Without question, Mortgage Freeman is one of the best band names in Milwaukee music. Unfortunately, it’s not a name you see on many show lineups since the band released its prog-y eight-song debut, The Living Proof, last February. Having piled (perhaps unconscious) influence from an eclectic mix of iconic bands like Thin Lizzy, Yes, and Rush into its first album, there’s no telling where Mortgage Freeman would land in its follow-up. If first single, “Space Tiger” is any indication, somewhere outstandingly odd.
The five-minute song picks up where the displaced ’70s-era rockers left off. The dingy and distorted “Space Tiger” is like if Black Sabbath enlisted a dramatic Pink Floyd “If you don’t eat your meat, you can’t have any pudding!”-like rant to fill in the gaps. We can’t venture a guess as to what the concept of the forthcoming album (to be called Streetcrusher) is at this point, but we don’t mind.
Mortgage Freeman will play “Space Tiger” and other songs Thursday night, opening for Philadelphia band John The Conqueror at Yield Bar. The free show begins at 10 p.m. Streetcrusher will be released October 16 at Mad Planet, in an event called “The Mortgage Freeman Carnival.”