34 • UNCUT • OCTOBER 2019
STOOGE,soloartist,
actor,raconteur,
collaborator,
lecturer,author,
artist’smodel,radio
host,barista...Iggy
Pophasenjoyed
manyguisesduringhisformidable
career.Latterly,though,hehastakenon
a newrole– asa semi-retiredrockstar.
Whilehislaststudioalbum,2016’sPost
PopDepression, gavePopthehighest
chartplacingofhiscareer,thatsuccess
tookplaceundertheshadowofhis
longtimechampionDavidBowie,who
diedshortlybeforethealbum’srelease.
Afterthetourtopromotetherecord,
Popnowadmitshe“feltlikeI wantedto
putonshades,turnmyback,andwalk
away”.Fortuitouslyforus,retirement
seemsnottohavesuitedhim.
Nevercontenttorestonhisreputation,
PopcollaboratedwithOneohtrixPoint
Never on “The Pure And The Damned”,
fortheSafdieBrothers’ 2017 filmGood
Time– then,lastyear,teamedupwith
Underworld,deliveringa seriesof
avuncularmonologuesfortheTeat ime
DubEncountersalbum.Now,finally,Pop
hasreturnedtothestudioforFree– his
18thsolorecord,andonethatcontainsa
revealingnotetoself:“Tolaydownis to
g iveup,”hechideson“TheDawn”.“ You
gottadosomething.”
Accordingly,Freebeginswitha
sloughingoffofoldskin.Ontheopening
track,“Free”,hemurmurs“Iwannabe
free”– it’sthesong’sonlylyric– andyou
mightassumethatforPop,historically
a liberatedperformer,thefreedomto
create,toexpressandtosimplybeis the
ultimategoalhere.Butalsoperhaps,
nowaged72,heyearnstobe‘free’of
anotherversionofIggyPop;hisyounger,
wilderself,kickingandscreamingand
self-lacerating,externalisingsomedeep
internalstormthathasbynowlongsince
blownitselfout.
ForPostPopDepression, Popenlisted
helpfrommembersofQueensOfThe
StoneAge,TheRaconteursandArctic
Monkeys– butforFree, hiscollaborators
aredrawnfrommoreeclecticdisciplines.
Chiefamongtheseis Texanjazzer
LeronThomas,whosetrumpetbringsa
mournfulqualitytomuchoftherecord,
andNoveller– akaSarahLipstate–
whoseambientsoundscapesdefinethe
album’scontemplative,melancholystate.
AsFree progresses, Pop meditates
inhisweatheredbaritoneaboutcar
parking(“Sonali”),onlineporn(“Dirty
Sanchez”),celebrity(“GlowInThe
Dark”)andculturalpolitics(“James
Bond”).Insomeinstances,thetreatment
is weirdlyZen–“Toparkthecar,wemust
findparking,”heannouncesgnomically
on“Sonali”.Inothers,like“GlowIn
TheDark”,hewriteshimselfintothe
song,“I’mnotexemptfromthewhitest
ofnoise,if I forfeitmarkmeisolated,”
underscoringa generalconditionthat
pervadesthisrecord:ofremoteness
orloneliness,wherecharactersare
confinedbycars,landscapesorsocial
isolationandwhereanotherkindof
“free”is required.Theprotagonistof
“LovesMissing”,forinstance,“just
needssomeonetosayI loveyoubefore
shegetspushedaway”, themotoristsin
“Sonali”riskspendingthedaytrapped
onthefreewaywhilethedigitalsociety
of“DirtySanchez”and“GlowInThe
Dark”findspersonaldisconnectionina
technologicallyconnectedworld.AsPop
singson“Page”–“We’reonlyhuman,no
longerhuman.”
ThomasandNovellerfashionchilly,
gothicaccompaniments.Thereis the
glisteningelectronicaof“Sonali”,the
jazzfreakouton“GlowInTheDark”,the
infectiousstrutof“JamesBond”,the
shimmeringambienceof“Page”.Only
thedense,guitar-heavy“LovesMissing”
soundslikea conventionalrockband
areintheroom.Thereis verylittle
releasehere.
Pophasmadeotherdark-alleydetours
inhistime,ofcourse–AvenueB,
PréliminairesandPostPopDepression
- butnothingquitematchesthis
album’sfinalstretch.Featuringthree
spoken-wordpieces,supportedby
sparse,ambientpassagesfromThomas
andNoveller,thesearedeepanddark
statementsonmortalitybeginning
with“WeAreThePeople”– a Lou
Reedpoemdatingfromtheearly’70s.
TheresonanceofPopcoveringReedis
unmistakable– anotherfriend,gone
toosoon– andPop’sweatherworn
baritoneaddsacutepathostolineslike,
“Wearethepeoplewhodonotknow
howtodiepeacefullyandatease.”Pop
followsthiswithDylanThomas’“Do
NotGoGentleIntoThatGoodNight”,
exhortingto“rageagainstthedyingof
thelight”. Hecloseswith“TheDawn”,
whosetitlesuggestssomekindofhappy
respite,butPopis moreconcerned
withtherestless,listlesshoursbefore
sunrise:“Ifallelsefails/It’sgoodtosmile
inthedark,”heconcludes.“Loveand
sex/Aregonnaoccurtoyou/Andneither
onewillsolvethedarkness.”
If thisis Pop’sfinalalbum– who
knows?– it is a significantlymore
effectiveswansongthanPostPop
Depression. Theintimate,minimal
workdonebyhisaccomplicesservesto
channelPopathisbleakestandmost
rueful;thesurvivor’ssurvivor,figuring
outwhat,if anything,comesafterthe
darkest night. Will he ever be free?
N
HARMONY KORINE
IGGY POP
Free
LOMAVISTA/CAROLINE INTERNATIONAL
8/10
Theoldsurvivorrages
againstthedyingofthe
light.By Michael Bonner
SLEEVENOTES
1 Free
2 LovesMissing
3 Sonali
4 JamesBond
5 DirtySanchez
6 GlowIn The
Dark
7 Page
8 WeAreThe
People
9 DoNotGo
GentleIntoThat
GoodNight
10 TheDawn
Personnel:Iggy
Pop(vocals),
Noveller
(guitarscape),
LeronThomas
(trumpet,
keys) ,Aa ro n
Nevezie(guitar,
b a s s) ,C h r i s
Barry(drums),
KennyRuby
(bass,piano,
synthesiser),
TiboBrandalise
(drums),Robin
Sherman(bass),
ThomasGlass
(drums),Ari
Teitel(guitar),
Gregoire
Fauque(guitar),
FlorianPellissier
(keyboards),
FaithVern
(additional
vo c a l s)
