Bobby Caughron 
Deep Purple has a new album out July 19th.
Asked about the song’s inspiration, frontman Ian Gillan explained in an interview: “Recently, a young journalist asked me how many songs I had written in my life. I replied that the last time my assistant counted, twenty years ago, it was over 500. I felt quite accomplished until she pointed out Dolly Parton’s 5,000 songs, calling me a lazy sod. I couldn’t help but agree and wrote down the exchange in my notebook.” (ROCKS magazine, June 2024)
Produced once again by iconic Bob Ezrin, the new album ‘=1’ captures the purest classic Deep Purple sound, without relying on nostalgia.
Two weeks before its release on July 19th, global acclaim is mounting for ‘=1’. Critics are already hailing it as a Deep Purple ‘classic’ (ROCKS, Germany), giving the album a perfect 10/10 rating, describing it as ‘highly recommended’ (Fireworks, UK), and celebrating ‘=1’ as ‘their finest moment this century’ (Classic Rock, UK).
‘=1’ will be released on July 19th via earMUSIC as Ltd. CD+DVD (Digipak), CD (Jewelcase), 2LP Gatefold (black, 180g), Ltd. Purple 2LP Gatefold (180g), Ltd. Crystal Clear 2LP (180g) and Ltd. Box Set (CD+DVD Digipak, 2LP black Gatefold, 3x exclusive 10” vinyl editions featuring live recordings from Deep Purple’s 2022 tour, exclusive Collector’s T-shirt, 2x exclusive guitar picks, 1x exclusive art print, 1x exclusive lanyard, and the chance to win a Golden Ticket giving access to every show on the Deep Purple ‘=1 MORE TIME’ tour).
All LPs include a rich 12-page LP sized booklet – exclusively in the first print run!
The bonus DVD features the approx. 60min documentary ‘Access All Areas’ joining Deep Purple backstage on tour and providing an exclusive look behind the scenes.
Further exclusive items are available via the official album store: Ltd. 2LP Picture Disc, Ltd. Cassette, strictly limited canvassigned by all band members – limited to 150 items only and various other merchandise items.
About The Author
Alexander Sink 
Chad T. Gephardt 
