Free
by Iggy Pop
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 13 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
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  1. yannbgiraud
    Sep 8, 2019
    6
    This is not a bad record but it lacks a clear direction. The fact Iggy Pop worked with Leron Thomas could make you think it's a a jazz record but it's not. There is a new-wave song, "Loves Missing", which is probably the best track on this record. There are a few fun albeit goofy tunes like "James Bond" and "Dirty Sanchez". And then, there's the whole B-side, which is almost entirelyThis is not a bad record but it lacks a clear direction. The fact Iggy Pop worked with Leron Thomas could make you think it's a a jazz record but it's not. There is a new-wave song, "Loves Missing", which is probably the best track on this record. There are a few fun albeit goofy tunes like "James Bond" and "Dirty Sanchez". And then, there's the whole B-side, which is almost entirely filled with ambient, jazzy soundscapes and spoken work. Iggy Pop reads Lou Reed's and Dylan Thomas' texts and you can't really go wrong with that sort of material but, ultimately, the entire record feels half-baked, the music having been insufficiently labored. It sounds like Iggy recording a podcast for NPR or the BBC rather than a full-fledged record. Maybe it's the sort of recreation he needed after the tenser Post Pop Depression but, ultimately, it feels like an underachievement after that beast of a record. For fans of the jazzy Iggy, I'd advise you to go back to the excellent Avenue B.… Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
72

Generally favorable reviews - based on 21 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 15 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 21
  3. Negative: 0 out of 21
  1. The Wire
    Nov 20, 2019
    60
    It’s definitely a mixed bag, but pays off with “The Dawn” in which Lipstate’s guitar exhales in tandem with a spoken admission of small hours frailty. [Dec 2019, p.53]
  2. Classic Rock Magazine
    Oct 3, 2019
    80
    Free is easily Iggy's most ambitiously left-field album since Zombie Birdhouse in 1982. [Oct 2019, p.90]
  3. musicOMH.com
    Sep 27, 2019
    70
    Free is not as lyrically emotionally resonating as Blackstar but it evokes similar feelings. The reason that it doesn’t fully pack the same punch is that there is a sense that he cannot fully commit. It is a solid album, but just leaves you wondering slightly what could have been.
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