Montreal, QC, Canada - Fan Reviews
Fan Review - By Spirittracker
The festive mood began across the street at Moe's. As we drove by looking for a parking place, the strains of White Lightning could be heard and I knew that's where we would eat before the show. Later, when we walked into the place, 'Let it Go' was playing and as we sat down, Joe screamed, "And get ready for the big C!"
You bet I was ready for the Concert. I've never seen Def Leppard live!
We got there a few minutes late, so we missed Ricky Warwick. As the clock headed towards 8:15 and we thought the opening act had yet to play, we got discouraged, since we had a two and half hour drive to make after the show.
But then... Disintegrate began to blast out over the speakers, the boys took their places and ripped into the first side of High 'N' Dry, as Joe would later say: 'Let it Go', 'Another Hit and Run, High 'N' Dry (Saturday Night); The crowd's cheering and singing grew louder with every song, and erupted when the boys began 'Bringin' on the Heartbreak'; Then it was 'Switch625', and during Viv's solo, Phil stood behind him and gallantly called for applause; and the already-cheering crowd intensified its noise.
By now the crowd was thoroughly revved up and Joe began to speak. As he would many times during the concert, he addressed everyone in French: "Bonsoir, Montreal! Comment ca va!"
'Foolin', 'Make Love Like a Man', and 'Hysteria' were next, and the crowd loved it. At this point, Joe said of Montreal fans, "the loudest, always the loudest", and introduced 'Long Long Way to Go', thanking fans for making Montreal the first place in the world where it charted. LLWTG sounded great live, and the crowd sang along with every word.
"That was LLWTG," Joe said, and this is "Slang" and they ripped into that great song, which sounded terrific live. I wasn't alone in that opinion. Everyone else loved it too, again singing along with every word. This was clearly a gathering of thousands of diehard Lep fans.
The guys brought the crowd to an even higher level just after that with 'Four Letter Word' which is a great live song and 'Promises.' Then Joe strapped on an acoustic guitar and said, "If you know the words, vous chantez avec moi! I'm getting good at this French!" And to wild applause, they launched into 'Two Steps Behind." I took this opportunity to walk down the stairs a fourth time, with my 35mm camera and zoom lens.
Joe stayed on the acoustic guitar for the next song, "Now," and he was again accompanied on the lead vocals by thousands of people.
With every song, the band would somehow get the crowd to raise the intensity level yet another notch. Just when I thought that the applause and cheers couldn't possibly get any louder, the Leps would bring out more ammunition, and with every new song, crowd went to a higher pitch: 'Women', 'Rocket', 'Photograph', 'Animal', 'Armageddon It', and the song that shook the foundations of the Bell Centre, 'Pour Some Sugar on Me.' If the owners of the place know what's good for them, they'll get a structural engineer to check things out first thing Monday morning!
Each song highlighted different aspects of what makes Def Leppard such a great band. 'Rocket' was amazing, and showed off once again how Phil and Viv trade solos with such dexterity. During this song, they sang a bit of 'Whole Lotta Love' by Led Zeppelin, but perhaps because the crowd so clearly wanted to sing each and every song, the boys finished Rocket right when expected, allowing everyone to belt out "I'll be your..rocket.. yeah, satellite of love!" just when the urge overcame us.
When MLLAM came on, the women in front of us were dancing wildly, to the obvious appreciation of their boyfriends. And the guys were getting into it, playing air guitar and looking around for a girl to grab. During "Women," the guy next to me, who had spent the entire time before the music began draining beer after beer and shouting "woo hoo!" at the top of his lungs, screamed "LEGS! THIGHS!" loud enough so that Joe probably heard him. During "Armaggedon It," this guy, who had been bumping into me every so often, looked at me again as he sang, "Pull it! Pull it! C'mon, trigger the gun!" I ignored him again and he gave up after that, though I suppose I should have regretted this decision, for he then winked at some other woman and screamed, "Cuz the best is yet to come!"
It was easy for the crowd to really get into the music because it sounded so good. It was loud and yet we could pick out the contributions of each member of the band. And Joe's voice was incredible, clear and powerful, sounding very much like he does recorded. The quality seemed far better than many of the MP3s on the official website. In fact, this concert was so good, if they wanted to put out a live album, as far as I'm concerned they could just throw this concert onto a CD. It was excellent.
Then Joe told the crowd that they'd always said of Montreal, "If there's one place we have to play, it's there." Then, to a roar of applause, he said, "If you keep coming, we'll keep coming, over and over again." After "Rock of Ages," the band took a brief break, then the roar of applause and the scattered flames of lighters called them back on for the encore. We did not want the concert to end and when the guys came back on stage, it looked like they could tell. They were beaming! After "Love Bites," Joe said, "Merci Beaucoup Montreal! Une question pour vous". "Do You Wanna Get Rocked?"
After that, he shook his head, smiled and said, "Deafening as always. It's been a real pleasure, Montreal. Until next time, and there will be a next time, don't forget us, and we won't forget you!" Def Leppard, we won't forget you. Nor will we forget a night of pure fun and great music. Thank you!.
