Genre: Classic Rock
Release date: August 7
Record label: earMUSIC
Deep Purple:
Ian Gillan
Steve Morse
Don Airey
Roger Glover
Ian Paice
01. Throw My Bones
02. Drop The Weapon
03. We’re All The Same In The Dark
04. Nothing At All
05. No Need To Shout
06. Step By Step
07. What The What
08. The Long Way Round
09. The Power Of The Moon
10. Remission Possible
11. Man Alive
12. And The Address
13. Dancing In My Sleep
When everything around us is, let’s face it, going a bit Pete Tong, it is nice to know that Deep Purple are still a rocking and a rolling!
There are rock greats and there are rock gods who really do deserve to get their faces etched on Mount Rushmore…Deep Purple are these guys!
‘Whoosh!’ is the third album produced by Bob Ezrin and clearly the combination of the band collaborating with him works a treat.
‘Throw My Bones’ opens the album with a funky clear sign of things to follow on the album. Offering us warm guitar tones seeping through the veins of this track like liquid gold … nice! Whilst ‘Drop the Weapon’ has the tasty intro of superb keyboards, from Don Airey, which continue throughout the track and come to the fore later with aplomb and making the perfect partner to the harmonised backing vocals.
Bringing a bluesy up beat feel to the proceedings is ‘We’re All the Same in The Dark’. Which manages to also give a nod to very early Purple with an almost 60’s/ 70’s feel to it.
‘Nothing at All’ is a laid-back treat with guitar from Steve Morse and Don’s keyboards answering each other with quite astonishing virtuosity…beautiful and very uplifting. And ‘No Need to Shout’ brings us the heavier Purple that many of us love so much. With the ambience of the 70’s classics of our youth via screaming guitar and honky-tonk piano
‘Step by Step’’s organ, harmonies and steadfast back beat of the drums, bring this track together so neatly you would be mistaken in thinking it is simple … it isn’t, the Purple guys just make it feel that way. Very clever.
‘What the What’ is the perfect track to down a few beers to before going out for the night, with an essence of ‘Saturday Night’s Alright’ by Elton John to it. Bar room boogieing at its best!
‘The Long Way Round’ highlights Ian’s vocals to perfection against a freight train back beat that is soothingly sublime! Whilst the ‘The Power of The Moon’ has a foreboding feel to it which makes it very interesting and actually has a touch of Prog-ness to it.
And the wonder of this varied album continues with ‘Remission Possible’ is a superb short instrumental, a hectic, Mission Impossible-esque treat for the ears! Whilst another instrumental offering ‘And the Address’, is a rock n roll sensation and the guys clearly love playing this. Funky, rocky and bluesy …. great fun!!
‘Man Alive’ opening with soothing strings and harmonised vocals, brings forward a dreamy ambiance, which eventually bleeds into a strong medley of superb musicianship and vocals, again with a slight Prog feel to it when the spoken word is offered. To end this 13-track extravaganza is ‘Dancing in My Sleep’, hypnotic with its driving beat and blend of main and backing vocals. The perfect end to a superbly interesting album.
Ian Gillan’s vocals as usual are majestic, strong and clear and the production is very clean, but not so clean that it anesthetises the rock n roll feeling to this album. It has the comfort blanket of old Deep Purple but with enough modern-day reassurance to know that you have not fallen back in time.
Although all the tracks a very different, this actually makes the anticipation all the better when waiting for the amazing musicianship and vocals which you know will be coming along to slap you in the face at every turn.
Simply a powerhouse of Purple perfection!
SCORE: 9 out of 10
Reviewed by: Francijn Suermondt
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