Cincinnati, OH - Media Review Quotes
By Kara
And that was just the opening band!!! Def Leppard's lead singer, Joe Elliot, mentioned at one point in the concert that the group has been together 34 years!! They all actually looked amazing. For those of you who haven't heard already, Joe Elliot's father passed away the beginning of July. They postponed Riverbend and several other concerts. This was actually their first performance back since the tragedy. So it seemed pretty appropriate to open with "Undefeated," one of their new studio tracks. Next up were "Let's Get Rocked," "Animal," "Foolin'," and "Love Bites." I have to say that Def Leppard was not one of my favorite bands from the 80's/90's but they really impressed me live. Their vocals and harmonies were spot on and the band was really tight. The only cover they did for the night was a cool version of David Essex's "Rock On." Rick Savage played a mean bass for that one.
Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell took turns shredding in the extended version of "Rocket." You'd be hard pressed these days to find a band with TWO lead guitar players that good. That was by far my favorite song of the night with the big instrumental break in the middle. Joe dedicated an acoustic version of "Two Steps Behind" to his father and an instrumental piece to Steve Clark, their guitar player that passed away in 1991; very touching moments. Before the evening ended they played the title song from the album "Hysteria" along with "Armageddon It" and "Pour Some Sugar on Me" from the same album. Funniest moment was when Joe Elliot introduced Vivian Campbell, the guitarist who replaced Steve Clark in '91, and said he's tired of being called "the new guy" when he's been with the group for 191/2 years! The band closed with "Rock of Ages" and, although you could tell Joe's voice was getting tired, the crowd loved it. You have to catch this concert and, lucky for all of you, they will be coming back to Ohio August 24th at Blossom Music Center in Cleveland. Don't miss it!
By Pazz Magazine 2011.
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