DPAS LIVE REVIEWS

Deep Purple - Moscow Olympiiskiy Sports Hall ,
19th March 2002

The show was superb, probably the band's best on Russian soil so far. Despite his recent illness, Ian Gillan's voice was on top form and his performance during Child In Time absolutely blew everyone away. He hit all of the high notes with ease. Child In Time is a real anthem to their audience here, and Purple had never played it in Russia before. As it progressed people took out their lighters and mobile phones (with glowing screens) and waved them in the air.

Another high point was Ian's singing during When A Blind Man Cries, which sent tears running down many faces. He really sings this number with all of his soul. Elsewhere he was full of energy, constantly jumping, dancing, waving his tambourine and bashing at his congas . During The Aviator he made as if to fly (waving his arms like wings). I loved the live performance of The Aviator in Moscow. At one point the music stopped and Gillan, Glover and Morse sang the chorus acapella together with the audience. Paicey was amazing, his long drum solo during Speed King was great, absolutely flawless. In fact both Ians could be named as the stars of the evening.

Roger's bass was high in the mix and could be heard really well, his bass solo in Speed King was wonderful. As for Don, I can say he's a very good substitute for Jon Lord. He did an interesting solo before Perfect Strangers with some Russian folk music thrown in, including the famous Midnight In Moscow that Jon used to play every time he came here. Don worked on his solo so hard that at the end of it little Ian ran over with a big towel and started waving it as if to give him more air to breathe! Steve also did a great job.. Well Dressed Guitar (introduced tonight as "a well dressed table"..!), and the voice-guitar duel in Speed King were brilliant. Mary Long (Gillan's introduction.. "these two people have died and gone to heaven") sounds much better these days than it did on 'Who Do We Think We Are'.

The venue was sold out, filled right up to the very last rows in the large balcony, even the side rows with a restricted view. The evening was a huge success, especially as there was not a great deal of pre-show advertising to be seen, and also the tickets weren't at all cheap. Big Ian kept repeating "you're fantastic", "thank you for sending us good vibes" and "superb!". He was amazed that so many people had come to see the band and that they hadn't held back in showing their excitement. The roar of the audience before the encores and after the end of the show was absolutely thunderous. I really hope the band can carry on for many years and that we will see them in Moscow again. Dear Deep Purple, we'll all miss you. Please come back!

review: Olga Davydova, photo: www.deep-purple.ru

Fantastic crowd - the biggest I've ever seen at a Deep Purple gig, I'd estimate it at around 18,000. Set list - the same as St.Petersburg. Duration of the show - 2h, 05 m. All of the band were in a great mood throughout. Highlights - The vocals in Child In Time (accompanied by the sight of thousands of burning lighters, and the entire crowd singing along with every word), a great version of The Aviator, a moving When A Blind Man Cries, and a fabulous solo by Roger in Speed King. I've never heard him play such a long and weird solo (it must have lasted at least two or three minutes). I noticed that many people in the audience (which included many kids) enjoyed listening to the music and not just jumping around and shouting.

review: Andrey Gusenkov
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