In a new interview with Songwriting For Songwriters, DEEP PURPLE singer Ian Gillan confirmed that the legendary rock band is putting the finishing touches on a new album for a tentative June 2026 release. The upcoming effort will be the follow-up to "=1", which came out in July 2024 via earMUSIC. Asked what kind of lyrical themes he has been exploring in the songs for the new DEEP PURPLE LP, Ian said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, it's very interesting on this one. I can't give you too much at this stage, but it's basically very optimistic. Let's say there's a general theme. It's a fairly loose conceptual idea of the end of humanity, but not as grim as it sounds. In fact, it's very optimistic. It's about the metamorphosis of humanity into a metaphysical state, our next incarnation. It's a bit too early to be doing interviews about this. I don't mean time of day. I mean, it's not gonna be out until June, so I don't want to give too much away."