‘We’re working on new songs’: Deep Purple returns to the studio during break from touring

Share this:

Deep Purple took some eight years between studio efforts before releasing 2013’s Now What?!, but it doesn’t look like there’s going to be that kind of lag next time.

Ian Gillan, in a new talk with Basellandschaftliche Zeitung, confirms that Deep Purple is already at work on a follow up. Writing sessions are taking place during a break in its healthy touring schedule. The group is decamped in Portugal, he says, in advance of a round of European festival dates.

“We have a studio in the Algarve and we’re working on new songs,” Gillan confirms. But, he’s quick to add, it’s not all work: “In the evening, we take a sip of good red wine and enjoy the tranquility.” There are also eagerly awaiting the beginning of the World Cup, he says — with the exception of relative newcomer Steve Morse. “Our guitarist,” Gillan notes, “is an American who understands nothing about football.”

Now What?! was issued to resounding success. Deep Purple’s most recent studio effort had been 2005’s Rapture of the Deep. The group has only released two other albums since 1998.

Something Else!