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Def Leppard Tour History Fan Archive.
Phil Collen Says Making Of New Album Was Liberating

Wednesday, 23rd December 2015





Phil Collen 2014.
Phil Collen Auburn 2014

Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen was interviewed recently by Iron Fist and mentioned the new album.

Phil talked about how the new album came together, the recording process, making albums, working with Mutt Lange, the Marquee Club, NWOBHM/Iron Maiden, the state of rock music and attracting a younger audience.

Visit the Album News section. For more news on new music (based on band member quotes) dating back to January 2011.

Iron Fist Heavy Metal Magazine - Phil Collen Interview Quotes

What expectations did you have going in to do this new record?

"So, instead of an album we had concepts for each song. Each song was its own project and that was something we hadn’t done before. It was liberating. We didn’t have to please anyone, it was just pleasing ourselves, hence the self-title. I said, ‘We’re not making this for anyone else, except for us and so let’s call it ‘Def Leppard’. We’ve never had one before."

Were you not worried that people might not take to such a diverse album?

"Nope, we didn’t give a shit. This is actually our album. It wasn’t like a business man making the decisions. Since, really, the end of the ’70s the music industry hasn’t been an industry, it’s been a business. Before that you had Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The Stones, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, James Brown, all these people did exactly what the fuck they wanted, they didn’t really have someone else’s agenda in mind."

"Queen even, when they started off, they had this idea for a sound and it wasn’t affected by anyone else and I think what’s happened as we’ve got into the industry. It’s become more business and less art, so it was really refreshing and we didn’t give a bollocks what anyone thought. This is us being artists. This is us doing what we set out be. This is why we started. And it was just amazing, it was just a freedom if anything."






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