Chicano Batman Freedom Is Free LP (Pink & Blue Splatter Vinyl)

Chicano Batman made their boldest statement yet with Freedom Is Free, their third album and ATO Records debut. To achieve their ambitious sonic goals, the quartet worked with producer Leon Michels (Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, The Black Keys and The Menahan Street Band) in his Diamond Mine Recording studio in Long Island City, NY. In addition to tracking the album to analog tape, Michels contributed keyboards and his trademark horn arrangements. Pressed here on pink and blue splatter vinyl.

Just as Funkadelic's classic early albums indelibly merged rock guitars with funk grooves, Chicano Batman make music that makes your hips sway, but with a purposefully easy tempo. They give their music a vibe that's powerful and sensual all at once, merging their influences in a way that doesn't cancel out any of the elements. And like Funkadelic, Chicano Batman's lysergic investigations of inner space are rooted in a reality that doesn't negate optimism, but speaks of an awareness too strong to give up....[T]he easy joy of the music on Freedom Is Free is as eloquent as any of the lyrics, and this is ambitious multi-cultural funk with a firm sense of heart, soul, and groove. Chicano Batman aren't trying to unite One World Under a Groove, but in its best moments, Freedom Is Free suggests this is one band that could be up to the task, and music that engages the mind and the body this well is more than welcome in a time of chaos.

The soul runs deep.