Calgary, AB - Media Review Quotes

By Heath McCoy

As I see it, there are two Def Leppards. There's the pop-metal band of the early '80s, who sounded kind of like a boy-band version of AC/DC. And, as sacrilegious as that might sound, the Sheffield lads pulled it off with a pair of great records in Pyromania and High and Dry. Then, along came Hysteria with its polished power ballads and synthesized dance-metal beats. From then on, Def Leppard was playing for teenage girls and the pop charts. My metal for moms theory makes perfect sense. The girls have grown up, right? It's not my thing, personally, but good for them. Moms need metal too, I suppose.

For my money though, the heavier version of Def Leppard is far superior. And, unfortunately, that side of the band reared its head only sporadically at the 'Dome. It was there to fire up Armageddon It, but it ducked out during Gods Of War, one of the better tunes on Hysteria. The gentler Leps were on during the tepid Two Steps Behind. But the band pulled out an excellent version of Bad Finger's No Matter What, to be heard on a coming release, and the hits Animal and Rock of Ages were highlights of the evening.

By The Calgary Herald 2005.

Read the full review at - calgaryherald.com

By Mike Bell

Def Leppard brought nostalgia and their songs - ably, professionally and decently performed, of course - but little or nothing more. They're not particularly interesting or entertaining to watch - they ticked off the cliche rock moves in a workmanlike manner - nor is the big screen behind them. In fact, had they not had those old words and a paying and appreciative audience that seemingly required little else except for the odd mention of our city's name, Def Leppard could have been any retro act playing the Shamrock or the Back Alley.

So maybe there's a lesson here - action may speak louder than words but in this city, album sales and nostalgia trumps them both. It's tough to decide whether or not The Tea Party's decision to open for Dep Leppard was an entirely short-sighted one. Sure, the shows are getting the T.O. act in front of arena-sized audiences and, yes, they've always had a heavy, classic rock bent to their music. But, and here's where you really have to wonder, the Tea Party is coming off its most contemporary and arguably best release to date, The Seven Circles. Second guessing aside, the band, led by effortlessly enigmatic frontman Jeff Martin, made the most of it, putting on a loud and lean jeans-and-black-T-shirt no-nonsense set.

By The Calgary Sun 2005.

Read the full review at - calgarysun.com

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