Oklahoma City, OK - Media Reviews

Leppard's Heavy Metal Growl Heard By Kevan Geoff

Oklahoma City let a wildcat out of its bag Wednesday for an outrageous evening of sizzling rock 'n' roll, as heavy metal quintet Def Leppard pounced on the State Fairgrounds Grandstand stage and devoured the night.

As the blazing mid-August sun scorched a crowd of more than 16,500 rockers, opening band Europe started the show with the title hit from its latest album, "The Final Countdown."

Europe's charismatic lead vocalist, Joey Tempest, thrilled the crowd with his cat-like growls, microphone stand twirls and such rock hits as "Superstition," "Cherokee" and the stirring rock ballad "Carrie."

Despite the suffocating heat, overcrowded conditions and the poor seating which plagued the State Fairgrounds Grandstand, the immense crowd swallowed Europe's young, flashy image, easy-to-remember lyrics and driving beat like ice cream on a hot summer's day.

When Def Leppard took the stage 30 minutes later, the excited and overheated mass nearly came unglued. With an extensive laser light show and nearly 10 years of road experience, Def Leppard easily proved why its latest album, Hysteria, continues to top the charts this week.

The popular heavy metal British band immediately took command of the stage with "Stage Fright" and performed rock reminiscent of the 70s heavy metal best, throughout the show.

Lead singer Joe Elliott, wearing cut-up jeans and a T-shirt, brought his own mass hysteria out of the crowd with such down 'n' dirty hits as "Anything Goes" and "Skin on Skin."

But one of the highlights had to be Elliott bathed in green light singing "Pour a Little Sugar on Me" with Steve Clark jamming away on guitar.

Drummer Rick Allen worked overtime proving, despite the loss of his left arm nearly two years ago, that he can hold his own in any rock 'n' roll arena.

Although Elliott's voice slipped momentarily once or twice, he joked around with the crowd and led the throng in unison clapping during most of the set, seeming to savor the wild enthusiasm of the Oklahoma crowd.

After performing such rousing hits as "Foolish" and "Animal," Def Leppard did an excellent rendition of "Rock Of Ages" before leaving the stage. The band returned for an encore with "Love Bites" and "Photograph."

By The Oklahoman 1988.

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