Four years since
Discovery changed changed the game and made Daft Punk much
more of a household name, they released their third album, Human
After All, which took their sound in another very different
direction. Initially, back in 2005, I found myself quite disappointed
by the album and to be the weakest of their three albums, though at
the time Daft Punk stated that it was their favourite. I found it to
be relatively lazy and uninspired compared to their past works. Not
to say that I hated it, because I really didn't. In fact, there are
some songs that are great, but it did seem to be a noticeable decline
in production quality and diversity.
That being said, I have
come to appreciate it a bit more in recent years and there are a
number of contributing factors to that. First, one has to look at
what Daft Punk wanted to accomplish. They wanted to make an album
that was the antithesis of Discovery. They had done that and
wanted to try something different. Discovery was complex and
polished to perfection. Human After All is raw and simple,
stripped down to minimalism most of the time. They explored
improvisation and recorded and produced it within six weeks, much
less time than their previous two albums. I suspect that's where the
name of the album comes from; it is flesh and bone. But as a
fascinating contrast, they explore their robot persona much more in
the album, often having it sound more artificial than ever. They are
at their most robotic and most human simultaneously. Another thing
that makes it very different from Discovery is the mood of the
album, this one being much more dark and gloomy, almost
post-apocalyptic in approach, which is a far jump from its
predecessor's joyful celebration of music.
Human After All
was also made primarily without synthesizers, which was a bold move
for an electronic band. It was recorded mostly with a drum machine
and two electric guitars and some interesting effects to make it
sound more synthesized. With that in mind, it helps one see what they
were trying to do with the songs, and in a way makes some of them
seem more impressive.
The first half of the
album I actually quite enjoy. It opens with the title track which is
a clever mix of rock and electronica, boasting a catchy guitar riff.
Next is “Prime Time of Your Life,” which I wasn't overly fond of
at first and I can see why. It doesn't quite build up to what it
could be, but I've come to enjoy its simplicity and appreciate how it
defies expectations in typical song writing. “Robot Rock” is one
of the more memorable tunes on the album, sampling heavily from an
1980 funk-rock song called “Release The Beast” by Breakwater. It
is a great song, but I wish it had a bit more of their own material
in it because it really does seem like they just put the words “robot
rock” into the sampled loop. It's undeniably catchy though.
Next is “Steam
Machine” a track that I come to enjoy more and more when I hear it.
I don't know how they made their guitars sound like that, but it's
really cool to listen to. But by far and away, the highlight of the
album is right in the middle of it. “Make Love” is a brilliant
track, drastically different in tone from most of the album, but
structurally very similar in its simplicity. It doesn't really travel
much in it's almost five minute long run-time. It's mostly the same
musical loop over and over again with vocals entering quietly part
way through. But that is what is so remarkable about this song,
despite how repetitive it is, the piano chords and guitar loop is so
beautifully constructed that I literally could listen to it on repeat
for well over this song's run time. It is infectious and entrancing
and is one of my favourite Daft Punk songs. They really captured
something special here.
The albums takes a bit
of a turn here with the not as great “Brainwasher,” which has
some good moments, but doesn't really maintain my interest very much.
It's a little too abrasive without a good enough pay off. “On/Off”
is an interlude track that is kind of useless. “Television Rules
The Nation” is another underwhelming song, though never really bad.
It doesn't really go anywhere or really have anything to say beyond
the title of the song, which they simply repeat over and over again.
Doesn't add too much to the album.
We rebound nicely with
“Technologic,” one of the singles from the album and a sort of
stylistic follow-up to “Harder Better Faster Stronger,” though
the two songs are distinct. I say it's a follow-up because of the
vocal section, it is reminiscent of the robot speak-singing vocal
style, though this one is much more high pitched and quick. This one
is more raw and a bit more creepy, or maybe I just find it creepy
because I've seen the music video and the little singing robot in it
is... he's freaky. I wouldn't trust him. But this track is definitely
one of the best moments of the album and a great example of what they
were able to achieve with the ideas of the album. And the album comes
to a close with “Emotion,” which is another track that took some
time to grow on me. Arguably a bit too long, but there is something
really compelling about the way it plays out. And that's it, a
relatively short ten tracks and the album is finished.
But there is one more
thing I feel I should touch on before ending the review and that's
that I feel that this album was meant to be played live. Some of
these songs I didn't really 'get' until I heard the live album,
“Alive 2007” which had many of these tracks mixed together with
other Daft Punk songs from Discovery and Homework. I'm
not normally one who takes much of an interest in live albums, but
this one really is a great one and an essential release for fans of
the duo. It helps bring out some of the potential in the songs and no
tracks really sound like their studio album versions.
What is interesting
about Human After All is that it really feels like their
weakest album, but is somehow essential within their discography. I
suppose that's what happens when you have a small collection of
releases and you choose to make them extremely distinct from one
another. Huiman After All is a very unique entity, but
distinctly Daft Punk. On its own it isn't that strong, but somehow
within the context of their careers and their music, it works much
better.
And I think that is a
big part of why Daft Punk have lasted and been as influential as they
are; they are icons to behold. Despite the fact that when this came
out, they had only three albums and only one could really be called a
masterpiece. But Discovery
was the kind of album
that was that
good and when you have a live performance that matches that, it takse
you further. And really, the career move of making themselves robots
was really a stroke of genius because then they became known for more
than just their music and essentially turned themselves into a brand.
And that image has served them very well, likely aiding in them
getting the gig to make the soundtrack to the film Tron:
Legacy.
3 Stars
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