The first single I bought was Gillan’s “New Orleans” when I was 15 yrs old. It was therefore a huge honor for me to recently have the chance to interview Deep Purple vocalist and legend Ian Gillan. Deep Purple are always touring, and was no surprise to have to catch up with Ian via an international call to his hotel room in Belgium.
Purple fans that hold allegiance to a particular era of the band that isn’t the current one will likely remain the same in regards to Now What?!, but if one is able to open their mind and allow songs like “Weirdistan,” “Above and Beyond,” “Uncommon Man,” and “Out of Hand” to entertain them, then it’s likely the latest offering from Deep Purple, though not their best album ever, is still pretty good, especially in this day and age of cookie-cutter rock music. It’s nice to hear the band making great music still, and hopefully someday they will get the recognition they so deserve.