4.4 - It feels fitting that this album features the band's likenesses carved into Mt. Rushmore. This image though ostentatious, in retrospect feels appropriate given how uncannily Deep Purple seemed to underpin and even portend what was to come in rock, both good and bad. In this album, we hear elements of prog, glam, early metal, free jazz, as well as butt rock, intertwined artfully. It's a sound that so many bands have tried mightily to channel, though lacking the same abundance of virtuosity. Here's a band honed to a razor's edge - the guitar riffs shred impeccably, the arrangements executed with technical polish to almost imbue them with a sense of spontaneity. There's considerable majesty and drama in these tracks - taken out of context, some will find it too audacious. I think much of that criticism may lie in our shared understanding of rock 'n' roll excess, as parodied by Spinal Tap. Taken by itself though, this album is a beacon that well deserves a place in the classic rock canon.