In a new interview with Dawn Osborne of TotalRock, DEEP PURPLE keyboardist Don Airey confirmed that there are no plans for him and his bandmates to stop anytime soon.

He recalled their farewell tour in 2017 as the catalyst for this new approach: "We did the farewell tour in 2017, and at the end of it, Ian Paice goes, 'Well, thank God that's over.

We can just get back to being a normal band again.' And that's what we've been ever since — let's just make another record.

Let's go out on tour.

Let's do what we do without too much fanfare.

Just let's be ourselves and see if we can keep the audience happy." "Airey also discussed DEEP PURPLE's plans following their world tour in support of their upcoming album, "Splat!", set for release on July 3 via earMUSIC.

The keyboardist stated: "Well, the thing about PURPLE is that they don't seem to plan in the long term.

It's just you plan in the short term to do the best thing you can." The band recently kicked off a major run of European summer dates, starting in Finland, followed by shows in Norway, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland and Italy before the "Splat!" world tour heads to North America.

The touring schedule includes 86 shows across 28 countries.

With more than 120 million albums sold since forming in 1968, DEEP PURPLE have long secured their place in rock history.

Rather than simply preserving their legacy, they continue to extend it, driven by the same spirit that defined their earliest work.