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“A small dream for many fans”
The Highway Star reader Johnny ‘Andrea’ Blade reviews =1
The stylistic “novelty” of =1 is a return to the more classic Deep Purple sound, the result of a writing more focused on robust guitar riffs, a small dream for many fans of the band who for many years had hoped for a more direct and classically hard rock, without forgetting however that the recent appreciated trilogy of studio albums – excellently produced by Bob Ezrin – had already brought back some welcome power in the band’s sound.
After the homage to the artists esteemed by the group in Turning To Crime – in which, however, Deep Purple enjoyed immersing themselves in other sound waters without making their style emerge forcefully – =1 is the album most faithful to the more classic style of the group composed at least in the last 30 years (even if the keyboards are a little less protagonists than in the past in the construction of the backbone of the songs mostly entrusted to the guitar).
Speaking of six strings, the stylistic differences with Steve Morse immediately emerge from listening to =1: Simon comes from a heavier background – in the mid-90s he played in a reactivated incarnation of a NWOBHM band, Sweet Savage – and when listening to this work I believe that many fans of Deep Purple will experience the sensation of listening to a record that is a little more reminiscent of the Blackmore era – the progressive influences are confined to rare passages – but with the features of shredding of Simon in great evidence.
The intro of the opener Show Me already gives a bit of freshness with McBride’s guitar immediately taking center stage before the song settles on decidedly classic rhythms for the formations, those of a relaxed but very classy hard rock. A Bit On The Side and Sharp Shooter are more dynamic thanks to the eternal energy provided by the Glover-Paice rhythm section and we also find the solo interactions between guitar and keyboards, McBride and Airey have already played together and you can feel it …
No Money To Burn could be appetizing for fans of the more bluesy Purple (who in the first part of the album will appreciate the rhythmic Old-Fangled Thing) but I prefer the slower and more atmospheric I’ll Catch You, introduced by a solo guitar embroidery by McBride, a song with decidedly pleasant – even if familiar – vocal lines – brought home by a slightly mannered but unquestionably spectacular solo.
A very strong candidate for the title of most inspired song on the album is the final composition: Bleeding Obvious, introduced by sparkling guitars that leave space for inspired singing lines – in the most classic Ian Gillan style – both in the most enthralling verses and in the valuable melodic openings of the chorus. The solo in the middle of the piece turns towards the East before a progressive section which precedes a new nuance towards wide-ranging melodies followed by a more dynamic and once again proggy closure. A capital piece, which has already deserved inclusion in the setlist in the band’s most recent live shows.
With =1, Deep Purple have found a way to amaze again, not so much for the return to their more classic style, but for the freshness, inspiration and renewed energy transmitted by thirteen pieces that don’t sound like the end of a career but like the beginning of a new era. Chapeau.
Recommended for: Fans of the most classic and eternal hard rock.
Ciao,
Andrea
Wishing Well to You All of The Highway Star
Unauthorized copying, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing
Yo,
qt.”With =1, Deep Purple have found a way to amaze again, not so much for the return to their more classic style, but for the freshness, inspiration and renewed energy transmitted by thirteen pieces that don’t sound like the end of a career, but like the beginning of a new era”.
Well said !
Peace !
July 22nd, 2024 at 12:58I said similar things yesterday but Johnny does so with much better depth that I would be able to provide.
July 22nd, 2024 at 14:49Thanks for the review Andrea!
July 22nd, 2024 at 16:38Hi Andrea, now that’s a good and cohesive look at the state of things – it’s great to see you excited and enjoying the music. Happy days for most of us. Cheers!
July 22nd, 2024 at 17:43Thank you all for the kind words… Changing the subject: I hear people who don’t listen to the new album and who simply say that the DP are old and should be retired. I know that they also say it to provoke, as well as to denigrate them, those who really follow them with admiration and affection even today.
Ciaooo!
July 22nd, 2024 at 21:08Thanks. Absolutely agree with you and what a song is bleeding obvious. Fantastic
July 23rd, 2024 at 15:45Andrea (5),
July 23rd, 2024 at 20:25There is difference of opinion on everything including Deep Purple. There are people who like only Mk I. There are people who think that deep purple ended circa around In rock. There are fans who say no Blackmore no deep purple some also add Jon Lord (to be kind to the deceased). There are people who say DP ended on Purpendicular or bananas. Other say now what is the greatest purple moment. Some say =1 is the best since TBRO and DP had wrong guitarist for 28 years and all other in between version of each case. So it’s like ask 3 fans and you will get 5 different opinion on anything purple related. Just what is important ar least for me it’s that my opinion is just my opinion and not some kind of truth given to me by god. Aging long standing band will generate opposite opinions. Gillan can’t sing for 40 years now for some people so why this time should be different than in all other cases. Purpendicular is today often cited like almost classic album it was not that when it came out in 1996…..