Hamilton, ON, Canada - Media Reviews

Def Leppard with Poison - Copps Coliseum, Hamilton - July 17, 2012 By Vickie Young

A evening thick with nostalgia was offered up at Copps Coliseum this past Tuesday night, featuring two of mega-success hair-bands of the 80's, Def Leppard and Poison. Fresh on their summer tour, "Rock of Ages," both multi-platinum acts re-kindled the love affair fans share with this decade.

A giant flag acted as a backdrop, featuring Poison's trademark skull with 1986-2012 inscribed on it. A two-tier stage added extra effect for the dramatic entrance of Brett Michaels. Michaels defines glam rock with his classic 80's blonde locks, jeans two sizes too small, and always the coolest of rock shirts on the planet. Not to disappoint, Michaels sported his trademark red bandanna while walking the catwalk like a pro and amping and entertaining the crowd.

Unveiling timeless hits such as "Unskinny Bop" and "Talk Dirty to Me," Michaels quickly won the crowd by continually slapping hands and high-fiving adoring fans. CC Deville is simply amusing to watch with his constant mouth gaping, squinty facial expressions, and hair that looks like he's just been electrocuted. Michaels, as the ever-shameless self-promoter, lent a great deal of set time to each bandmate's solo workings. Deville and Dall each crunched down fearsome riffs while Ricki Rockett beat the skins with unbridled enthusiasm. As for Brett, whether he's working the harmonica, strumming a guitar, or belting out a ballad, he never fails to shine. "Nothing But a Good Time" concluded the set as a welcomed warm-up session.

A huge riser led the entrance for Def Leppard's beloved frontman Joe Elliott. In mere moments a spectacular light show was underway, along with banks of screens filled with alternating images. The energy was immediate and brought fans to their feet. Elliott donned his usual Union Jack T-shirt and held a bedazzled mic stand. Vivian Campbell and Rick Savage sported sequined jackets, while Phil Collen's opted for a more natural state of remaining shirtless the entire set. The outstanding physique of this 50 plus rocker roused the interest of many female fans. Rick Allen was firmly planted at the drums, also in an au natural state of bare feet, with a sunflower tucked between his kits.

The band quickly ripped into action with several chart making hits, including "Rocket," "Foolin'," "Animal," "Love Bites," and "Let's Get Rocked". Elliott proved to be an infectious frontman while encouraging fans to wave their arms in the air and summoning cheers. Nevertheless, it became evident at a few points during the set that the higher registers were getting away from him. He would choose to let the band shoulder the reaching vocal and bring it home with his smoky husky tones. Regardless of the dynamic used to pump out the hits, fans were so enthralled they soaked up every single lick with nothing but love.

Def Leppard hit their sweet spot for the evening by performing a full band acoustical melody. An equipment case was placed in the front of the stage while each member joined in partway to deliver a five song layering of "Where Does Love Go When it Dies," "Now," "When Love and Hate Collide," "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad," and "Two Steps Behind." Elliott's vocals shined among the collective harmonies, while Allen played the maracas with a grin that was so contagious you couldn't help but smile.

On the home stretch, fans were now dripping in sweat yet totally unaffected as they welcomed the next round of songs with the same amount of 'hysteria', including the hit… "Hysteria". "Armageddon It" followed suit, and "Photograph" garnered huge cheers as a slide show played on multiple digital screens of the band in their heyday. The transformation of 25 years erupted in some giggles on the overuse of hairspray and leather.

"Pour Some Sugar on Me" was clearly the fan favourite, inspiring dancing in the aisles and devil horn fists high in the air. Elliott thanked the crowd for continued support stating, "As long as you're still here, we will be."

Returning for an encore, the band pumped out a blistering finale of "Rock of Ages" granting one more moment to linger in our trip down memory lane.

By VLithium Magazine 2012.

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Def Leppard / Poison / Lita Ford @ Copps Coliseum, Hamilton ON, June 17th 2012 By Laura Wiebe

As I stood mere feet from the sequined stage thrust, surrounded by excitedly anxious hard rock and hair metal fans trying to get as close to the action as they could, a few things struck me about my attempt to review the Rock of Ages tour stop in Hamilton.

