Deep Purple
In Rock

THE REVIEW

1970: the year that marks the turning point for a band that until then hadn't exactly been making waves. We're talking about Deep Purple, who, at the time, produced what was destined to become the cornerstone of their discography (together with "Machine Head," which I have a few things to say about, but I won't).

The album features a cover that immortalizes the band, carving them into rock, creating a double meaning with the title (which can mean "in rock" or a term that's hard to translate into Italian, meaning "they rock"). The turning point of this album is the introduction of two members: Roger Glover (on bass guitar) and Ian Gillan, a formidable vocal element.

The tracklist features 8 songs: the first is "Speed King," which will become a must at their concerts, always highly requested. Indeed, it's very lively and perfectly introduces the pure rock atmosphere. I personally also greatly appreciate the second track, "Bloodsucker," because it has a driving rhythm and a catchy guitar riff. We arrive at the third track... It's an unforgettable moment, even on the first listen: we are presented with the highest compositional and vocal peak ever reached by the band. And it's "Child in Time," which starts with just the keyboard, then slowly and tactfully the voice joins in, and after a few seconds you're in another dimension! The good Gillan reaches highs surpassed by very few other singers. Then comes Blackmore's legendary guitar solo, now historic. Toward the end, the whole cycle starts again, and once more, the highs are endless.

After such a delight, lasting (only) 10 minutes and a bit more, only one adjective comes to mind (in English): Astonishing! (indeed, "petrifying" - the double meanings abound today!). The beauty is that Gillan's voice isn't modified. He reaches those levels perfectly live as well (a demonstration is present in the essential "Made in Japan"). In the album's anniversary booklet, there's a question from a fan to the singer, asking how he managed to achieve such a clean and vocally impossible scream. Gillan replied that many asked him this and that even he didn't know how he did it. He added that to achieve such an effect, he trained every day, putting his health at great risk, and that perhaps wearing very tight pants helped =).

We proceed wonderfully with "Flight of the rat," another great track, strangely not often requested at concerts. Three other tracks: "Into the fire," "Living wreck" and "Hard lovin' man" (pretty "normal" rock tracks, but still good). The finale is marked by "Black night," another cornerstone of Deep Purple. The "anniversary edition" features 12 unreleased tracks, divided between studio chats and songs mixed by Glover (from the album and otherwise). I'm usually against bonus tracks, but these make a small exception.

Another great chapter of 70s rock has concluded, which in this case can only be described with an untranslatable term, but one that I find very fitting for the occasion: "it really rocks" (and another double meaning, good grief!).

An album that almost never tires, and that just for the third song would deserve a 10/10, but is better represented by 5 stars, which fluctuate between 9 and 9 and a half. At the user's discretion.