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Tuesday, 15th December 2015
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Manchester, England - Media Reviews

Whitesnake and Def Leppard @ Manchester Arena By Dianne Bourne

As double-headers go, British new wave heavy metal pioneers Whitesnake and Def Leppard are natural, head-banging, bedfellows.

Both achieved huge transatlantic success in the late 70s and 80s thrusting metal into the pop mainstream, and have now joined forces for this UK tour.

It makes for a full-on night of fist pumping at Manchester Arena, with the thousands of ticketholders standing up for the whole night showing particular stamina to go the distance.

Whitesnake are first up, proving a formidable force of flowing manes and masterful rock posteuring.

David Coverdale is everything you could possibly want in a swaggering frontman, throwing his mane of frazzled curls at will, while the band's similarly hirsute axemen head bang in time.

He twirls his mic stand with the fervour of a giddy cheerleader, white silk shirt ripped open to reveal strings of crucifixes sliding about his sweat-soaked chest.

And, most importantly, he can really wail.

"Bless this house and all that's in it," he screeches before ripping through fan favourites like Gypsy, All Your Love Tonight, Fool For Your Loving and the natural finale of Here I Go Again.

"We're here to make some f***ing noise Manchester," roars Coverdale, emphasising the point later in the set by changing into a blouse with the same statement embroidered on the back in sequins.

"What a journey we've had together Manchester. We started in Rafters for those of you who remember that," he says before launching into Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City, one of the band's earliest hits.

It inspires many a female in the audience to start throwing their knickers at David, and he catches them with the dexterity of a man who has clearly done this before. A lot, one imagines.

Special mention too for the massively impressive drum solo from rock troubadour Tommy Aldridge, who, after a dizzying masterclass of beats throws his drumsticks into the crowd - and then carries on with bare hands. Now that is rock and roll.

Def Leppard's bandmates may have a little less of the flowing locks than in their 80s heyday, but they retain that pulsating rock swagger.

Things are notched up several decibels as Joe Elliott and the gang take to the stage - so much so that on some songs it's almost to the detriment of the music.

But it ramps up the atmosphere, particularly for standout hits Animal, Let's Get Rocked and Hysteria.

"You're going to get a bit of everything tonight: something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue," he says, introducing daring bare-chested guitarist Phil Collen as presumably the latter.

But naturally it's the old classics getting the biggest reaction, pounding to the finale of Pour Some Sugar on Me and the euphoric encore of Rock of Ages and Photograph.

And another special mention goes to another impressive drum solo - courtesy of the band's legendary "Thunder God" Rick Allen, who points out the message "FreeTradeHall79" on his kit, referencing one of the band's earliest gigs here in Manchester.

By Manchester Evening News 2015.

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