Fan Review - By Martine
August 9, 2003 was not my 1st DL show. I've seen them during the Hysteria tour in 1988. That show was still my best ever! I was 18 at that time....Now 15 years later....These guys are at their best! With more maturity, but still with that spark in their eyes! They enjoy playing together and it shows! I was 8th row, near the alley, facing my all time favorite (Sav). I've never been this close in any other show! There is no words strong enough to describe how I was feeling! God I love them! Vivian was hot...all smiley and charming. Sav was very energetic, moving all around...perfect 'till the last note. (hot & sexy to look at!) Didn't see Rick much but heard him well! He was just great. Phil was perfect on guitar & on microphone (nice voice).What a guitar player he is! Joe is a charismatic damn good singer! His voice was exactly how I was dying to hear it! It was a show i'm not ready to forget!
The two DL's show are, and will definitely stay, my best ever! ...'till i see them again. The crowd was just ok...but not as enthusiastic as I thought it would be...The Leps deserved so much more... To end this memorable night...me, my friend & a few other fans managed to meet Rick Allen, Phil and Malvin. They were all soooo nice. We had autographs...talked a bit, met a guy who did lots of videos for the Leps as Rick said. We had the time of our life! (Well I did!) Thank you Def Leppard for being so generous to your fans. Thank you just for being who you are....a Big part of my life.
Fan Review - By Isabelle
Went to the Def Leppard concert for the X tour 2003 here in Montreal. It was really an amazing show. They still got it like they did 20 years ago. I was on such an adrenaline rush during and after the show. They did all of their best songs and sang a few new ones which were also really good. I've liked them since I was 12 and now i'm 24 seeing them live for the first time was such a amazing experience and SO much fun as well.
They sound amazing live just as good as they do on their album if not better. They really know how to put on a great show. Joe's voice was amazing the Guitar solos were great and the drummer was also really amazing they did a perfect job of it.
Even though I still loved them, I kinda lost track of Def Leppard or I stopped following what they did as much. But after Last Night's show I am really getting back into them. Definitely a must see.
Fan Review - By Shadowgirl
Well let's see, this is my first Def Leppard show. (about time huh?) I didn't knew what I was in for but once the first note of Disintegrate was played, I knew it was for one heck of a time! I turned out to be closer than I though which made the concert even more enjoyable. (I could have waved my hand to them onstage and they would have seen me! lol) In the beginning of the show, some people got recognised by Malvin. (Wow, things like that never happen to me.. how do they do that?? ) then it was time for Ricky. It wasn't bad at all, though I still can hear his guitar in my ears. lol
Once Def leppard got on stage, the lights went as wild as the crowd! It's was like that from the first song to the last. They had a great energy out there and showed it well. From the X album to High and Dry, everything was there for almost 2 hours non stop!
The crowd, from the old die hard fans to the kids who will probably be fans after that show were simply a-m-a-z-i-n-g!
Come back to Montreal!! You said you loved it here and we shown ya we loved you as well! You can bet I will be there again! The tixs are not that expensive and they are well worth the price! Maybe next time I will see them face to face. If I would have waited a few hours more, I would have seen em for real! I was at the good spot. too bad lol.
Fan Review - By D. Bath
Well, the guys really outdid themselves in Montreal. The entire place was rockin'.....as Joe said: "deafening, as always!"
We had 4th row left directly in front of Viv & Sav. They were really pumped - the energy level was something else!!! Joe sounded great. He worked the crowd in his own flirty way - even asking a bunch of guys up front who were REALLY rockn' if they wanted to sing! Some guitar picks to be had as well.
I had no voice left after & at some points, my ears hurt from the roar of the crowd, nevermind the band! We drove 3 hours from Kingston, Ontario - the Leps entertaining us all the way there! Ricky Warwick was terrific as well. Nice to see Viv come out & sing a song with him.
Fan Review - By L Boutin
This was an extraordinary night. Lots of song from High'n Dry, which was very much appreciated from the crowd. It felt good hearing Let it go, switch...etc. The new songs are good, and no classics went missing !!! We could feel the Lepps were happy to be back here. See ya next time boys.
Fan Review - By Don Bui
Def Leppard deserved better review - I find it unbelievable that such a great show as the one Def Leppard put on last Saturday was given such a cursory review (Gazette, Aug. 10, "Def Leppard less than electric").
Errors such as the claim that High 'N' Dry was Def Leppard's first album harmed the review's credibility. A simple Internet search would have shown it was in fact their second album. As for the length of the show, since when has anyone ever complained that a show was too long? Fans paid to see the band, and the band delivered on all counts. With more than 20 years of music behind it, its members have a long history to cover.
The reviewer found all kinds of ways to disparage the band, such as saying they played only three songs from their new record and using that as a way to dismiss their new material. Did he expect them to ignore their multi-platinum-diamond-status albums in favour of new material?
Def Leppard has been entertaining fans for over two decades. With little radio airplay or record-label support, the band still takes to the road to bring its music to fans. (They are doing 15 shows in Canada alone.) This is a band that has been as loyal to its Canadian fans as the fans have been to them. I believe they deserve much better treatment and respect than what was provided in your review.
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