Newark, NJ - Media Reviews

Crowd 'Gets Rocked' At The Prudential Center By Toniann Antonelli

I spent the better part of my teen years taping posters of glam metal bands to my walls and ceiling and joining in the destruction of the ozone layer by teasing my tresses with enough hairspray to sustain hurricane-force winds, so there was no way I was gonna miss out on a chance to see two of my favorte bands ever - Def Leppard and Poison - perform a mere 20 minutes from where I live.

The two bands - while they both enjoyed popularity in the 80s and 90s - are different in a multitude of ways, right down to the continent from which they hail. Still, pairing the two groups for the Rock of Ages tour works. Posion - a 90s glam metal band and Def Leppard - which was part of the new wave of British heavy metal in the 70s and 80s - know how to work an arena crowd. The audience of former metal heads that showed up to bang their heads at the Prudential Center in Newark on July 11 was no exception.

These bands know what their audiences want - we want to sing along loudly to every song; we want loud guitars and emotional power ballads; we want crowd interaction, we want our ears to be ringing by the end of the night. Both Def Leppard and Poison delivered, but Poison's set was a little more entertaining, with Bret Michaels and C.C. DeVille hammering out one hit after another and really working the crowd.

Speaking of the crowd - it was hard not to notice that the fishnets, fringe jackets and tight leather pants that were required attire for such a show years ago, were (thankfully) absent. This time around, concert-goers were decked out in concert tees and flip-flops, many of them with their kids in tow. I guess "Unskinny Bop" knows no age barrier.

The show started with a set by Lita Ford - best known for her duet of "Close My Eyes Forever" with Ozzy Osborne. Her performance of the song featured a band member singing with her, but lacked the dark edge that Ozzy brought to the original version. Her performance was still solid, her voice strong as she belted out a mix of old and new tunes. Ford embodies the same bad-ass persona that garnered her respect of both male and female rockers in the 90s. She closed her set with another song that made her popular - "Kiss Me Deadly." It was an obvious favorite among members of an audience that knew almost every word of every song that the bands would play throughout the evening.

I wasn't sure what to expect as I anxiously awaited Poison's set to begin. I wondered if it would be hard to watch Bret Michaels belt out "Talk Dirty to Me" after seeing him sitting at a table with Donald Trump during the TV show "The Apprentice." Would he still have the same energy and sex appeal he had when I first saw Poison perform at the PNC Bank Arts center almost two decades ago? In short - yes. Not gonna lie - I screamed like a 16-year-old girl when C.C. DeVille played the first chords of "Look What the Cat Dragged In." The band - Michaels especially - had the same energy I remember from the 90s. This time around, though - there was less glam and more rock. And that's not a bad thing.

There's no doubt that Poison still knows how to please their fans after 26 years of performing together. It's something they've always been good at doing. From their cover of Grand Funk Railroad's Song "We're An American Band" which Michaels said was a tribute to U.S. troops, to the obligatory guitar and drum solos - which were shorter and less edgy than the raucus perfomances of the 90s, Poison rocked the crowd. "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" was another highight that would be the first of several power ballads throughout the show.

Predictibly - but again, not in a bad way - Poison ended their set with "Nothing But A Good Time," which seemed fitting considering the enthusiasm of the crowd.

A relatively quick set change brought on Def Leppard, who headlined the Rock of Ages tour, which derived its name from one of the band's most popular songs and is subsequently now the name of both a Broadway musical and a movie featuring music from the 70s, 80s and 90s. The stage - much more elaborate than Poison's set with a backdrop of movie screens and near seizure-inducing lighting effects - initially featured a giant British flag. There was no mistaking who the headliners were on this tour, and after more than 30 years, Def Leppard undoubtedly earned the spotlight. In facr, July 11 marked guitarist Phil Collen's 30th year in the band, and just to make true fans feel even older, it's been 25 years since the album "Hysteria" was released. Yeah, ponder that while you count your gray hairs.

Opening with "Undefeated" before moving on to their single "Rocket," Def Leppard is an arena act. They know their way around big sets and pyrotechnics. Unlike Poison, though, the band's performance seemed decidedly more rehearsed. Every move, comment by lead man Joe Elliott and wild guitar riff seemed planned. No matter, though, a rock was definitely not "out of the question" for the Newark crowd who enjoyed every minute of it.

