An Easy Victory for Purple in the Battle of the Bands
Deep Purple live at Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre (Maryland Heights, USA 2017-09-08)
Deep Purple’s performance last night in St. Louis was by far the best of the four Purple shows I’ve seen in recent years, and by any standards superb; if it’s the last time I ever see them live, then I’m happy. Having read earlier reviews, I was a little worried that I would be so impressed by Alice Cooper’s show that Purple’s would seem mediocre by comparison. The Alice Cooper show was undoubtedly an extraordinary spectacle, including a beheading illusion, a huge Frankenstein’s monster, enormous balloons thrown into the crowd, and many explosions. The four guitarists kept charging back and forth across the stage and then striking manic rock star poses; it was a wonder there were no collisions. So Alice was fun, but musically there wasn’t much there, at least for people who couldn’t replay the songs in their heads (which the fans who had a great time presumably could).
But it was clear almost immediately Purple started that they were simply in a different class. I actually loved that they played so many songs from Machine Head (HS, L, SOTW, ST, POH) because they did it so damned well. It brought back memories of the first time I heard those songs, so many decades ago, and the thrill I felt then. The sound was excellent: you could really hear the pitches, each instrument sounded right, and no instrument was too high or too low in the mix. The band was tight and energized, and, as it has always done at its best, combined immense raw power with a speed, grace, and agility that put the earlier acts to shame. The guys also excelled individually. Paicey’s drumming was brilliant—as energetic as anything that came before but married to finesse and excellent taste. Don was dazzling, working some Gershwin into his big solo, and including some synthesizer work that made me feel a bit sorry for Edgar Winter, who had played some synthesizer in the warm-up act. Steve made the classic riffs sound really heavy, but he made music out of them too; again a contrast with earlier in the evening. Highlights from the show for me were the start of Space Trucking, which was electrifying, Uncommon Man, which they rocked up a little, the dueling solos in Hush, and Time for Bedlam, which sounded just as massive as I had hoped it would; but really every song was excellent. I was pleased that Pictures of Home and Knocking At Your Backdoor made it into the set. Gillan was in pretty good voice, and he certainly didn’t let the side down. My only quibble is that Strange Kind of Woman wasn’t replaced by something else—Hip Boots, perhaps? Gillan’s high-speed story-telling is no substitute for the back and forth with the guitar of his younger days.
review by Andrew Melnyk


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