Def Leppard News - JOE ELLIOTT Says Next DOWN 'N' OUTZ Studio Album Really Sounding Good

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Saturday, 23rd December 2017

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JOE ELLIOTT Says Next DOWN 'N' OUTZ Studio Album Really Sounding Good

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Def Leppard singer Joe Elliott has been interviewed and gave another update on the third Down 'n' Outz studio album.

Joe spoke to Motley Crue's Nikki Sixx for his Sixx Sense show.

'The Further Live Adventures Of...' was released on 1st December on 2CD/DVD and Blu-ray.

Joe talked about Def Leppard's recent 2017 tour, hanging out with The Who, inspiration from older bands, Down 'n' Outz, The Further Adventures Of live album/DVD, the third original studio album and listening to music as a child on radio.

Joe says the third album is currently being recorded and talked in more details about the deal with frontiers Records and repeated the September 2018 release deadline news.

Listen to the full 16 minute interview via the link (USA Only).

Sixx Sense/Deeper With - Joe Elliott Interview Quotes

Def Leppard 2017 Tour

"We finished the American tour 25th June, and then we went, we had a couple of months off and then we went and did the two and half weeks down in South America where we did Rock In Rio and a bunch of other things and that was great fun. Did a couple of gigs with Aerosmith. Did one gig with The Who which was amazing. Yeah, you know, just another one of those notch that one off as bucket list stuff you know. It was great hanging out with them as well."

Meeting The Who

"You're absolutely right. You owe it to yourself if you're a music fan like I pretty much am. You know it's pretty much all I really am really. I'm not a musician. They're the things. I mean, you know, I've been a fan since I was six or seven or eight years old. I think I must've played Won't Get Fooled Again probably a thousand times you know. And when you actually get the chance to just be in the same room as those two guys and just talk basically whatever you talk about. It's like these are the moment that you should always remember you know because these are the kind of guys that got you into the business in the first place. So they had something to say back then that sucked you in. they've probably still got something now that's more interesting than most people."

Inspired By The Who

"That's exactly right. We were all stood on the side of the stage. All of us and just watching them and going wow, this is inspiring. I mean I always said the same thing when I saw Aerosmith. I saw the same thing when I'd see like AC/DC or you know anybody that's been around ten years before we were and that are still doing it and doing it well and doing it in front of a lot of people. You're like you know what?. It's like Townshend actually said to me. I think I said some fan boy thing to him like. You know I just wanted to say, you know, whatever and he said: 'Hey, right back at ya'. He says the one thing you guys have got. He says that most bands don't have is legacy. And I was just shocked that he even knew who we were."

He knew who you were

"And when he starts quoting song titles and stuff like that and I'm like are you kidding me?. I mean with Roger it was a bit different. I've known Roger on and off for a while because we did a Mick Ronson memorial show together in '94. And you know I did the Teenage Cancer Trust Who at 50 for him in London about two/three years ago. And you know so I'd met Roger a bunch of times. I actually blocked him in once at the Sunset Marquis. Parked in front of him. He was in one of the cottages and I blocked his car in and I went to get my car and he was screaming and screaming. 'Who the?'. And I went Hi it's me. He couldn't really shout at me any more once he knew it was me you know."

Down 'n' Outz

"Well we've just released a live album that's three years, well not past it's sell by date, but three years since it was done. Yeah we were touring the previous album. The Further Adventures Of The Down 'n' Outz. We were touring it in 2014 and I made a decision, while we were playing in Sheffield my birth town of course. A friend of mine's a video director and he said well, I can get ya, I can film this thing. We were playing this little club called The Corporation and we filmed it and we spent a bit of time editing it together and I wasn't really sure it was ever gonna get released, but then it actually turned out better than I thought it was gonna be."

"The tour was a bit of a disaster really because there's sic of us in the band and four of us had pneumonia. Including me so it wasn't great on the voice and stuff like that. But we managed to salvage some stuff by - we filmed it in Sheffield but the sound. We took the actual audio from about five or six different gigs. So we cobbled together something that was at least honest. And it turned out better than I thought you know."

