:: Freya - Lift The Curse

Freya

The demise of New York based straight edge/vegan hardcore act Earth Crisis in 2001 was a blow to the hardcore community, but the blow was softened with the announcement that vocalist Karl Buechner, guitarist Erick Edwards and bassist/backing vocalist Ian ‘Bulldog’ Edwards (alongside guitarist/vocalist Darian Lizotte and drummer Corey Koniz) would continue together under the name Freya. Their debut album ‘As The Light Drains’ emerged in 2003 through Victory Records, and while it was a departure from the old Earth Crisis sound, Freya managed to distance themselves away from their past enough to be judged on their own merit. 2004 saw Freya team up with Hoods for a split EP, which saw Freya’s sound shift more towards the old Earth Crisis sound, and while the change of direction was a bit disappointing given the direction Freya were heading, the songs proved to be just another progression for the band. It’s been quiet on the Freya front for the past two years, but they’ve finally returned with a revamped line-up, and their long awaited/overdue sophomore release ‘Lift The Curse’.
Just like the difference between their debut and their split EP effort, the difference between that and ‘Lift The Curse’ is dramatic, and unfortunately not in a good way. Within a minute of the opening cut ‘Threads Of Life’ beginning, it’s clear that Freya have entirely dispensed with the post-hardcore sound that featured on their debut, and have instead decided to stick with a strictly old school hardcore feel. While there’s nothing wrong with remaining true to hardcore, ‘Threads Of Life’ itself isn’t exactly an overly exciting song, and quickly fades for memory once finished. ‘Suffer Not One’, the heady ‘Down To The Last’, the title track ‘Lift The Curse’, ‘Alleviate’, ‘Through The Eyes Of The Angel Of Death’ and ‘Born In Blood’ are all given a run through in pretty much the same manner, with virtually no sign of spark or excitement in the performances themselves. The only hint of the past crops up with some minor melodies thrown into ‘The Only Martyrs’ and even more in ‘Lilith’, but it’s certainly nothing to get excited about. Last but not least is the band’s cover of Black Sabbath’s ‘War Pigs’, which in all honesty is completely lifeless, dull and totally out of place. After an interesting debut in ‘As The Light Drains’, I was really hoping that Freya would maintain their obvious experimentation and deliver something new and fresh sounding. ‘Lift The Curse’ instead sees them backing up and relying on old habits. On the strength of this album, they deserve to be cursed.