{"id":30633,"date":"2013-07-03T07:27:26","date_gmt":"2013-07-03T12:27:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=30633"},"modified":"2014-02-08T08:36:58","modified_gmt":"2014-02-08T13:36:58","slug":"deep-purple-now-what-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2013\/deep-purple-now-what-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Deep Purple | Now What?!<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Steve Patrick<\/span>
\n– Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"DeepEarlier this year, legendary rock band Deep Purple treated their countless fans to a new studio effort, their first in eight years, and therefore added another worthy chapter to the already rich history of a band that has 45 years under its belt. The album, entitled Now What?!<\/em>, was produced by Bob Ezrin and released via earMusic in April.<\/p>\n

Now What?!<\/em> opens with \u201cA Simple Song\u201d that starts with a haunting vocal from Ian Gillan leading into a signature Hammond organ attack courtesy of Don Airey. This unmistakable sound instantly declares that this is a Deep Purple album and that these sexagenarians have no intention of acting their age. As the lyrics to the song declare: \u201cTime it does not matter.\u201d<\/p>\n

The next track, \u201cWeirdistan\u201d has a decidedly Middle Eastern feel to it. This is not surprising given the recent solo output from Gillan on albums like One Eye to Morocco. Then there is \u201cOut of Hand\u201d which is another Hammond driven track that contains a frantic guitar solo from Steve Morse. \u201cOut of Hand\u201d is one of several songs on Now What?!<\/em> that harken back to the classic Mark II era of the band.<\/p>\n

The explosive song \u201cHell to Pay\u201d chugs along with a \u201cSpace Truckin\u2019\u201d tempo and has a chorus that is practically begging to be performed live. Morse and Airey once again lock in sync with each other to produce a sound that only men of their experience can create. Gillain\u2019s voice sounds somewhat strained on the chorus, but the effort is still successful and admirable. <\/p>\n

The upbeat \u201cBody Line\u201d shows off the jazzier side of Ian Paice\u2019s drumming and all the while is still propelled by Airey\u2019s relentless Hammond organ work. \u201cAbove and Beyond\u201d has a synth intro that sounds like a mid-80\u2019s Eddie Van Halen keyboard composition. The track is actually a touching tribute to former keyboard player Jon Lord who passed away in 2012. A lyric from the song is highlighted in the liner notes of the album as well: \u201cSouls, having touched, are forever entwined.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBlood from a Stone\u201d boasts some Doors-like atmospheric keyboard work and Gillan commands the lyrics with a swagger in his voice that only he could deliver. The majestic track \u201cUncommon Man\u201d features a beautiful Morse solo that is enhanced by Airey\u2019s tasteful keys. The synth fanfare really adds to the drama of the song. A jam element in \u201cUncommon Man\u201d shows the band firing on all cylinders, especially some fancy bass work from Roger Glover.<\/p>\n

The signature Purple sound of Hammond organ mixed with a gritty, guitar strut can be heard on \u201cApr\u00e8s Vous\u201d. This song once again culminates in an epic Morse vs. Airey duel. Perhaps the band was giving a tongue-in-cheek response to those that criticize their age when they wrote \u201cAll the Time in the World\u201d. Either that or maybe the song sums up Deep Purple\u2019s approach to making albums since the previous album Rapture of the Deep was released back in 2005. <\/p>\n

The core album concludes with the bizarre \u201cVincent Price\u201d which is the perfect song for our vampire and zombie obsessed society. In the song Gillan exclaims, \u201cIt feels so good to be afraid!\u201d Naturally, this song will be making its way onto any classic rock fan\u2019s Halloween playlist this year. The concluding, bone-chilling scream from Gillan is sure to creep out the trick-or-treaters. <\/p>\n

The deluxe North American release of Now What?!<\/em> contains one bonus track, a cover of Jack Clement\u2019s \u201cIt\u2019ll Be Me\u201d. The song was first made famous by none other than Jerry Lee Lewis. Purple\u2019s take on the classic song sounds like the band had a great time recording it. The deluxe version of the record also contains a DVD with new interviews with the band. Clearly, die-hard fans of Deep Purple will want to seek out the deluxe version for these perks. <\/p>\n

Overall, Deep Purple have done themselves justice on Now What?! and that is really all any fan could ever hope for. These five masters of their craft are not doing this to impress anyone at this point, nor do they have to. If Now What?!<\/em> is the last Deep Purple record it is a worthy bookend to an unparalleled career.<\/p>\n

Genre: Hard Rock, Rock<\/p>\n

Band:
\nDon Airey – keyboards
\nIan Gillan – vocals
\nRoger Glover – bass
\nSteve Morse – guitar
\nIan Paice – drums<\/p>\n

Track listing:
\n1.\t“A Simple Song” \t4:39
\n2.\t“Weirdistan” \t4:14
\n3.\t“Out of Hand” \t6:09
\n4.\t“Hell to Pay” \t5:10
\n5.\t“Bodyline” \t4:26
\n6.\t“Above and Beyond” \t5:30
\n7.\t“Blood from a Stone” \t5:18
\n8.\t“Uncommon Man” \t7:02
\n9.\t“Apr\u00e8s Vous” \t5:24
\n10.\t“All the Time in the World” \t4:21
\n11.\t“Vincent Price” \t4:46
\n12.\t“It’ll Be Me” (bonus track)\t3:02<\/p>\n

Label: Eagle Records, earMusic<\/p>\n

Online: www.deeppurple.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 9\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Steve Patrick – Columnist — Earlier this year, legendary rock band Deep Purple treated their countless fans to a new studio effort, their first in eight years, and therefore added another worthy chapter to […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":30639,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8704],"tags":[336,2378,4903,1103,334,2387],"class_list":{"0":"post-30633","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2013","8":"tag-cd","9":"tag-deep-purple","10":"tag-earmusic","11":"tag-hard-rock","12":"tag-review","13":"tag-rock"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30633","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30633"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30633\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}