Deep Purple guitarist Simon McBride says the legendary band is not even thinking about slowing down. In a new interview with Thomas Moser of Germany’s Rock Antenne, McBride spoke about the group’s heavy touring and recording schedule nearly six decades after its formation, and made it clear that the current lineup still has plenty left to do. He said, “Sometimes we take breaks. Well, last year was, I’d say, a break from touring. We did some shows last year — not a lot — but [we made] a record last year. So last year was kind of like a little break.”
McBride said this year has been the opposite of quiet. Deep Purple are playing roughly 90 to 95 shows in 2026, and he described the schedule as “chaos,” but the kind of chaos the band seems to welcome. Looking ahead, he said there is already talk of another record next year and more shows next year, which is a strong sign that the band is treating its current era as a continuing creative chapter rather than a farewell run.
What stood out most in McBride’s comments was his belief that music still gives the band a purpose. “The thing is, everybody in life needs a purpose, I believe,” he said. “To keep going, you have to have a purpose.” He explained that the older members of the band are still fully capable of doing the job and that it is good for them to keep playing because they still can.
McBride also went out of his way to praise Ian Gillan’s approach to singing at 80 years old. “You can’t ask an 80-year-old man to sing what he sang when he was 20,” McBride said. “It’s like asking an 80-year-old man, an Olympic athlete, to do what he did when he was 20. It’s just impossible.” He said Gillan has adapted over time and called him “a genius” who has “done a great job.”
His strongest statement came at the end of the interview: “We’ve no intention of stopping, which is the good thing.” He followed that with an even broader reflection on why musicians keep going for so long: “Music is like a drug. It’s addictive. Once you start, it’s like you cannot stop. It’s one of those things. I don’t ever see myself stopping. The thought of it, that doesn’t compute in my brain.”
The comments fit the current moment for Deep Purple. The band has just released its 24th studio album, Splat!, on July 3, 2026, through earMUSIC. The official Deep Purple site says the record is being built around three singles so far — “Arrogant Boy,” “Diablo,” and “Guilt Trippin’” — and describes the album as turning “the end of humanity” into a hard rock record.
Deep Purple’s own website lists the album’s 13-track sequence, including “The Only Horse In Town,” “Sacred Land,” “The Beating of Wings,” “Scriblin’ Gib’rish,” “Jessica’s Bra,” “My New Movie,” and the title track “Splat!” The band has also said Gillan conceived the core idea behind the album, which treats the “end” not as destruction but as transformation.
The record is also notable because it is Deep Purple’s second album with Simon McBride on guitar, following =1 in 2024. McBride joined the band in 2022 after Steve Morse stepped away to care for his wife, and Deep Purple’s official statement at the time made clear that McBride was being welcomed not as a replacement in spirit, but as “an extraordinarily talented and exciting guitarist in his own right.”
Producer Bob Ezrin is back as well, continuing a run that has helped shape the band’s modern-era sound. Deep Purple’s website and recent album coverage note that Ezrin has been involved with every Deep Purple studio album since Now What?! in 2013, including Splat! and the 2024 album =1.
The touring schedule matches that energy. Deep Purple’s official site shows a packed 2026 run with festival and arena dates across Europe in June and July, North American shows in August and September, more European dates in the autumn, and a UK run in November. That lines up with McBride’s description of the year as “chaos,” but also with his conviction that the band still has a real purpose and no plan to stop.
McBride’s comments also echo what bassist Roger Glover has said recently about the band’s future. Glover told Noise11 that Deep Purple is not planning a final farewell tour or dramatic last gig, saying, “We’re not gonna have a final tour, a final gig and make a hoopla about it.” He added, “We’re just gonna carry on till we can’t.”
Taken together, the message is clear: Deep Purple are not treating this era like an ending. With a new album, a massive tour schedule, and a lineup that still feels energized, Simon McBride says the band has no intention of stopping — and, if the current momentum is any indication, they mean it.
