THE FREEKS were conceived in 2007 when Romano contacted a handful of talented friends from across the globe including Jack Endino, John McBain (MONSTER MAGNET), Scott Reeder (KYUSS), Isaiah Mitchell (EARTHLESS), Lorenzo Woodrose (BABY WOODROSE) and the Purple Wizard of Woo, Bernie Worell (PARLEMENT, FUNKADELIC, TALKING HEADS) and collaborated to contribute to Romano's musical ideas. Together, the "freek" alliance spawned a self-titled debut release supported by Cargo-Germany records. They recently released their new album "Crazy World" which we have here today for review. The album contains eight tracks.

"American Lightning" is a full on three-minute assault on your senses. All the instruments are turned up to the max, and create a sonic wall that brims with the sounds of the late 60's and early 70's. The vocals are earnest shouts/screams, giving it an edgy and energetic face. "This is Love" settles into a fuzzy and slower groove, with harmonized vocals. There are doses of bands like KISS and THE DOORS at times, especially when considering the easy listening structure of some of the chords and passages, and the atmosphere of having a raucous and fun time in the compositions. "Easy Way Out" has a simple blues riff with some more piano in the mix, and a sleazy sound overall. It also seems to draw a bit from some of the 80's band like FASTER PUSSYCAT. "Take 9" is a brief instrumental song that mostly features guitar. Other than taking it for a pause of sorts, it doesn't have a lot pf presence.

"Hypnotize my Heart" had some psychedelic touches, and the vocals are gravely, bordering closely to some of the harsh vocals that are used by bands in the more Extreme Metal sound. It has a bit of a darker edge as well, like someone lovesick with obsession. "Thank you Mr. Downing" is another short instrumental track that is hard to make sense of. I guess the abstract sound was purposeful. Spoken word can be heard behind some of the eerie effects, but they are not readily comprehensible. "Chronic Abduction" draws more from the early work of shock rocker ALICE COOPER. It's a slow moving track that wallows in a melancholy depression, calling your attention to the darker side of existence.

"Mothership to Mother Earth" is a near eight-minute closing song. Featuring acoustic guitars and some keys, it has a bit of a mysterious sound, as the title might suggest. The vocals here are very uniform...low and whispered in a singular tone. It takes a sharp turn around the half way mark, springing to a livelier sound, before returning to the previous sound, and then gathers all steam and ends in a burn. Overall, this was an interesting and sometimes perplexing album. Minus the two short instrumentals, we really have only six tracks. Though the album isn't anything overly original, they do manage to take some ostensible influences and create a diverse mix of them into their sound. If you are a fan of some of these aforementioned bands, I think you will find this to your liking,