The rumours surrounding "Human After All" have been swirling for weeks. The version currently floating around the internet isn't the final mix of the album. They intentionally leaked it in order to build anticipation for the proper version. Their record company is concerned about the early reactions from the internet and is considering not releasing the album at all because of the negativity.
If the "anticipation" rumour is true, then they certainly attained their goals vis a vis me, because they've put some anticipation in my brain where surely none would have existed otherwise.
Some tracks do sound empty -- endless looping, with little variation or build to them (e.g. "Television Rules the Nation" and "Make Love". In particular, the latter could be a fantastic little heart-tugger if it had a bit more flair, maybe a "Digital Love"-ish guitar solo?). Some other tracks already sound pristine to me. "The Brainwasher" is structured just like a million other techno records, which is obvious to anyone who has ever used a Stairmaster (= it's the "cross-training" preset, with a succession of hills of increasing height separated by comparatively flatter sections. Er, yeah). "Emotion" is absolutely perfect -- tantalizing build, killer bass line, and Vainqueur-esque synth whooshes. And it's a rather sad tune, for those who like a bit of emo in their slowed-down disco-funk. The only thing missing is another five minutes.
If this is indeed just a rough mix, the next six months of "Proper Mix" vs "Rough Mix" debates will be fun. I'll be armed with my "hey what's wrong with minimalism, just because the proper mix sounds more like pop music doesn't mean it's automatically better music" arguments.
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