song? “I would have to opt for the novel.” Why? “Because it’s longer. And as much as I like Led Zeppelin, I wouldn’t say that ‘Moby Dick’ — I mean it’s a good song, but it’s not up there in my Top 20 Zeppelin songs.”

Does he get a lot of flack for having so many of his songs licensed for use in television commercials? “Yeah, I get a lot of flack, but at the same time there’s no arguing with the fact that when we put out the record, radio wasn’t playing it, MTV wasn’t playing it, no one was interested. The only people interested were those making movies, TV shows, and commercials. My feeling is that if I’ve made a record that I’m proud of, then I want people to hear it.”

You know, we recently saw an ad for this K-Tel-type compilation called Smooth Grooves, and it had one of Moby’s tracks on it, alongside Yanni and Enya. Does he mind being lumped in with them? “No, but I don’t really think of them as my musical peers. But one thing people aren’t aware of is that when a musician gives a record to the record company, the musician never owns the music, so when the record company decides to license songs to things like Smooth Grooves and American Express commercials, I really have no say. Imagine if you’re an architect: when people move into the house, if they want to make porno films in the basement, you can’t really say anything because they own it.”

There’s a rumor going around town that Moby’s dating a waitress at Charlie’s Kitchen in Harvard Square. Any truth to that? “Oh, Kelly,” he says.

Yeah, is he dating her? “We were dating for a while, but now I would say, well, she lives in New York now.” So they’re not together anymore. “No.” But they were? “Oh yeah, we’re dear friends, she’s involved in one of the charities that’s involved in the tour, Human Rights Watch.” And we thought it might be just a seamy, baseless rumor. “No, no, no, it’s true.” So Moby must be a fan of Charlie’s, right? “I’ve never been there before, at least if it’s the place I’m thinking of.” It’s in Harvard Square, it’s got a loud jukebox . . . “I’ve never been there,” the bald one says definitively. “But, yeah, yeah, Kelly — she’s a wonderful woman.”

And with that, our time was up.

Moby’s Area: One tour plays the Tweeter Center in Mansfield this Wednesday, June 18. Call (617) 931-2000.