The band is performing in Brazil this week
Deep Purple, one of the pioneering bands of heavy rock, has great respect and love for its Brazilian fans. In their various visits to the country, the band continues to surprise with its ability to honor its classics while releasing new music.
We at Wikimetal spoke with guitarist Steve Morse shortly before his arrival in Brazil, and the musician confessed to being excited for the shows. The band will perform in Curitiba (December 12th), São Paulo (December 13th), and Rio de Janeiro (December 15th) at the Solid Rock event alongside Cheap Trick and Tesla.
Guitarist for the band since 1993, Morse recalls the time he first met the band. “'Hush' and 'Kentucky Woman' were the first songs I heard. I didn't really like 'Kentucky Woman' and it was a cover, but when they did 'Hush' it was heavy and the guitar sounded amazing with that great vibrato ,” he says.
The guitarist spoke about his motivation for composing
When discussing his inspirations and desire to make music, the guitarist confesses that writing has become a habit: “We love making music. For two years we wrote our own ideas and then got together to discuss them. It’s a habit. We’re always writing new things, and when you’re in a band, when you have an idea, you show it to everyone, and everyone is always coming up with new things, so even when we’re off tour, we’re still together brainstorming ideas. That’s what we do.”
You enjoy the camaraderie and the opportunity to do what we do and have fun. At the same time, you need to be focused on what you're doing to support all the band members. You need to know your place; that's what being part of a team is all about. We enjoy being together.”
He also reveals that when he joined the band, he felt there was something wrong with the setlist they played at shows. "It didn't sound like Deep Purple ," he said. After talking with his bandmates, they decided to play the track "Hush," "And it turned out great! When we gave the song a chance, everyone ended up liking it. We still play it today. It's a team effort ," he adds.
Steve Morse spoke about the formation of the setlist
When asked about future setlist changes, Morse says that some tracks will not be part of any show, as there are certain phases of the band that they would not like to relive. “It’s not about the music. But playing tracks from the David Coverdale era, for example, is difficult, because nobody was part of that except Ian Paice. I think there’s no chance of playing those tracks.”
Steve Morse was the band's third guitarist, succeeding Ritchie Blackmore and Tommy Bolin. Speaking about the legendary musicians, Morse says that Blackmore helped bring the sound that the British Invasion explored in the 60s. "Ritchie was a great member of one of the heaviest bands that ever existed at that time, and I like his sound. It's an honor to play his solos at shows."
"And Tommy was one of my favorite guitarists when he was in Zephyr. He was incredibly talented. He was brilliant in the studio and went through tough times when he was on tour. That's what touring does to people, it makes you feel isolated. But we musicians feel good when we play, and then it all ends up being worth it."
To conclude the interview, we thanked the guitarist for his time, reminding him of the love Brazil feels for the band. "Thank you. We feel the same ," he said in closing.