Album Review: “Freedom Child” by The Script

The Script strayed from its traditional rock vibe for its latest album Freedom Child, which falls
short as a result of bland lyrics and an overall incoherence in style.

Freedom Child combines EDM, rock, and the occasional slow piano track to produce an album
that is ultimately a confusing jumble of songs with no recognizable theme. In addition, the album has no
definable message, as it features mainly love songs with a few politically charged pieces woven
throughout. The result of these factors is an incoherent, below-average album.

The Script makes attempts at EDM with love-related songs like “No Man is an Island,”
“Wonders,” and “Love Not Lovers,” which all have forgettable beats and prove to be underwhelming.

While “Wonders” features inspiring lyrics about seizing every moment, the music consists of confusing and abrupt changes in sound. The only EDM-style track on the album that doesn’t fall short is “Written in the Scars,” a song about overcoming pain that stays true to The Script’s traditional style while blending nicely with the band’s new EDM feel.

The most notable tracks on the album are those that stay true to The Script’s classic rock style.
“Arms Open” is one of the most passionate songs and showcases lead singer Danny O’Donoghue’s
famously beautiful vocals. “Rock the World” offers a more upbeat track that still holds true to this style.

Politics begin to come in to play with “Divided States of America,” a song about the need to bridge the
gap between divisions in the United States, as well as “Freedom Child,” a number about the need to
spread love and put an end to wars, which closes out the album brilliantly. Both of these tracks
showcase some of Freedom Child’s strongest lyrics by far.

The album’s least enjoyable songs are those that feature an odd electronic vibe throughout
them and end up masking O’Donoghue’s vocals. “Deliverance” is an annoyingly repetitive number with
forgettable music and average lyrics. Freedom Child’s worst track by far is “Mad Love” which contains a
truly awful beat and bad vocal distortions which result in a confusing song that is difficult to even listen
to.

Overall, Freedom Child does not live up to the expectations that The Script has set for itself with
albums like The Script and Science and Faith. The group’s new EDM vibe is an interesting venture, but
the end result is bland tracks with cliché lyrics and underwhelming beats. The album’s best songs are
those that stay true the band’s former style, proving that sometimes change isn’t necessarily the
greatest idea.