Montreal, QC - Media Reviews

Def Leppard @ Montreal, QC By Montreal Gazette

Loud hard rock bands that use flashy guitar solos to gloss over hack riffs are cheaper than a dime a dozen, which is why the five dedicated hard-rock vets in Def Leppard leave the pack yapping at their heels.

Sunday night, Def Leppard put on a show with all the requisite pell-mell lasers that are de riguer for any big-bucks rock operation.

However, all the production values in the world couldn't hide the reason for which this band remains superior to countless also-rans, songwriting.

Led by screaming vocalist Joe Elliott, Def Leppard stormed to popularity out of depressed industrial England when the band members' average age was 18.

They became superstars when the hit-laden Pyromania sold millions of copies.

Touring in support of the triple platinum Hysteria, the band is using an open stage situated at centre ice.

Providing maximum visibility, and, in effect, demanding that Elliott, and his four cohorts pay attention to four different front rows.

No problem for the Leps, who remained true to the athletic qualities of most hard rock, running and leaping being as important as howling vocals and blistering leads.

But it was the songs that made the difference, Def Leppard, those composers of killer choruses, strike a rare balance between stompers like 'Pour Some Sugar On Me', 'Foolin''' and 'Animal' and non-wimpy ballads like 'Bringin' On The Hearbreak' and 'Hysteria'.

A lot of bands that get more respect will never write a melody as good as the latter one.

All of the songs in the nearly two-hour show were put across with authority by the cheer-leading Elliott and principal lead guitarist Phil Collen.

By Montreal Gazette.

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