| Human | 
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Avg. Customer Rating:   (based on 73 reviews)
Sales Rank: 35354
Category: Music
Artist: Death
Publisher: Relativity
Studio: Relativity
Manufacturer: Relativity
Label: Relativity
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 2036
UPC: 885612036278
EAN: 0088561203627
ASIN: B000003C2U
Release Date: October 22, 1991
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
Death Metal defined March 1, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Tremendous release by Death and for all intensive purposes - PERFECT. If you don't appreciate this one after a few listens - go back to whatever metal genre you came from. And stay out. This is a timeless masterpiece.
Whole damn thing is great - I mean every freakin note.. but Secret Face is a fav.
Another masterpiece of great, intelligent metal from Chuck Schuldiner. January 3, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is the 2nd Death album I bought, right after Symbolic. I was so impressed with it that I decided to make it my goal to get this, along with SOP and ITP. I'll buy Death's early albums when I think I'm ready. Anyway, while the production of Human may not be as good as Symbolic, it's still great. Chuck's lyrics, like on the aforementioned album, are deep, thoughtful, and very thought-provoking. Just listen to the lyrics of Secret Face (my favorite song on the album, by the way)! His guitar solos are as fast as ever. Paul Masvidal may not be as good as Chuck (but who is?), but he provides a solid rythm guitar and does some really cool trade-offs with Chuck on Flattening of Emotions, Cosmic Sea, and Vacant Planets. Sean Reinert is an awesome drummer, who fills Human with a lot of double bass drumming and blast beats. Unfortunately, Steve Digiorgio's bass is buried in the background, with the exception of a good, if short, solo on Cosmic Sea. From what I hear, this guy is a really good bassist, so it's a real shame you can't hear him. Being a bassist myself, it's a big dissapointment. But other than those complaints, this is a great album.
The title of this album is quite apt. That's because it's about the lives of every-day people. Just listen to Together As One - I think it's about marriage, and how it can be a nightmare or it can be something good: "Together - they will live and they will die. A living hell has just begun." Suicide Machine is about how people want to die when at their own convenience, and don't accept it as in inevitability. Secret Face is about how people will fake who they really are to fit in or get what they want. That's why it's my favorite song on Human. The lyrics really represent all of the preppy teenagers at schools and how they wear certain clothes and listen to certain kinds of music just to seem "k3w1". Flattening of Emotions is about how your success or happiness can go completely downhill and you end up a failure just in the blink of an eye, and that you should always be prepared for the unexpected. Lack of Comprehension is about when people blame their problems on other people who had no part in making them miserable. It starts off very slow and atmospheric, but then rips your face off with heavy instrumentals and Chuck's thrashing voice. The guitar solo has a very stange, almost ambient, sound to it (if that fails to make sense, forgive me). But then again, all of Chuck's solos on this album sound like that. See Through Dreams is about how people always take things for granted and never think about their possessions just dissappearing, a subject that would later be continued on the song Symbolic. Cosmic Sea, an instrumental, starts off with some very strange keyboard effects, with the guitars kicking in. Then Chuck reminds us who's boss with another great solo. This is also the song were Steve's bass is the most audible. This is probable the slowest and most melodic song on Human. I especially like the spacy keyboard effects around the 2:10 mark. After that, if you have yet to hear any of Steve's other work (like me), than the solo on it shows how talented he is. Then Paul has his shining moment on the album, with a great guitar solo. As the song fades out, you here those weird keyboard effects mixing with Paul's solo. Vacant Planets is about the possibility of other life existing beyond Earth, but we refuse to believe it and think that Earth is the only planet in our infinite universe that can sustain life.
