Oklahoma City, OK - Media Review Quotes

By Jeb Wright

The band responded to the enthusiastic crowd by showcasing their greatest hits in support of their new CD Rock of Ages. It was almost like seeing a combination of the Pyromania and Hysteria tours! Some of the best highlights, however, came from other albums including a killer version of Badfinger’s “No Matter What” from the new CD. It was almost eerie how much this sounded like the original version. The only real difference was that the guitars rocked harder.

"Promises" was also performed and the crowd ate it up. This is an oft overlooked song from the album Euphoria. The song is classic Def Lep from the opening guitar lick to the anthem chorus. If you have not discovered this album then take it from me, you will love it! The band closed the show with Joe Elliott saying, “I never thought I would introduce this song as the title track of our new album: ‘Rock of Ages.’” The two-song encore consisted of “Bringing on the Heartbreak” and “Pour Some Sugar on Me.” The former rocked so hard the crowed worked itself into a frenzy and the latter saw the bikini tops flung off the bodies of the drunken party girls atop of their boyfriends shoulders. Both events were very welcome to rock journalists standing at the side of the stage!

Rick Allen’s one arm drumming technique continues to be an amazing sight to behold. The man has more talent in one arm then most drummers have with two! Bassist Rick Savage was obviously having a good time. He communicated with the audience through a series of smiles and grins the entire show. Viv Campbell takes a backseat to Collen in the number of solos played onstage but don’t be fooled; he gets plenty of moments to shine. Whereas Collen is a tasteful, melodic lead player, Viv rips your face off with blues based riffs performed with the speed of lightening and the force of a freight train. Campbell continues to prove he is one of the best metal players in the history of the genre. For the few out there who still don’t know, Viv was the man on DIO’s classic Holy Diver and Last in Line albums. Joe Elliott still commands a strong strange presence and while he does not banter with the crowd, it is obvious he is leading the show. His vocals were solid and the band tore it up throughout the entire show.

Def Leppard maintains the integrity of the sounds found on their albums. Their classics are very studio oriented so the fact they can replicate the songs onstage is a testament to their musicianship.

By classicrockrevisited 2005.

Read the full review at - classicrockrevisited.com

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