Critics noted that there was a greater focus on Moore's keyboards than Matheos' guitar riffs. Blogcritics said that ""Free" focuses a lot on the keyboards and programming of Kevin Moore", although Matheos' "heavy guitar riffs, while not as frequent on this disc, have an even harder edge. They have an energy, and urgency, and serious metal crunch to them that will make any rocker sit up and pay attention." Chad Bower of About.com noted that "Free" "isn't one of those metal albums that hypes you up and makes you want to break stuff. It's one where you have to sit back, throw on the headphones, and appreciate the complexity and musicianship." Olav Björnsen of Prog4you.com stated that "layers upon layers of electronic sounds, that fill out the soundscapes of the songs, create nuances and subtle moods as well as walls of sound and tension." He said that Matheos used acoustic and electric guitars "to fill out the soundscapes even more, and is at the most effective when playing the acoustic guitar, giving life and warmth to songs that would have been a bit cold sounding without that input."