1967/ 1976
After the second departure from Deep Purple Ian Gillan decided to start a solo career taking up the monicker of "Gillan", as his old heavy metal band, but with new personnel. The end result is a mix between MWoBHM and Deep Purple, so that music is a pure Hard Rock with Heavy Metal structures.
In this album Gillan is a band that plays Hard Rock with Heavy Metal structure and Heavy Metal music. The interesting collaboration with the legendary Leslie West in "Hang Me Out To Dry" produces an interesting song, basically Hard Rock with distorted guitar with modern sound. The best songs, however, be sought in "Candy Horizon" that, and it is strange, knowing of the disputes with Blackmore, is similar (not only in style) to the Rainbow with J. L. Turner! "Candy Horizon" is a great Hard Rock/ Heavy Metal, melodic and catchy but not anonymous, as full of magic. "Don't Hold Me Back" is another Highlight of "Toolbox". "Don't Hold Me Back" is a personal view to Heavy AOR but full of Metal with great chorus, guitar sound similar to distorted slide guitar and great screaming, in a relaxed song. More than the axeman Steve Morris in noticeable the technique and the dynamism of Leonard Haze, a great drummer. "Pictures Of Hell" is, probably, the only full Heavy Metal song of "toolbox" but have the defect of being too similar to many of the songs of Deep Purple of 1980's and 1990's, were it not for the screaming in the vocalizes of Gillan. At the same time "Pictures Of Hell" is a great song because with magic and passion and not arid as the similar Purple's songs, because coinvolgent in vocal lines and guitar structures. For the rest "Toolbox" is a good album of Hard Rock in full Heavy Metal field.
In a good substance "Toolbox" could be an album that could scuttle Deep Purple. But, as we all know, history decided otherwise.