It's strange to see websites still list Deep Purple as Hard Rock as this album makes it perfectly clear that the band have fully transitioned into the Prog Rock genre. At the very least, they're Hard Prog but Prog nonetheless. It makes sense for the band to make this shift as they're all getting on a bit now and having lost two of their strongest assets to death and Folk (although Blackmore's revisiting Rainbow material now), there's no way they could possibly hope to recreate the iconic Hard Rock anthems they seemed to casually pump out in the early 70s.
Instead, they've opted to combine the Blues elements of Hard Rock with the instrumental aspects of Prog, creating an incredible sound utilised in such a poor way. If there was a list of everything that could be described as the "absolute worst", I reckon Mediocre Prog would fall somewhere between waiting in a queue caused by a fuckwit at the checkout and having dental surgery. Sadly, quite a few songs on inFinite are in that camp, even if each member of the band (except one) is going strong. Fortunately, the album opener isn't one of those.
"Time For Bedlam" may have a punchy rhythm and reminds us that the band haven't lost it but Don Airey's use of organ sounds more like Uriah Heep than Deep Purple. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but it does signify a slight step down in quality at the earliest juncture, even if the song is great. Don Airey and Steve Morse on keys and guitar are one of the album's greatest attributes, followed by Roger Glover's bass and Ian Paice's restrained but densely packed, well orchestrated drumming. That just leaves Ian Gillan on vocals and this is where the album runs into a sizable wall.
Gillan's vocals used to be incredible when he had some passion in his pipes. However, since DP have moved on from being the loudest band in the world, Gillan's vocals needed to make the successful transition too. Instead, they just sound flat and bored, dampening the majority of songs on this album. The only track where Gillan's vocals seemed to work was "The Surprising", which benefited from a different sound to the lion's share of the tracks and a more typically progressive structure like you'd hear in a modern Iron Maiden song. It's a good track if you can ignore the fact that the guitar sounds a little too close to "Highway Song" - Blackfoot for comfort.
There are other songs that attempt to stand apart from the Hard Prog filler such as "Johnny's Band", a track built around a strong riff with more subtle keyboard sections, and album closer "Roadhouse Blues", a cover of the song by The Doors. It's an upbeat end to the album but it comes across as self indulgent when it follows "Birds Of Prey", the band's attempt at an epic Prog finale. Also, it doesn't help that Gillan's voice is especially terrible when compared to Jim Morrison's, even though it was probably Gillan who championed the inclusion of this cover on the album.
Crappy vocals aside, the band are in their element and whilst Ian Paice doesn't sound like he's breaking a sweat on any of these songs, you can tell he's still trying to create great drum rhythms ("On Top Of The World"). It's the fills and rudiments throughout the songs that speak louder than the generic 4/4 beats. Roger Glover's bass sometimes blends in with Don Airey's organ a little too well but if you listen for it, you can hear it thudding away ("All I Got Is You"). Steve Morse gets a few moments in the spotlight where he can impersonate Richie Blackmore ("Get Me Out Of Here") but when him and Don Airey are double teaming together, it sounds phenomenal.
There's one message being broadcast underneath the layers of each track on inFinite; the band still have life in them but Ian Gillan doesn't. What Deep Purple need is a Ronnie James Dio figure to push the band members into challenging themselves with faster rhythms, more complex solos and more progressive finales. It's almost as if the band wanted the best of both Hard Rock and Prog Rock, which can work if each member of the band is able to commit to it. Unfortunately, I don't see any member of DP agreeing to boot Gillan out now so this is it.
I rate the album 6/10 for being musically solid but devoid of any fire or ambition. It pains me to hear such a once-incredible vocalist moaning his way through the album like he couldn't give a fuck, especially when the other band members (new and original) are earning their crust. Normally I'd say "perhaps they're better live" but having seen them live, I can confirm that we're not missing out on anything. What you hear on inFinite is what they've got. Their days of creating the next "Smoke On The Water" have been over for decades but that didn't stop them from giving us "Mad Dog" or "The Cut Runs Deep".
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