Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger has a fairly rare beast — an interview with Bob Ezrin. It is published in German, so all the usual caveats about reverse translation fully apply here.
Today, studio technology is very different from when you started out with Alice Cooper. In the 21st century, you no longer capture performances live in the studio; you create them on the screen.
For the new Deep Purple album «=1» I actually put together a collage of the best performances from different versions of the song, without losing the spontaneity of the first versions. But my work on the computer is not that different from that with analogue tapes. In 1973 I edited the piece «I Love The Dead» for Alice Cooper from song snippets that were all only four bars long. So please don’t say anything against digital recording technology. I love the tools that are available to me today.
Deep Purple received the kind of reception you would expect – Hovigs Hangar, the giant popup inflatable tent in the corner of Torvet, was full. They are touring their new record “=1”, from which we would hear four tracks. However, it was the classic material that people had mostly come to hear – it was the old stuff which got the best reception. The fact that they have a new album after such a long career is tribute, for the undersigned, to two things, both of which were obvious during the show. First, the band are still enjoying what they do – they are not eking out their long careers. Second, and perhaps making a contribution to that enjoyment, is their lineup. Keyboardist Don Airey joined in 2002, replacing Jon Lord, and in 2022 Simon McBride replaced Steve Morse as a full member of the band after 28 years. The energy of these two musicians made the show and they have undoubtedly kept the band fresh and sharp.
The two Tony Iommi/Glenn Hughes albums — The Dep Sessions and Fused, will be reissued October 4, 2024, via BMG. The Dep Sessions will be issued as-is, while Fused will add 3 bonus tracks not on the original album: Slip Away, Let It Down Easy, and The Innocence. Both will be available on CD and, for the first time, on vinyl. Pre-orders available here.
Someone calling themself The Elitist Metalhead reviews=1 for Metal-Rules.com:
Obviously I knew Don Airey’s capabilities but I am extremely unfamiliar with Simon McBride but when the teaser single, “Portable Door” came out I was floored! Not only is he skilled soloist but he knows how to write riffs that sound like classic Purple. This track gave me a Perfect Strangers vibe which made me instantly need to hear the full release. Once I got my hands on that bad boy, “Show Me” jumped out at me and I knew that the teaser was a rather accurate reflection of what will be going on here. Ian Gillan sounds pretty much the same but stays in his lower register mostly, no epic screams here. You may hear his age in certain spots on certain tracks but for the most part, his skills are still intact. There’s some keyboard/guitar battles going on here showing both Don Airey’s skills as well as McBride’s. “A Bit on the Side” follows and has some more cool riffs and a lot of great melodies. Some cool keyboard and guitar solos on this track as with most of the tracks on here. McBride brings a little old school style but mostly he’s a seriously skilled shredder.
Read more on Metal-Rules.com. And once you’re at it, might want to check out their review of McCoy The Sound Of Thunder box set, recently released by Cherry Red Records.
Straight for our trainspotting department, Louder Sound has a nostalgic piece dealing with the bad old times:
Back when the UK still had weekly music magazines – iconic titles such as Kerrang!, NME, Melody Maker and Sounds – having rock stars visit the editorial offices to review singles by their peers was always an entertaining highlight of the working week.
It goes on to describe one such appearance in 1985 of a punk icon Shane MacGowan, and his pick of the week — reissue of Black Night as a single:
Definitely single of the week. They’re back! The cover’s even got a colour picture of Jon Lord making love to his organ. It’s a no-bullshit song that’s got guts and a Ritchie Blackmore guitar solo. It’s loud, it’s obnoxious, it’s brainless, and it’s got everything that’s missing from most of the other crap that’s out this week. It’s definitely not music for wimps. Here’s evidence that they should have given them £2 million to reform, not just one. I don’t think I’ll ever be going to see them live, but the classic records are still classics.
A prominent member of the Purple family, Mick Underwood has died on July 28, 2024, at the age of 78. In the early 1960s he played drums in The Outlaws with Ritchie Blackmore, then went on to join Episode Six along Ian Gillan and Roger Glover. It was him who recommended Gillan to Blackmore in 1969 as a new singer for Deep Purple. Later in the seventies he joined Gillan the band, recording 5 albums with them. Mick was quite ill for some time, with his wife posting on Facebook in August 2023 that he is battling dementia and “unable to do many of the things he had previously enjoyed”.
Sunday 28 July, 2024 marked the passing of a great drummer, Mick Underwood.
Mick and I were in two groups together, Episode Six and later Gillan, and it was he who recommended me as a singer to Deep Purple, a generous act for which I am eternally grateful.
Mick was highly admired by all of us, in particular, his contemporaries and peers in the world of drums.
Tommy Bolin & Friends album Great Gypsy Soul is going to be reissued in August on Cleopatra Records. The album, originally released in 2012, was a project that brought together major players who recorded alongside Tommy Bolin’s tracks from the outtakes of Teaser. The new edition expands it with 6 bonus tracks, features new artwork, and also adds a vinyl release.
CD only bonus tracks not on the 2012 release:
Crazed Fandango
Teaser
Homeward Strut
People, People
Marching Powder
Can’t You See feat. Carmine Appice
It is due on August 23, 2024, and can be pre-ordered via the label.
Australian outfit Noise11 has interviewed Simon McBride. Simon talks about his early influences, working with Bob Ezrin, making up for the Australian dates that fell through, possibility of another Purple album, and many other things. Continue Reading »
Steve Morse was featured on the latest (July 25, 2024) instalment of the Ernie Ball String Theory web series. Here it is — the story of Steve’s life as told by the man himself in 20 minutes. Continue Reading »
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