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Rating: You already know my thoughts on the "Human" album by Death.
I have repeatedly expressed total veneration for this record, released in 1991, which represents the personal pinnacle of all Death Metal and, in general, extremism in music. The ultimate expression of the creature shaped by the late Chuck Schuldiner: eight tracks for just over thirty minutes. An impressive sonic devastation. Deadly execution speed, technique beyond any imaginable level, precision in breaks and continuous changes in musical registers. A time bomb.
Unfortunately, the good words end here today because I want to focus on the re-release, published by the label "Relapse Record," which came out in 2011 for the twentieth anniversary of the work. Jim Morris at the Morrisound Studios in Tampa, Florida, handled the remixing of all the tracks; the producer, in many interviews, claimed to have used notes from Chuck himself, thus obtaining a production "overturned" compared to the original. He even swore that this was the result the Death leader had in mind. But are we really sure that such a noticeable cleaning of the sound would have satisfied Chuck? As far as I'm concerned, I wouldn't be so sure.
In 1991, the budget the band used to produce the album wasn't high; the technical means available in the studio were not the best. The final quality of the work, from a sound point of view, is somewhat lacking, especially concerning the bass work of Steve DiGiorgio and also Sean Reinert on drums. The result is a "closed," compressed sound, but perfect for those times. The beauty of "Human" lies precisely in its imperfections; Chuck himself always stated that it could have been done better.
Instead, in the re-release, everything is perfect, everything sounds at its best. Sure, it's sublime to hear the inhumane bass work of Steve in clear evidence, but sometimes it feels like listening to a tribute band and not real Death. Even Chuck's voice at times, for example, in the second track "Suicide Machine," takes on distortion effects that make me foam with anger.
In addition to the work, there's a cover of "God of Thunder" by Kiss and a second CD with the instrumental versions and demos of the eight songs; again, thumbs down because we're still dealing with an irritatingly crystal-clear cleanliness. We're talking about the original demos!! How is such perfection possible? Try it to believe it.
I hold the 1991 work very dear: when I put it on my faithful Kenwood stereo system of 250 + 250 watts and turn up the volume, the destruction begins and the windows of the house shake precisely because of the raw and heavy production that annihilates you.
Do you think this happens in the re-release?
The rating is a midpoint between the absolute value of the album and this operation which is absolutely negative for me.
Ad Maiora.
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