One of the highlights of the night was an acoustic medley of power ballads during which the band members sat together on a trunk near the front of the stage. As the band seemlessly intertwined "Now," "Where Does Love Go When It Dies," "When Love and Hate Collide," "Two Steps Behind" and "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad" a sea of cell phones lit up the arena. Two decades ago, flickering lighters would have brightened the venue, but the effect was still pretty much the same as the crowd sang along.

Getting the crowd jacked up again wasn't too difficult as the band launched into another string of popular singles beginning with "Women" and ending with "Pour Some Sugar On Me" and, of course, "Rock of Ages," which was appropriate given the nickname of the venue (The Rock, for those who are unfamiliar with the arena).

In the end, the crowd definitey got what they came for - a loud, ear-splitting, head-banging, fists-in-the-air trip back to the 80s and 90s that was "Nothing But a Good Time" from beginning to end.

By Cranford Patch 2012.

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Def Leppard Rock Of Ages By Robert Cavuoto

Did you know if you looked up the word "Arena Rock" in the dictionary, there was photo of Def Leppard?

I'm confident the word was invented to categorize this great band who truly knows how to create monster radio hits and put a simultaneously smile on thousands of people's face when performing live.

With more than 65 million albums sold worldwide it shouldn't be that hard to do!

Wednesday night Def Leppard rolled in to Newark's Prudential Center with opener Poison to show this New Jersey crowd why they are one of the world's premiere live acts.

There was no shortage of diehard fans decked out in concert shirts, tight pants, and short skirts. Everybody came to have great time and relive the '80s in which Def Leppard played such a big part, whether you remember hearing them at a party or while driving down to the beach or even breaking-up just to make-up, I'm sure Def Leppard was there.

The band ran through all their hits from High and Dry, all the way to their last CD, Mirrorball. Guitar driven songs like "Rocket", "Foolin", "Bringing on the Heartbreak", "Armageddon It", "Pour Some Sugar on Me", were all performed flawlessly and nicely tied to a tremendous light show.

Mid-way through their scorching set, the band put the brakes on for an impromptu acoustic set performed on the edge of the catwalk. This was my favorite part of the show as they turned a massive arena into an intimate club by sitting on a road case, huddling around a microphone, and jamming to a medley of their acoustics hits.

The band seems to enjoyed this part of the show as much as the fans did signing along to the songs; "Where does Love Go when it Dies", "Now", "When Love and Hate Collide", "Have You Ever Needed Love so Bad", and "Two Steps Behind".

Joe told the crowd that tonight marked 30 years to the day that guitarist, Phil Collen joined the band! A huge milestone.

Jokingly he said, "He still wasn't sure how Phil put up with the guys in the band for so long!"

Surprisingly, that wasn't the only anniversary. Joe pointed out that this year marked Vivian Campbell's 25th years with the band!

"Where does time go?" he asked.

Vivian and Phil dazzled the crowd with some talented playing and showcased their array of guitars; Vivian's typically stuck with glittery Gibson Les Pauls, while Phil was armed with his arsenal of Jackson guitars.

For the past thirty five years, Def Leppard's concerts have been a must-see event. So, whether you're a causal fan or a diehard you will really have to check them out on their Rock of Ages Tour. I promise you'll be singing along with every song!

By Guitar International 2012.

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Def Leppard Played and I Fucking Owned It By Dave Hill

Last night (7/11), I went to see Def Leppard, Poison, and Lita Ford at the Prudential Center, which is in Newark, New Jersey. What happened was my friend Ryan asked me and my friend Dave if we wanted to go to the concert and we were both like "Fuck yeah!" and the next thing I knew, we were totally on a train to New Jersey about to get our asses handed to us by Def Leppard, Poison, and Lita Ford, the bands that were playing the concert.

There were roughly 15,732 people in attendance at the show but I was definitely the most rocking person in attendance and you can basically ask anyone because I pretty much owned that show from the second we got off the train in Newark, at which point we walked briskly to the Prudential Center because we were fucking pumped to rock out and everyone around us was looking at us like "Those guys fucking rule!" We had black rock shirts on and everything. It was fucking sweet.

As it turned out, we were kind of late for Lita Ford so by the time we got down to our sweet seats (which were RIGHT ON THE FUCKING FLOOR, SECTION B, ROW 7 MOTHERFUCKERS!!), Lita Ford was playing her last song and basically her biggest hit ever "Kiss Me Deadly," which was great. At the end of her set, Lita Ford told all of us in attendance how awesome we were and I was just like "Yeah, I know, Lita Ford" cuz duh. Also, it should be noted that I would totally have sexual intercourse with Lita Ford if she is reading this, which I hope she is (NOTE: If you personally know Lita Ford and can send this on to her, please do, because I am a real catch and would treat her like fucking gold).