The first was the (selling) power of nostalgia, and the slightly bittersweet but familiar glow in reliving musical moments of youth, when music seemed like one of the few things that made life worth living. (as if that's really changed!) The second was how much difference it makes, especially at an arena show, to be immersed in the height of the action, where you can see the musicians' beading sweat in detail and everyone around you is singing and screaming and waving their arms in the air. None of this occurred to me as a revelation. It's actually kind of obvious. But it did remind me of a third, equally obvious point: concert reviewing is always and inevitably a subjective art.

My first close-ish encounter of the night began with Lita Ford, as I was one of the few people aside from security to pace the photo pit and try with limited success (in my case) to capture the rock guitar queen on (digital) film. With one of several guitars strapped across her chest, and trapped behind a mic stand, Ford didn't move about too much, but she definitely rocked out.

She started with a self-declaration ("The Bitch is Back") and used her latest album's title track, "Living Like a Runaway," to remind us of her teen rock chick origins as well as the 'new'. But as Ford worked through her short set - still wearing tight leather and kicking ass - her song choices moved toward her biggest hits.

By the time I found my (excellent, second-row) seat, Ford had put down her guitar to head out on the catwalk for a little extra audience interaction. Then quickly returning to her fret boards, she pulled out a double-neck electric for a(n obviously) Ozzy-less "Close My Eyes Forever" and singalong closer "Kiss Me Deadly." She gave up the final guitar solo glory to her hired gun, but took the spotlight again in the end for a hair-flailing finish.

An exponential rise in short, tight skirts and extra high heels led up to Poison's appearance, with frontman Bret Michaels rising from behind the drums. The California rockers look and sometimes sound more southern these days than glam, and there's more leg bopping going on than leaping around the stage. But like Lita Ford, Poison sounded pretty great (other than a weird whiney tone to the back-up vocals in a couple of songs).

For the most part, Poison's set, even more than Ford's, was a nostalgia-fest and re-creation of their biggest hits, though it was pretty clear that's exactly what the crowd was after. "Look What the Cat Dragged In" was their opening track, and things stayed pretty firmly in the 1980s and early 90s from there on out. Michaels pulled out a harmonica for "Your Momma Don't Dance," a set of maracas, plus a couple of guitars (and a couple sparkly "Poison" Stetsons). Mostly, though, he manned the mic, leaving the guitar wizardry to the charismatic C.C. Deville, who was happy to expertly oblige.

We got an instrumental jam and a short drum solo from Rikki Rockett before a two-song chart-topper finale. The "dramatic acoustic guitar ending" (as Michaels' called it) to "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" slid into Poison anthem "Talk Dirty to Me," with the fans singing loudly along.

Poison got folks pretty riled up, but if it wasn't clear from the "Rock of Ages" tour name that Def Leppard was meant to be the main draw of the night, a digital countdown announced that fact in giant numbers. The old 'all that glitters isn't gold' chestnut might’ve made me wary when the band first appeared on stage, Joe Elliot and Rick Savage (like Michaels) rising from behind the drum kit. From Elliott's mic stand and sneakers to the graphics on the band members' t-shirts, Def Leppard was covered in glitter, and the multi-screen LCD backdrop functioned as a similar sparkly 'enhancement.'

But the sheen, as it turned out, was just an essential part of the show, a lingering reminder of the glitz, glamour and excess that bands like Def Leppard came to represent a couple of decades or so ago. I was so close I could smell the incense drifting from Rick Allen's drum riser and could tell how much and well the guys have aged. But their vintage (more than 30 years now) hardly echoes in the sound or magnetism of their performance, except maybe in a general sense of ease and expertise.

Like Poison, Def Leppard gave us an instrumental break and a (very) brief drum solo, and did their fair share of rocking out, but we also heard a lot of ballads amidst a setlist of historical hits. Still, how could you really argue with song choices like "Two Steps Behind" when it gave you all five musicians' perched on a trunk at the edge of the crowd, swaying together in a good-natured groove? Beginning with "Undefeated" and "Rocket," the Brits built toward climactic renditions of "Photograph" and "Pour Some Sugar On Me." Then after a short encore-ish pause they closed with "Rock of Ages," politely saying good night, shaking raised hands as they left the stage, and letting the credits role.

The bands were solid, the songs mostly classic, and in the end, I had "nothin' but a good time". (oh, the cheese!) Was my pleasure amplified by nostalgia, my proximity to the stage, and the enthusiasm of those around me? Absolutely. But if you didn't give up on Def Leppard in the early 80s, when they left the NWOBHM behind for MTV, it's hard to see how this time-warp tour could disappoint.

By Hellbound 2012.

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