Iggy Pop
Free
(Loma Vista)
2.5/5
Not only is Iggy Pop alive, but somehow at 72 he’s still making great music. For half a century he’s been the poster boy for punk rock, and he’s still going: on September 6, Pop released his 18th solo album, Free. Naturally, expectations are high for the follow-up to the Grammy-nominated Post Pop Depression. Unfortunately, however, Free is only half great.
It’s been 50 years since The Stooges hit store shelves, so it’s unfair to expect Pop to reproduce the raw power of early hits like “I Wanna Be Your Dog.” That said, Free has some good moments. Oddly, “James Bond” is the only track getting any airtime, but don’t let that dissuade you. “Loves Missing” showcases Pop’s carefully aged baritone voice, and his thoughts on the state of porn in “Dirty Sanchez” will either make you laugh out loud or be deeply offended.
However, the album is lyrically lazy, and as a whole Free lacks flow. Although Pop provides a wide range of sounds—rock and roll, synth, jazz, even poetry—on Free, the end result is decent but forgettable.