A purple patch of writing born of depression and the mental and physical demands of parenthood reflects all of that internal stewing but is far from one-dimensional, with Numan displaying a feistiness that has been missing from much of his recent work.
Tenderness, too, in the form of Lost, a soft-sung ballad that departs from the album's otherwise cold-steel industrial electronic sound.
No longer entirely detached and aloof, Numan is in great voice on his most human effort to date.
• Gary Numan. Splinter (Songs From A Broken Mind). Cooking Vinyl.
• Four stars (out of five)
Single download: Love Hurt Bleed
For those who like: Nine Inch Nails
- Jeff Harford
