Def Leppard News - SCORPIONS To Open For DEF LEPPARD In Japan/Australia/New Zealand

Monday, 23rd April 2018

SCORPIONS To Open For DEF LEPPARD In Japan/Australia/New Zealand

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Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen was interviewed in California recently and revealed more about the 2018 Hysteria tour.

Phil spoke to Dean Delray for episode #418 of his Let There Be Talk podcast.

Phil talked about old tour buses, joining the band in July 1982, Mutt Lange, Pyromania album songs/recording, bands who influenced him, guitars, Ibanez Destroyer guitar, Early Def Leppard Sound, setlist choices, recording the Hysteria album, new Tesla album, working again with Mutt Lange, the Slang album, living in California, giving up drink/Steve Clark, guitar partnership with Steve Clark, recording time for Hysteria, Hysteria tour, PSSOM/picking singles, recording Adrenalize guitars, working out/diet, In-Ear monitors, tour rehearsals, 2018 setlist surprises, vinyl box sets, new music, Delta Deep second album, Digital/Streaming Deal/ITunes Issues, Sheffield, vegan, Vivian's health, 2018/2019 tour plans and the Royal Albert Hall show.

He spoke about the 2018 Hysteria tour which is yet to be announced in Japan, Australia and New Zealand and revealed the Scorpions will open for the band.

Def Leppard last played with the Scorpions on the 1986 Monsters Of Rock tour and supported them in Summer 1980 in the USA (alongside Ted Nugent/Judas Priest) and at their first European shows in late 1980.

The Scorpions are currently on a never-ending retirement tour and have shows booked until mid-September in Europe, USA, Mexico and elsewhere.

Listen to the full 25 minute interview below.

Phil's part starts at 15:19mins in until 40mins

Visit the Tour News section. For more news on future tour plans.

Let There Be Talk - Phil Collen Interview Quotes

Tour Rehearsals

"I was rehearsing today actually with Vivian and Rick and we were just having a blast. It just sounds amazing. But it's controlled. Well we did fo the last couple of days 'cause we had new equipment so we was trying all that out before we do real rehearsals in about a month."

"It depends you know we've over rehearsed before. We've been in there for a month. And then other times we go well, we was on tour last year we only need two days. So somewhere in between."

2018 Setlist Surprises/Digital Catalogue

"Just a couple. We have to, you know, Journey have got a lot of hits and so we have to keep in line with that. And we are promoting our catalogue. You know it's not like a new album per se. We just released the whole thing on Universal. iTunes and Spotify. You can get everything everywhere, but you know we're back with Universal which is great. They've been awesome and we're all working together to make it work. So we're promoting the catalogue. So it's like 13 albums of material to get out there."

"So yeah we wanna kind of touch on most of it."

Vivian Campbell's Health

"He's great. He's busy. He's actually leaving tomorrow morning to do a Last In Line show. So he's filling all these things in. It's exhausting. So he's doing great though. He's really good and it was wonderful playing with him and Rick today and yesterday. We had a blast."

2018 North American Tour/Scorpions

"New Hampshire. We've got like 60 dates. 60 dates with Journey then we do Hysteria live in Australia, Japan and New Zealand. Yeah and the Scorpions are opening up for us. Then we come to England. And then we do the UK and Cheap Trick's doing that."

2019 Tour

"And then next year Europe, South America and if America wants us back perhaps we'll come back and do some more stuff there."

Playing Pyromania Live

"Yeah at some point, but you know it's what the demand is for. And you know we're getting a lot of requests for doing Hysteria. It's our biggest album and it's cool. That's why we're rehearsing 'cause some of the songs, although we've played them, they're really tricky and they're really hard to play the parts and sing at the same time. So we're giving it an extra bit of love to get through so we don't mess it up when we really do it."

Favourite Def Leppard Show?/Royal Albert Hall Show

"So this is really weird because we just done it. But I keep saying. We just done this Royal Albert Hall show and it was one of the best gigs we've ever done. So that one I remember more than anything else because it was recent. But I have been saying that. For whatever reason it just kinda kicked in. It was amazing. And we recorded it."

"Like I said it was for the Teenage Cancer Trust so it was a really good thing to do, but the venue's 150 years old. You know the Queen's been there and it's like Prince this and god knows what and opera and everything. It was amazing. So everything kind of worked out and we were really good. The other thing is I love playing and singing in Def Leppard so they're like me favourite band. We sing. It sounds like it's fake. I look over and is someone using tapes?. It sounds so good. Yes all live vocals. Yeah absolutely yeah."