Ontario, CA - Media Reviews

3 reasons why America needs the Def Leppard and Poison tour right now By Vanessa Franko

More than 50 miles and three decades removed from the heady-from-Aqua Net hard rock heyday on the Sunset Strip, Def Leppard, Poison and Tesla came to Ontario Wednesday night for, well, nothing but a good time.

The tour, celebrating the 30th anniversary of Def Leppard’s monster hit “Hysteria,” couldn’t have stopped at Citizens Business Bank Arena at a better time. Wednesday was a heavy day of tragedy and violence across the United States. But for a few hours, fans who grew up with the bands could watch grown men staring down 60 perform rock star jumps, shred sweet guitars and wail out frenzied drum solos like it was 1987.

All too often, Def Leppard is lumped into the MTV-friendly glam metal movement. But 1987’s “Hysteria,” which is getting the super deluxe reissue treatment in August on its actual 30th anniversary, was one of those albums that transcended pretty much everything.

“Hysteria” has sold more than 12 million copies in the U.S.—and more than double that when you count the rest of the world. It spawned seven singles: “Women,” “Animal,” “Armageddon It,” “Love Bites,” “Rocket,” “Pour Some Sugar on Me” and the title track. Def Leppard peppered all but “Women” throughout the set on Wednesday night.

While all of the “Hysteria” songs were high points of the night, the band’s own stripper anthem “Pour Some Sugar on Me” brought the retrospective to a raucous end of the main set. (Seriously, the album “Hysteria” was a flop until strippers in Florida started requesting it on radio stations, ultimately turning the song and then the album, into massive hits.)

The title track was a poignant moment of the evening, with behind-the-scenes footage, rare live shots and scenes from popular videos playing on the large screen behind the band, including glimpses of guitarist Steve Clark, who died in 1991 and whose sound was such an integral part of the album.

Here’s to another 30 years of “Hysteria.”

By Los Angeles Daily News 2017 - read the full review via the link.

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