All 'n all I'd say this is yet another masterpiece that transcends death metal, and anyone who dares to label it that obviously hasn't listened to the album. I'd still say it's metal, no doubt, but it's way more than death metal. And while I'm still new to metal, this is without a doubt in my mind one of the best metal albums of all time, along with Symbolic, and ITP and SOP I'm sure. So buy it if you're a longtime fan or a newbie to Death, or metal in general (like me)
A death metal masterpiece December 15, 2006
When Human was released back in 1991 it challenged all misconceptions and stereotypes people had about what death metal was supposed to sound like. This album proved that death metal could be technical, innovative, and most of all, intelligent. Don't let the muddy production deter you from this album. On Human, main axe-man Chuck Schuldiner, rhythm and lead guitarist Paul Masvidal, bassist Steve DiGiorgio, and drummer Sean Reinhart unleash a fury of death metal riffage, double-bass work, and masterful guitar solos. They unleash this to devastating effect on the listener. I won't go into a track-by-track review but I will describe the opening track Flattening of Emotions, which is among my favorite Death songs. It slowly fades in with some quick double-bass work and drumming by the terrific Sean Reinhart, then Chuck and Paul play some very ominous sounding riffs, and finally a torrent of pummeling tremolo-picked riffs assault the listener. At 1 min and 22 seconds there is one of the coolest and heaviest riffs I've ever heard. Two very sweet solos by Chuck and Paul make this track an absolute gem. The great part about this album and all Death albums in general is that Chuck wrote all the music himself, which is a testament to his great musical talent. Another great part is that the awesome Steve DiGiorgio is the bassist so it automatically scores in the points department with me. Fortunately, his talents would be better utilized on Individual Thought Patterns, the subsequent Death album.
What are you waiting for? Buy this CD and automatically become cooler than you ever were before. Buy it now! R.I.P. Chuck Schuldiner
Great Death Metal September 4, 2006
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
This album was the real start of Chuck's progression away from the straight ahead death metal found on some of his earlier works. Make no mistake this album is fast and heavy as hell. Songs like See Through Dreams, Suicide Machine, and my favorite Lack Of Comprehension are classic Death songs. This album made me buy Cynic's beautiful but ultimately inferior album Focus because of Sean Reinert and Paul Masvidal's playing on this album. The greatest bass player in the world, Steve DiGiorgio is also found on this album, yet he is not as noticealbe as he would be on Individual Thought Patterns or with Control Denied. This album is a bit different than the last three Death albums sticking more towards a more thrashy sound than those later albums. Perfect musicianship and the lyrics are really thoughtful especially See Through Dreams and Suicide Machine. Pick this one up! Also a reviewer by the name of Lobster Leno has been posting absurd comments on many Death and Slayer album reviews. This guy needs to be shot in the head. He reccomends Limp (Dick) Bizkit and Ashlee (Milli Vanilli) Simpson. Punch him in the face.
Brilliant August 5, 2006
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is a classic metal album from the early 90's possibly by the most important death metal band ever. They're not my absolute favorite extreme metal band, but they're definetly becoming one of them. They may not be the very first DM band but they are those who put the genre in a whole new direction (face it, without em, DM would not sound like what it sounds today). Right now I have 3 death albums (this, Leprosy and Perseverance) and this is the best of the 3, IMO. Don't get me wrong, the other too kick as s but I like this one better.
Human is a kinda fusion of the gore albums and the prog ones. Although it's not that progressive it has some great changes of melodes and it's very technical. Like what Heavymetalninja said, they made a good thing, experimenting. This doesn't only sound like an improved version of Leprosy, but it has a whole new sound. For those who are new to the band, Chuck's vocals are not your typical DM growl. They're more high pitched and are comprehendible. But on the guitar department he totally shreds. He was easily one of the best metal guitarists in extreme metal (the other one is Alexi Laiho, although Suffocation still has the best duo in DM). Paul is another great guitarist ans Sean is a cool drummer too (I haven't heard yet their work with Cynic so I'll keep you posted). But they all made here a good job. Another upside here is the guitar sound, some of the best I've heard on a metal album. My favorite song here is possibly 'Suicide Machine', I love the main riff and the chorus.I also like 'See Through Dreams' for the change of melodes and it's main riff is kinda catchy. 'Flattening Of Emotions' is an amazing opener too. But SM is worth alone the price of the album.
All in all, if you like metal, this thing is for you. Even if you don't like DM. Or even if you're a nu-metal fan there is still a hope. It's easily one of the best metal album of '91, along with Sepultura's Arise and Suffo's Effigy of the Forgotten. Sorry fans of Metallica's Black Album but this absolutely destroys it (I actually think that album was kinda good but it just has nothing on this).
...RIP Chuck Schuldiner...
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