Romantic

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It's been 4 years since the last proper studio album, Crash, a piece of work, where their popularity underwent a certain metamorphosis. Some estranged fans, seeing the 1986's album's R&B influences and only a handful of the band's original tracks, must have felt the band was finished. While having a US top one hit with "Human" (which was a Top ten hit in the UK), the style changed, Ian Burden and Adrian Wright left following creative disagreements. Phil Oakey was alone with Joanne and Susan, and the band clearly needed a new direction. Virgin was also hardly interested in the band (although it was the Virgin which made a big mistake with a second single from Crash, which flopped badly), and believed their once most profitable act was over. Phil joined forces with Russel Dennet and Neil Sutton, and the five-piece band started working on a new album, which for many was a come-back album, although it's been only two years since the band's last release (a Greatest Hits compilation). The restructured Human League came up with a total of ten tracks which form this album, the title of which casts an ironic eye on the band's past in the New Romantic wave of the 80s. As for me the album has some great moments, but it also suffers from a lack of strong numbers. The kick-off, the messy Kiss the Future, is somewhat enjoyable, but slightly too weak for an opener. It segues rather clumsily into A Doorway, where we have Susan on vocals. And it is actually one of the better tracks here. Produced by Mark Brydon (who would later form Moloko) it has nice clubby feel and a driving melody. Not a big blockbuster, but fair enough. This song stays in my mind and is enjoyable. Heart Like a Wheel and the other single, Soundtrack to a Generation are probably the strongest tracks here (both have great lyrics!). Men Are Dreamers is a nice rock ballad. The more electronic Rebound and The Stars are Going Out are also one of the better tracks. Stars... is actually my favourite track off the album, too bad it did not make it to be a single. It has single written all over it - great melody line, somber electronic arrangement with the girls contributing in the choruses. And above all, it has great lyrics, something which is quite rare for Human League (I'm sorry to say that). Get It Right This Time is also enjoyable, but not particularly outstanding. The cover version of Gary Glitter's, Let's Get Together Again, sounds a bit flat and simplistic. And the easily worst track is Mister Moon and Mister Sun. The horror! Kurtz would cry out. I ALWAYS skip it. Waste of time. All in all the album couldn't bring the band back to the highest chart positions, but at least the two singles were decent enough. Maybe if Virgin invested more in the band, there would be something more to it? Certainly this is not a thoroughly weak album, it just lacks fresh ideas and better songwriting, but is otherwise rather fine. The next CD, Octopus brought back what was missing here - fresh, crisp sound and production.

Very happy with the album arriving on time.

On time

Enter 1990, with 'Romantic?', and it is clear that 'The Human League' were right in the middle of an identity crisis; with very little in the way of focused progression since 'Dare'; The forthcoming albums continued to rely on 3 or 4 great songs and the rest was muddled with filler to average strength songs. Unfortunately, 'Romantic' continues that trend, with five strong songs and five rather poor to average incantations. Otherwise, with pretty okay production and an intact signature sound, the album is worth a thorough listen. "Kiss The Future" - Is a really poor choice for the album opener. It's a rather awkward track with occasional flashes of brilliance, but this isn't enough to save it. Far too much blazing synth ruins the vibe. 4.5/10 "A Doorway?" - This features Susan on vocals, and while the song is far from impressive from a constructional point-of-view:- it is a seductive listen, and far superior than the proceeding track. 6.5/10 "Heart Like A Wheel" - Easily the most memorable and classic song on the album, amongst their very best. Wonderful synth opening and a strong chorus also. 9.5/10 "Men Are Dreamers" - A synth ballad in it's entirety, and not even all that enjoyable. Lazy, boring and above all non-ambitious. 2.5/10 "Mister Moon and Mister Sun" - Another track along the lines of the first song with pulsating synth patterns. For me, an absolutely terrible song, with its's out of tune chorus and clicky transitions. 2.0/10 "Soundtrack to a Generation" - Easy to see why this was chosen a single, great song. And certainly one of the more underrated of classic League songs. 8.0/10 "Rebound" - I actually really enjoy this song as the synths take the front seat with this song and sort of carry the vocals when they come in. Atmospheric and a slow burner in my opinion. 7.0/10 "The Stars Are Going Out" - The most underrated League song by a country mile in my opinion. This is a classic effort and it's never got the praise it deserves. Superb!. 9.0/10 "Lets Get Together Again" - Found this one a little sloppy on formulaic pop, even if it is catchy and memorable. Not in my top five on this album and certainly not in the League's overall chronology. 4.0/10 "Get It Right This Time" - The Closer is a much more upbeat and party anthem to end the proceedings. Probably one of the better songs of the album, although still far from a classic. 7.5/10 Overall, taking into account the highs and pitfalls the album probably falls around a three star rating. I understand the early 90's were part of a rather difficult time for the band and were thinking of calling it a day; even under those circumstances, the album is still a worthwhile cannon from the band.

This album was the end of Human League as far as Virgin Records were concerned. It was an almost total failure, peaking at number 24 in the UK and only delivering the minor hit single Heart Like a Wheel (# 29 in the UK in late 1990). Follow up single Soundtrack to a Generation (actually one of my faves from this album) flopped totally (# 77), causing Virgin to drop HL. The sound if Romantic? is a little dated tis true, but it is still a fantastic album with great songwriting, fab musicianship, loads of singalong choruses and hooks that stick in the brain all day long. Personally, this is in my Top 3 HL albums and I wore my cassette version out with repeated playing, so thought it was time to get the CD and stick it on my iPod. Favourite tracks here are Kiss the Future (rumoured to be an aborted third single - should still have been released as it is so catchy and a great album opener), Heart Like a Wheel, Men Are Dreams, Soundtrack to a Generation and Rebound. Such a shame this album was panned and remains so underrated. Would love to hear HL play more songs from Romantic? in their gigs. If you're an avid fan, it is a must for your collection. If you're new to HL, I highly recommend getting a copy of this album, it's fab!

Good quality product, delivered promptly.

I would definitely recommend this dvd to any Human League fan. Once again they have produced an excellent album. Fantastic!

I think this is an excellent CD to have if your a fan of the band all the songs are cool and they sound great also,it's a great CD to own if your a music collector,this is a an out of print and very hard to find CD.

.Sonido Gran .league HUMAN De Tranajo Desconocido Muy Y Impresionante .Disco Del Estado Maravilloso

Me encanta mucho.

I love the "Romantic?" Album. I have nothing to complain about

I don't think this cd is in the same flow as their others. It just didn't seem to have enough pop in it.