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Friday, 24th June 2005
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Wilkes-Barre, PA - Media Reviews

Def Leppard provides night of metal memories By Alexander Choman

Britain's raucous agents of pop-metal, Def Leppard, roared into town Friday evening along with Tesla for a nostalgic 1980s metal trip laden with heavy guitar riffs filled with syrupy power ballads to the delight of the 3,500 ardent fans on hand at Wachovia Arena at Casey Plaza.

Playing mostly music by memory rather than promoting a recent CD or project, Def Leppard recycled many of the songs that made them a staple of the FM airwaves in the 1980s. Frontman Joe Elliott belted out the vocal anthems that this fiercely loyal audience came to see. The predictable riffs carved out by Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell's metal axes were fondly reminiscent of their multi-platinum sales days. With volume levels set at the max all evening, bassist Rick Savage and drummer Rick Allen maintained a rhythm section that amply supported the four part harmonies of some of metal-rock's best known sing-a-longs.

"Have you Ever Needed Someone So Bad?", "Photograph", "Bringin' On The Heartbreak", and, of course, "Pour Some Sugar On Me", each had a supportive chorus of thousands at Wachovia Arena singing along on every word.

Emerging as the frontrunners of the new wave of heavy metal bands from England in the late 1970s, Def Leppard put the emphasis on melody and arrived at the doorstep of MTV when each needed the other. In evidence at Casey Plaza were the cleverly crafted grooves that they tweaked just enough to capture a much wider audience base than some of their heavy metal predecessors.

Def Leppard rides a smooth metallic groove that is just short of anything too hardcore but rocks enough to rouse the savage beast in most that partake in that genre. Elliott led the band slowly but surely through songs Mutt Lange produced to perfection in the studio like High & Dry's "Let It Go" and Hysteria's "Women".

By the time the band shifted comfortably into an arena-size filling version of "Is Anybody Out There?" it was all over. This audience was won over game, set and match. Def Leppard played most of the night in front of projection screen carrying images of the band's earlier days synchronized to run along the real-time performance.

As well, the screen often depicted blurred images, a vintage band cartoon and menageries of colors. Def Leppard and Tesla's concert Friday was nothing ground-breaking, no great lyrical introspection or technical wizardry. But what it was though, was fun and entertaining. And for the people in attendance at Wachovia Arena, that was enough. Way more than enough.

By Citzens Voice 2005


Def Leppard shows it can still rock By Alan K. Stout

It has been 22 years since Def Leppard exploded into the world of rock 'n' roll with the release of its third album, "Pyromania." In that time, they've had a guitarist die, a drummer lose an arm and, in the mid-'90s, they saw the arrival of grunge briefly kick them off the public's radar.

No matter.

Lep rocks on, and though they do it to smaller crowds and with less fanfare, they are still a very good band blessed with a gift for combining cunning hard-rock riffs with terrific melodies. The group, performing at Wachovia Arena before a crowd of 3,800, offered a solid though sometimes workmanlike show that featured plenty of big hits from its mid-'80s heyday and, thankfully, a few nuggets from deeper in its catalog. It's no secret that as Lep's career progressed, its members became more infatuated with a big, polished hard-rock sound featuring lots of slick production, and tunes such as "Hysteria," "Armageddon It," "Rocket" and "Love Bites" – all from 1987's 14-million selling "Hysteria" album – aptly represented that era of the band. But still, it was with driving tunes such as 1981’s “Let It Go” and 1983’s “Foolin’ ” where the group shined just as bright.

Take off the gloss, and Def Leppard can usually be an even better band.

The 40-ish Leps, still lean and fit, also still carry some ’80s-style charisma and swagger. The band’s members confidently strutted the big arena stage like they've been there forever, and though singer Joe Elliot has lost quite a bit of range and his voice lacked command early in the set, it grew stronger deeper into the show.

Same goes for the sound and the mix. Initially, a bit muddy, but fine clarity by mid-set.

Musically, Leppard's members have always been great players, and guitarists Vivian Campbell and Phil Collen stepped up for notice on several occasions. The group also offered some clever use of video, as some of the live shots appeared semi-animated on a large video screen behind the stage.

Lep closed the show with a string of favorites, including "Photograph," "Animal," "Bringing on the Heartbreak" and "Pour Some Sugar on Me." Appropriately, one of the biggest songs of the night was "Rock of Ages," a true rock classic that championed the phrase "It's better to burn out than fade away." Def Leppard, 22 years after "Pyromania" sold 10 million units, has apparently done neither.

By Times Leader 2005.


Def Leppard says 'Let's Get Rocked' to Wachovia Arena By Mark Uricheck

Def Leppard last played Wilkes-Barre in early 2000. When the band rolled through town Friday, June 24 hitting the Wachovia Arena, it proved to be well worth a five year wait for their return.

Leppard was supported by Sacramento, Calif. based rockers Tesla, who stormed the stage at 7:30 p.m. When Def Leppard finally took over the stage, they were met with screams and pumping fists. The band tore into Action from their 1993 album Retroactive before launching into a certifiable list of hits from their 25 year career. Throughout Leppard's set, they were light on between song banter and focused their energy on the music.

The bulk of Leppard's material came from their 1987 album Hysteria, which was a monster. It sold over 10 million copies in the U.S., and another 5 million or so worldwide. The band played all 7 songs that were singles from that album, including the beautiful title track, rarely played album cut Gods of War (a nod to the die-hards) and the groove based Rocket. The latter featured and extended guitar workup by the band's guitarists Vivian Campbell and Phil Collen, who by the way proved that they are one of the finest guitar teams in the business. Their styles totally complimented each other; they are so in sync with each other it appears intuitive.

Frontman Joe Elliott persuaded the audience to sing along on the acoustic Two Steps Behind, to which the band came out and played casually on stools. He also noted that the band would be releasing an album of cover songs in the near future. Leppard treated the crowd to a sneak preview, with the melodic No Matter What and the unexpected treatment of David Essex's Rock On. Understandably, the crowd was caught off guard with the later song, as was evident by the blank look on some faces. Perhaps after hearing soap opera actor Michael Damien have a hit with this song back in 1989 brought back some painful memories.

The band also touched on music from their mega 1983 album Pyromania with Foolin' and Photograph - the band's first big US hit. Before launching into Pyromania's Rock of Ages, Joe Elliott jokingly pointed out that he can now say the 22-year old song is "the title track of our new album." The band is touring in support of a new 2 disc greatest hits collection entitled Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection.

The audience's biggest reactions came from the band's biggest rockers - Animal, Let's Get Rocked, and the more recent Promises. Def Leppard knows how to rock an arena sized crowd, even if this particular crowd was a bit sparse for an arena crowd. Estimates were placed on the attendance at 3500, but visually it seemed less than that - hard to explain for a Friday night in what's considered a strong rock market. However, the fans that did come were loud, and they made Def Leppard feel like they were playing to a packed house.

Def Leppard finished their night with an encore that featured Bringin On the Hearbreak, a song that exposed early MTV audiences to the band, and perhaps Leppard's best known song - Pour Some Sugar On Me. By the time the band brought out this song, all cylinders were firing, and the crowd was lost in melodic rock heaven. The crowd's decibel level had reached it's pinnacle and it was clear Def Leppard is welcome back in Wilkes-Barre anytime.

Overall, a more solid rock show can't be found. Def Leppard is a slick, polished machine at this point in their career. They are total crowd pleasers, and judging by the setlist, they want it that way. The band is moving on to a co-headlining tour with Bryan Adams this summer, but it's Def Leppard who will likely continue to win the audience's hearts.

By nepatoday 2005.

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