Atlantic City, NJ - Media Reviews
KISS/Def Leppard: Metal Heads Unite! By Ray Schweibert
Teens and 20-somethings who cranked the volume on British glam band Def Leppard, and American counterpart (and far-more brazenly outrageous) KISS, used to drive their parents nuts back in the 1970s and ‘80s — and perhaps that was part of the appeal.
Members of both groups have long overtaken in age the parents they used to torment, but their loud, raucous sound still resonates among an expanded fan base. That was evidenced by a diversified audience that packed Boardwalk Hall on Saturday night for a throwback rock show including both bands.
As tribute to its 40th anniversary milestone and recent induction into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame, KISS and Def Leppard are in the midst of a summer tour together. The show also included an opening act by relative newcomer Dead Daisies, a six-man Australian-based group fronted by former INXS lead singer Jon Stevens, and having a sound similar to that late-70s, early-80s heavy-metal edge.
Both headliners performed for roughly an hour and 15 minutes, with Def Leppard opening with a version of The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” which resurfaced again, more briefly, during the KISS number “Lick It Up.” Another crossover element occurred during the KISS song “Deuce,” where Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen — who emerged outlandishly attired like the four members of KISS — joined in and added a killer guitar solo.
As set lists were abbreviated due to the twin billing, both bands broke out most of their most recognizable numbers so that even the less-than-diehard Def Leppard and KISS fans likely recognized many of the songs. Def Leppard did “Let’s Get Rocked,” an acoustic version of its hit “Bringin’ on the Hearbreak,” and others that routinely got lots of airplay back in the day, like “Rocket,” “Pour Some Sugar On Me,” and both encore numbers — “Rock of Ages” and “Photograph.”
KISS kicked off its list with “Psycho Circus” and its 14-song selection also included “Shout It Out Loud,” I Love it Loud,” “Calling Dr. Love,” “Detroit City Rock,” and their closer, “Rock and Roll All Nite.” During the song “Love Gun,” guitarist and co-lead vocalist Paul Stanley “flew” across the ground-level audience of Boardwalk Hall on a monorail to an isolated platform in the middle of the room, then flew back for KISS’s next number, “Black Diamond.”
And it would not be a KISS show without a plethora of the obligatory special effects like Gene Simmons spitting blood and breathing fire, pyrotechnics that probably caused a number of $10 beers to be spilled among those not properly braced, and a huge metal spider-like confab in the middle of the stage in which drummer Eric Singer was elevated to near the ceiling during one number.
Proceeds from concert ticket sales benefitted the Wounded Warriors Project and other veterans organizations, according to Def Leppard lead singer Joe Elliott.
By Atlantic City Weekly 2014.
As a lifelong KISS fan who has walls full of memorabilia, nearly every album and DVD released, this is difficult to admit, but maybe it's time for KISS to hang it up.
It’s not that KISS still isn’t entertaining. They are, particularly for first-timers. The show, which frontman/guitarist Paul Stanley always refers to as the “Greatest Show on Earth” without paying royalties to Ringling Bros., remains impressive in scope.
The giant stage for the band’s 40th anniversary tour, which landed at Boardwalk Hall with co-headliner Def Leppard on Saturday, boasts spiderlike arms, ascending and descending platforms, an impressive laser and light show and crazy pyrotechnics. And, of course, bassist/singer Gene Simmons spits blood and breathes fire.
And a nice surprise that was awesome to hear and see was Def Leppard guitarist Phill Collen join the band with gigantic KISS shoes and a little bit of makeup for "Deuce," for which he offered a blistering solo and extended outro.
After 40 years, the newly inducted Rock and Roll Hall of Famers seem determined to press forward, promising new music and future tours. But if they can’t even muster enough creativity to offer fans something different on stage every year, why bother?
Less interesting from a theatrical perspective but possibly more musically relevant was Def Leppard, one of the biggest bands of the 1980s. Def Leppard’s 80-minute set was chock full of the hits that made them the superstars they became.
Another band that likes to have a co-headliner to keep their arena status – two years ago they toured with Poison – it’s pretty impressive when you look at how many smashes this band recorded, and they played all of them Saturday.
The problem with Def Leppard at this point is multifaceted. For starters, lead singer Joe Elliott basically goes through many his songs in a wimpy falsetto because he can’t belt it out like he used to.
But the biggest problem is that some of its most popular songs from the mid-1980s haven’t aged well. They sound like dated, cheesy rock songs, particularly the hollow “Let’s Get Rocked,” “Rocket,” “Armagedden It" and the intolerable crowd-pleasing "Pour Some Sugar On Me.”
Some of that material did stand up the test of time, such as the night's second song and rocking version of "Animal," the infectious classic "Hysteria," and "Love Bites,” as cheesy as it may be, remains an irresistible guilty pleasure.
That said, their early material still packs a punch, including the opener “Let It Go,” “Foolin’,” a cool, acoustic version of “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak," and the encores “Rock of Ages” and “Photograph.” And their teaser opener of The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again" left the audience demanding more.
For diehard fans, they also played 1993’s “Two Steps Behind,” a mediocre ballad that was on the “Last Action Hero” soundtrack, which wasn't any better as an acoustic version; and “Switch 625,” an instrumental from “High ’n’ Dry” (are you kidding me?!?!).
An 80-minute set actually is to Def Leppard's benefit, particularly for causal fans, since they don't have a particularly deep catalog that is worth exploring live.
On paper, a night with Def Leppard and KISS sounds fun. There are plenty of worse things to do in the summer than listen to mindless rock songs from the ’70s and ’80s while watching an over-the-top stage show. But for true, longtime fans of both of these bands, it’s a reminder of one thing: Not everyone – and especially not every music act – ages gracefully.
By Press Of Atlantic City 2014.
KISS & Def Leppard were a sure bet in Atlantic City By Alex Gross
This was a co headline show with Def Leppard. They started in the late 1970,s and made their American debut with Ted Nugent in 1980 at the old Spectrum. Unfortunately, Def Leppard has an idiot working for them that denied all of the media credentials for the show, meanwhile every fan with a cellphone can post crappy pix to their Facebook page. It defies logic.They must think that the band will ride KISS' coat tails. So in the interest of being fair, Def Lep showed and and played a bunch of songs that people were familiar with. The crowd seemed to like them but the crowd response was lackluster compared with KISS. Surely,they knew what was to come later and wanted to see it.. On a positive note, it was great to see Vivian Campbell on stage after his battle with cancer. Hopefully it has left him forever.
By Examiner 2014.
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