Freedom - Freedom (British Psychedelia 1970)

Freedom's third album, originally issued in 1970 and reissued on CD in 2000 by Angel Air, is dire period British hard rock in the power trio format. While there's occasional laid-back reflective songwriting amongst the largely original material, its lumpy rhythms and unexceptional melodies make it hard to say much of anything about it, really, except to note that it's easy to envision them as a support act on any number of shows and tours of the era. The numbers emphasizing vocal harmonies are at least inoffensive (if boring), which can't be said of their outings into boogie blues-rock and proto-metal (as on the title track) that really grate. It might have been a cool idea in 1970 to cover the Standells' "Dirty Water," which wasn't a hit in Britain and wasn't yet fashionable as a garage band standard. It is not cool, however, to retitle the song "Frustrated Woman" and take the songwriting credits, as the members do even on the sleeve of the 2000 CD release.

AMG Review by Richie Unterberger