Perfect Strangers Review

Band	Deep Purple
Album	Perfect Strangers
Type	Album (Studio full-length)
Released	November 12, 1984
Genres	Hard Rock
Labels	Polydor, Mercury Records
Length	39:37
Ranked	#16 for 1984 , #1,576 all-time

Reviewer :  DeepSabbath         Rating :  90 / 100

Growing up in the NWOBHM era and discovering that trend in the early 1980s, Deep Purple was nothing more than a name for me at the time, which sometimes appeared in the conversations of more experienced music listeners. However, I got the impression that the band was very important in the history of heavier rock, but their music was by no means familiar. And I have to admit that when I heard "Smoke On The Water" for the first time, it sounded pretty dull, when the comparison was, for example, Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, who are constantly on the turntables. Was this the signature work of heavy music that everyone knows? Didn't make an impression. A somewhat inexperienced ear still understood at that stage.

In 1984, the headlines of music magazines were full of news about the return of Purple, which had broken up in the latter half of the 1970s, and a new album was in the works. The "Perfect Strangers" in question was the first album from the band for me, and that's why I can say that the album is THE Deep Purple album for me. Under the magnifying glass is now specifically the original album version, which contains eight songs. Later, there have been different versions that have included more stuff.

The album starts with the mystical bass and keyboard intro of the song "Knocking At Your Back Door", which slowly, taking the drums along, grows to the main riff of the song played wonderfully by Ritchie Blackmore's guitar and Jon Lord's Hammonds. Vocalist Ian Gillan, who later received a lot of criticism, sings like in his best days. The song is long, but only the moaning at the end sounds a bit unnecessarily stretched for my current taste. "Under The Gun" hits a bigger gear and the song is strongly built around the guitar and the intro and verse riff played together by the Hammonds. The third song "Nobody's Home" groovs beautifully, driven by Ian Paice's cowbell accompaniment. In the chorus, Blackmore's guitar, Roger Glover's bass and Lord's Hammonds pull in a sleepy sono following Gillan's vocal melody. Nice effect and works great. In my opinion, "Mean Streak" is the closest thing to filler song status. It's a bit of a blues-tinged, hip-hop-rock, but it also fills its place.

The album's title song "Perfect Strangers" is unlikely to require more accompanying words for many people. The song begins in a way in the same spirit as the opening track of the album, i.e. the Hammonds roar strongly in the intro and slowly other instruments join in. The main riff played by the guitar and keyboards is brilliant in its simplicity and the vocal melody on top of it is great. The chorus also works beautifully and the song can be considered one of the most recognizable in rock music without a shadow of a doubt. "A Gypsy's Kiss" that plays next is the album's go-to rally and it has something similar to Rainbow's "Spotlight Kid". Special mention must be made of the harmonic ear candy playing between the guitar and organ solos played by Blackmore and Lord together. "Wasted Sunsets" is the album's "mandatory" ballad, but there is no other feeling of necessity in the song. The calm and beautiful song seems to prepare the end of the album before "Hungry Daze", which concludes the whole, whose catchy intro melody stays in your head long after the end of the album. Otherwise, "Hungry Daze" doesn't offer any surprises and I think something else could have been added as the ending song.

The Deep Purple 1984 model was built big. The album rocks irresistibly right from the first bars and shows that the new arrival was not in vain. Ritchie Blackmore's guitar and Jon Lord's Hammonds rumble irresistibly from song to song. A special mention must also be given to the rhythm group. I have always recognized Ian Paice's drumming as high quality, but now that I have listened to this record with an even more careful ear, Roger Glover's bass playing is absolutely fantastic. He mixes in his basic playing with melodies and runs that support the vocals, which may not stand out all the time, but you would definitely notice their absence. And Ian Gillan sings brilliantly throughout the album. So the package is complete in every way.

The dinosaur, which once fell to big egos and rattling horns, sounds fresh and airy on the debut of its new arrival. The group plays for the band and not for themselves, and that is also heard on the record. Recorded in the era of analog recordings, the soundscape of the album is distinctive and organic, exactly as it should be for a band like Deep Purple. The fade out endings of several songs should be mentioned as a small minus. Could it be that the songs were half-finished when they went to the studio and they didn't have time to finish the songs anymore? Despite a few near-misses ("Mean Streak" and "Hungry Daze"), the rating of the album as a whole is almost commendable. The album was a strong indication of the state of the band at that moment, which had updated and modernized its sound. It's a shame that after "Perfect Strangers" the orchestra hasn't released an album of the same quality, and knowing the current mood, it's unlikely that they ever will again. Regardless, it's always nice to return to this classic.