SEPTEMBER 2nd 2026
DEEP PURPLE
"SPLAT TOUR 2026"

 Review by:Metal Mom Rita
 Photos By: Char Tupper
Full Gallery:
http://www.metaltitans.com/concertpics/deep-purple/

This lineup, I grew up with as a teenager, skipped out of school to go home with friends to listen to them. Now I get to see them all for the first time as a live performance versus the cassettes with my friends at home, haha!  

Jefferson Starship was the opening band to hit the stage and this is the band that made my night, and truthfully I have not listened to them in ages. However, I must say, wow, what a fantastic show, lots of their classics like "Find Your Way Back," "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now," "White Rabbit," and more! Everyone must have loved the set like I did, as everyone sang along, and that is always fun to watch. This was the band to start off the night with, sadly for me, just not long enough. But I sure enjoyed the vocals, the movements on stage, and their presence. Sure spoiled me for the other bands. This is who I will remember. When they come to your town don't miss them. 

Time for another classic rock band to step on stage, it is time for Kansas. They gave an enthusiastic performance, with lots of great songs, I think what I will remember most is the singer, saying how much they loved Canada, then sadly said "I am sorry", since after all, the song was called "Song of America", which I feel was the rare time a full arena went almost "silent" , but, he did say "sorry", and it was nice of him to say, haha. We all understood, since after all, the song was made before the current policical situation, so we cannot hold that against them. That aside, it looked like every band member was enjoying being up on stage giving it their all for all the fans, and the fans too, enjoyed themselves. 
 
The Headliner tonight, the main event, time for DEEP PURPLE to finally come on stage and begin their set. An extremely loud one, even the intro music from the pre-recording, was a little loud (ear plugs went in much faster than expected). This year Ian Gillan turned 80, and the first song it showed, sorry, but I actually thought he looked exhausted and out of breath by the end of song 1, but he managed to get a boost and continued on to do an excellent job. The rest of the band too, they performed well and they cranked out those tunes to everyone's enjoyment. The evening consisted of their classics, like "Highway Star", "Hush" "Perfect Strangers", and some newer music like "Arrogant Boy". Of course, the show isn't complete without "Smoke on the Water", thee legendary song of their career. I departed the venue a bit earlier to beat the crowds out, that being said, they were so loud, they were crystal clear outside the venue, it felt like being inside an arena !