This week’s blog features new music by Deep Purple, yes, you read that correctly, Deep-motherloving-Purple has a new album out. It’s titled SPLAT! which gave me a giggle. If you’ve followed this blog at all then you have heard me mourn that point in a band’s career when they no longer put out new music. The growing point, the meristem of their hearts, has frozen over and we are left with aging musicians endlessly touring with their greatest hits slowly growing more and more stale. It’s sad. So when I stumbled upon the fact that Deep Purple released a new album on July 3rd, I was more than a little impressed. I mean, come on, Ian Gillian and Roger Glover are both closing in on eight-one (this month and November respectively) and I have to say, despite only possessing about 30% of his sight (When A Blind Man Cries takes on a whole new meaning now), Gillian’s voice is STILL on point and the bass lines on this album are the usual solid, aggressive Glover lines that we know and love just…fresh. Ian Paice (still on the skins) and Don Airey (their keyboardist since 2002 after the departure of the one and only Jon Lord) are both rocking seventy-eight. The baby of the group is Simon McBride age forty-seven who stepped in for long time guitarist Steve Morse once Morse retreated to care for his wife who was battling stage 4 cancer.
Side note- I know that last sentence will generate two logical questions.
- Is Morse’s wife still alive? Sadly, no. Janine lost her battle with cancer on February 4th 2024 with Steve by her side. While I am not a huge fan of Morse’s playing despite his participation in two bands that I revere (DP and Kansas) his tribute to his wife, the love they shared and his decision to spend every moment that he could with her in her last days touch me more than I can say and I admire him greatly. His tribute to her is worthy of looking up.
- Why isn’t the legendary Ritchie Blackmore with DP? Oof. Much of this answer is my humble opinion after years of asking myself the same. Blackmore and Gillian do NOT like each other. There’s respect certainly, but they do not do well together. The world of rock & roll has had to deal with the fact that we lost Blackmore long ago to a life as a minstrel in the universe of Magic Vagina (my pet name for his wife, musician & singer Candice Night). I hope they are both very happy. Sadly for Night, Lorena McKinnitt exists, sorry but there it is.
Apologies to digress so wildly, but I was sure those questions would come up and now I’ve saved you having to go down two rabbit holes. Back to SPLAT!. The great thing about the album is that it possesses the hallmarks that have always defined Deep Purple while having modern overtones. These musicians are still learning, seeking, still inspired. It’s a wonderful thing.
The song that I’ve chosen to highlight, Sacred Land, for me has echoes of Sabaton, Yes (the Trevor Rabin years), some Kamelot and even Rush. Traditionally Purple has explefied blues based rock & roll with a hard edge, yet on this album they lean a bit more toward power metal, which pleaseth me greatly, although “metal” is putting it a bit too strongly. Important to note that I am NOT mad at McBride’s axe work, the guitar soars, but with his own signature, not Blackmore’s, not’s Morse’s. The group is joined on an August & September US tour of twenty-four dates by Starship and Kansas after which they head over to Europe. Once there Jayler will be their Special Guest and, interestingly, their opener will be Mammoth. In case you didn’t know, that last band is fronted by one strapping young Wolfgang Van Halen, yes, son of the late great Eddie.
Now, let’s turn the volume up and raise our glasses to Deep Purple. Still growing, still creating, still giving the fans what they want!
