Deep Purple releases new album SPLAT! with Italian‑designed cover art

British rock band Deep Purple has issued its 24th studio album, SPLAT!, on 3 July 2026 via earMUSIC. Produced by longtime collaborator Bob Ezrin, the record features guitarist Simon McBride, who replaces Steve Morse after a 28‑year tenure. The line‑up also includes 80‑year‑old vocalist Ian Gillan, bassist Roger Glover, drummer Ian Paice and keyboardist Don Airey. SPLAT! consists of 13 tightly‑crafted tracks, each under five minutes, and explores a concept devised by Gillan that depicts the end of humanity as a metamorphosis rather than an apocalypse. Singles such as “Arrogant Boy”, “Diablo” and “Guilt Trippin'” have already been released, with a visionary video matching the album’s retro‑sci‑fi visual theme.

Italian creative studio Asteria, which previously designed the covers for Deep Purple’s Whoosh! and Turning to Crime, created the artwork for SPLAT!. The cover blends futurist, metaphysical and classic rock iconography inspired by artists such as Giorgio de Chirico and René Magritte. To support the release, the band will embark on an international tour that includes several Italian dates – Pisa Summer Knights (16 July), Este Music Festival (17 July) and Unipol Forum in Milan (17 October).