"So it's like OK. Let's get this thing out but then of course Leppard ramped right back up again. You know we had the new album come out the following year. We were touring that until, as we just discussed, 8/9 weeks ago. And I didn't really find a spot in my dance card where I could fit it in and do it any justice to actually talk about it and give whoever's gonna release it a bit of something to play with. So that they could you know give it a chance, but we finally got it out you know. And I did a deal with this company called Frontiers and they've actually taken the whole back catalogue so we've, although they're already available, they're now gonna be available for the first time on vinyl which is great because my tiny little band the Down 'n' Outz on vinyl is. To me that's like where it belongs because the music's straight from the 70s. And you know to see it on 70s format if you like it's just really where it belongs."

Third Down 'n' Outz Album Recording

"It was nice to be able to do that. So it's out. It's a DVD and a double album if you like. I think it's actually two CDs because it was too long to fit on one. And so that's out there. We're not actually working it like you know the old days when you put the record out and then you go and tour for a year. I'm not doing that with this 'cause it's a live album. So it doesn't make any sense. But I am currently recording the third studio album which is actually a written album. It's not Mott related covers or anything like that. It's all brand new music inspired by Mott."

How fun is that?

"It is actually because, you know, I've kind of sat down and you know like it's easy to say OH let's write a song that sounds like, you know, White Punks On Dope and you can. You just kind of write something in the spirit of it or write a song that sounds like AC/DC. It's not difficult to do. It might not be any good, but it'll be in the spirit of it. So what we're doing is just channelling all the bands of that nature. So it's a little bit Mott. It's a lot Elton and Queen and Humble Pie. A little bit Springsteen-ish even. You know it's just got a bit more, not Leppard for a start, 'cause there's a lot of piano involved so it's a lot more scope in that respect to just go in areas that I've never really been before."

"I wrote all the songs on a piano so there's and you know I didn't wanna be in a position where, you know, when you've got two bands on the go you always are gonna be playing with that thing like should I be saving this for me other band you know because it's that kind of a song. So I was kind of purposely writing stuff that absolutely would not work for Leppard, but worked for me and it's great to get these ideas out of your head because some of them have been sitting in there for , you know, years. And it's like finally found an outlet for this thing. So that has been an absolute blast. So we're kind of like halfway through that and - but it's not due for a while. But I've gotta get it finished before Leppard go back out on the road otherwise..."

I need that record! I need it on vinyl!

2018 Def Leppard Tour

"Oh you'll get it. Dude you can have it in any format you want when it's done. But I don't thik I actually have to deliver it till like September next year but Leppard go out on in like sometime next year. And so I've kind gotta kind of get it mostly finished before we go out. Or at least all the recording done. the mixes we can tweak as we go along but I wanna get kind of behind the 8-ball a little bit and bash it into shape so that when I do get top that stage where you're running out of time, it's 99 percent finished. Which is always a good way to be. I like to be sensible when I can, it's just not that easy."

Documentating The Recording

"Oh I'm planning on doing that because at this moment in time because I've written all the songs so at this moment it's just been me and me. Me being the engineer Ronan the producer/engineer but the guys are all gonna come in and we're gonna play through it. I suppose it's, I'm trying to think of a comparison here 'cause it's not like a band situation in the sense of like you know you guys or Leppard or whatever. It's more like I'd imagine Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers when Tom goes: 'OK guys these are my ten songs for this year'. And they interpret his chords and add their little flavours to it. So it's like you know I want these guys to come in and absolutely, they're not just gonna copy the parts. They're gonna put in, you know, they'll contribute their own style and add to the flavours which is what it's all about. We just haven't got to that level yet, but I just know that the level that it's at at the moment, it's really sounding good you know. You'd really love it because of - we grew up listening to the same kinda stuff. So if you like Humble Pie and you like Mott and you like, you know, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road period Elton John and Queen. Or anything that's got piano and guitars or something like that. It's that kind of music and it's very uptempo most of it."

Down 'n' Outz 2016.