After Lita Ford finished rocking everybody, Ryan, Dave, and I headed up to the concession area and drank like six or eight beers or something I don't even know. Also, Dave had to take a piss, which was fucked because I was afraid we might miss Poison but everything was fine. After Dave finished taking what turned out to be basically the longest piss of all-time or something, we went back down to our sweet seats and watched Poison. If you like Poison, you would have definitely liked seeing them last night because they basically nailed it as far as being Poison goes. They played all the big rocking hits like "Talk Dirty to Me" and "Unskinny Bop" and all that but then they also brought it down by playing "Every Rose Has Its Thorn", at which point I was practically crying like a fucking baby because, man, the words. I still ended up holding it together in the end but most of the chicks seated around me totally wanted to make out with me because chicks fucking love that sensitive shit.

After Poison finished and a bunch of stuff exploded and stuff, Ryan, Dave, and I headed back up to the concession area and had like 14 more beers or something. It was nuts but we couldn't help it because we were so pumped for Def Leppard it wasn't even fucking funny. By then, I had to take a piss too so I went into the bathroom and did my best to ignore the fat guy in the New Jersey Devils jersey shaking his dick next to me for like five minutes straight as I tried to focus on rocking out to Def Leppard pretty much any second now.

Once we got back down to our sweet seats again (7TH FUCKING ROW, MOTHERFUCKERS!), it was fucking Def Leppard time and then sure as shit, fucking Def Leppard came on stage and started rocking the fuck out of everyone in the fucking place and that shit was nuts. Def Leppard opened with some new song which was still awesome but basically bullshit considering the fact that you know they've got "Foolin'", "Photograph", "Rock of Ages," and about 500 other hits locked and loaded the whole time and they could have played one of those tunes but whatever it was still sweet. A few songs into things, Def Leppard played "Love Bites" and I was singing along with every word and every chick in my section wanted to bang me because I was fucking nailing that shit so hard you would have thought I was in the fucking band, which I probably should be the more I think about it (NOTE: If you are in Def Leppard and are reading this and also want me in the band, just tell me where the bus is parked and my fucking gig bag and I will be there. Also, we should play some more songs from "High and Dry" cuz that shit rules). It should be noted that the Def Leppard guitar player Phil Collen was shirtless the whole time and so was I and I'm pretty sure he saw me and made a gesture to the singer Joe Elliott like "Check that dude out in Section B, Row 7- he is owning this fucking place." And I was. Ask anyone.

About halfway through their show, the Def Leppard guys all broke out acoustic guitars and sat on a road case brought out by a sweet roadie with a hat on and played some song that I didn't know but it was a real panty dropper that's for fucking sure. A lot of chicks wanted to make out with Def Leppard and also me at this point but we had a show to focus on so we couldn't. It should also be noted at this point that the Def Leppard drummer only has one arm. I realize pretty much everyone knows that already and I am totally used to seeing him play drums like that but when he's just walking around the stage with one arm part of me couldn't help but be all like "Oh, shit- he's coming over here."

After Def Leppard got done showing their sensitive side, it was time for the fucking hits. They played "Women," "Bringin' on the Heartache", "Armageddon It" ("Are you getting it? Yes, I'm a getting it!" It fucking ruled), "Photograph", and basically every other fucking awesome Def Leppard song you can fucking think of. It was at this point in the show, that I ended up meeting this other sweet dude who was rocking out to Def Leppard almost as hard as I was. We high-fived and rocked out and sang every fucking word and basically no one around us could even handle it. You could tell the guys in the band saw us and were like "Fuck- that is some next level shit right there" as we were fucking owning that fucking show so hard. Def Leppard played "Rock of Ages" and then Ryan, Dave, and I got the fuck out of there cuz we had a train to catch back into NYC. I guess you saw this coming, but before we got on the train we fucking knocked back a cold one in the bar in the train station. There were a lot of people who were also at the show at the bar and you could tell by the way they looked at us that they all knew we were the fucking sweet dudes from Section B, Row 7. It ruled. Next time Def Leppard comes back to town we are totally going again and that shit is going to be awesome basically. If they play two nights I would even go both nights.

By Brooklynvegan 2012.

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