Freedom was a psychedelic rock band formed in England in 1967 that had a string of five records before breaking up in 1972. Throughout their career, the group developed more of hard rock sound, which led the band to playing dates with groups like Black Sabbath, Jethro Tull, and The James Gang. This album, Freedom (1970), was the group’s third album, and according to the Discogs page for the album, is in a hard rock and prog rock style. I’m pretty excited to give a listen to this album by Freedom, so with that said, I’m going to jump on into the music.
“Nobody” starts out with some mellow electric guitar that has a nice melodious quality to it, which moves across the soundscape at the start of the track. Oh wow, the tune drops into place all of a sudden as the bass and vocals come in. The drums seem to rise up from the bottom of the soundscape, and seem to stretch throughout the tune, making the soundscape sound massive. I really dig the bass line that seems to be grooving in the center of things. Holy smokes, the guitar solo comes in strong with some super groovy licks. The sound of this track so far reminds me a lot of Randy California and a bit of a modern band called Killer Boogie. Oh wow, the vocal chorus at the end of the track really hooks me further into the track. Great track, and I’m excited to hear more.
Oh wow, “In Search of Something” starts out with some spacious distorted chords from the electric guitar, which is soon joined by some piano/keys that seem to echo the guitar work, while the bass seems to provide a backdrop between the guitar and the drums. The beat of the drums also creates that spacious sound, with the cymbals gradually crashing that bring a certain intensity to the track. The electric guitar picks up a bit of wah effect that allows notes to seemingly drip into the soundscape. This tune is super groovy. Holy smokes, this guitar solo is super flavorful with the mixture of distortion and wah. Oh wow, a second guitar comes in with a bit of a twangy tone. The pacing of this tune seems to be an instrument of its own, as the group gives the track a massive sound with the slow, gradual pace, especially when combined with the chorus vocals that seem to pervade throughout the entire soundscape, and the massive cymbals from the drums. Great tune.
“Dusty Track” starts out with a super groovy sound from the electric guitar that sort of has a bit of hard blues rock sound with just a bit of twang. Oh wow, the drums that build up at the intro of the tune break through to another paced-out beat, and I’m all for it. I’m pretty hooked into the sound of the band at this point. It’s sort of tricky to tell, but it sounds like two guitars are playing the same exact thing with nearly the same effects on the opposite sides of the soundscape, which gives a really sweet reverberation effect. Oh wow, the left guitar is going in on a super bluesy rockin’ solo, which seems to gradually travel across the soundscape while the rest of the instruments keep the track rockin’ steady. I really dig the bass line in this tune, which seems to line up with the two guitars for a majority of the bass line, but there are some super flavorful accentuations added in that somehow make the tune even groovier. Holy smokes, this extended instrumental jam has made me audibly gasp at a few points. Oh wow, this jam keeps on giving more and more. When the vocals come back in the song seems to have the momentum of an overloaded train going down the tracks at full speed. The outro to the track seems to take the tune out into nearly spacey psychedelic territory. Great track.
“Man Made Laws” starts out with a groovy shuffling beat from the drums, which is then joined by some super flavorful guitar and bass work. Oh wow, the guitars nearly have a sort of gritty gliding, nearly cheese-like quality. Oh wow, the fuzzed-out lead guitar comes in with a super groovy solo. The vocals have a ton of flavor to them as well, which furthers the narrative of the song (and album) quite nicely. Great tune.
“Ain’t No Place to Score” starts out with a hectic beginning with the instruments seemingly jump starting themselves before dropping into what sounds like a bluesy groove in a major key. Oh wow, this tune is super groovy, with bluesy jams that seem to keep on giving. Oh wow, the vocals come in for a moment and almost feel like a bit of a palette cleanser so that you can get even more enjoyment from the next movement of jamming in the track. The drums have a super sweet slap-iness to them, which seems to give the track an even harder rockin’ sound while the bluesy guitar work goes in with some delicious jams. Holy smokes, I’m really digging this track at the moment. Awesome track.
“Pretty Woman” gets grooving with some nearly laid back sounds from the guitars, bass, and drums, which combine to sound like something in between The Jimi Hendrix Experience and Eric Clapton’s solo work. Oh wow, the lead vocalist on this track’s voice has a super sweet quality, which blends quite well with the laid back grooving from the rest of the band. Something I noted while researching the band quickly was that they have multiple lead vocalists, which really makes the album quite dynamic throughout. Oh wow, the jams in this tune keep on giving with a super groovy sound. The vocalist giving a distant scream into the soundscape seems to add exclamation points to these jams. Oh wow, the bass guitar hit some super flavorful high notes in this jam section. The jam has nearly become conversational in tone by the end of the track in a really groovy way. Great tune.
“Freedom” starts out with some nearly dark, heavy grooving from the distorted tones of the electric guitars. Oh wow, the bass guitar has a bit of a muddied clean tone, which adds a ton of texture as it follows the same lines as the guitars. Oh wow, the bass notes on the piano add a really flavorful ringing tone in the soundscape that seems to add to the heaviness of the tune. Holy smokes, the track during this guitar solo nearly has a bit of bluesy sludginess to the sound, and I’m really digging it. The tune seems to have returned to the spaced-out sort of sound that allows the beats and different notes to breathe easily, though I’m not particularly sure how far the album departed from that sound; I really dig it either way. Oh wow, the band sounds like they’re taking the tune in for a landing of some sort with the drums during outro, super sweet. Great track.
“Frustrated Woman” has picked up a bit of a cheery disposition off of the heels of the previous track. Oh wow, there’s a piano that adds some super flavorful accentuations during the main chorus vocal line. I really dig the cowbell sound as well, which brings a bit of a lighter feel to the track and album as a whole, and seems to connect with the piano and other percussion nicely. Holy smokes, this extended jam section is super flavorful, with the band picking up a bit of that major bluesy hard rockin’ sound again. The feel of this tune is nearly celebratory in nature with the groovy licks and chorus vocals as the band brings the album to a close. Great tune, and a super sweet way to finish the album.
Wow, this album was a super groovy listening experience. The fuzzed-out bluesy hard rockin’ licks kept the album very dynamic throughout, while the spaced-out style of the drums and different vocalists made the soundscape feel pretty massive throughout the listening experience. The album reminds me a bit of the stylings of groups from the band’s active period like The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Eric Clapton, and Randy California, and reminds me a bit of modern groups like Killer Boogie. If you’re into bluesy hard rockin’ fuzzed-out psychedelic grooves, you might want to consider checking out this album. If you do decide to give this one a listen, I sincerely hope that you enjoy the listening experience at least as much as I did.
-A