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Home > Blogs > Arts and Entertainment > Archives > 2008 > August > 22 > Entry
Def Leppard “Hysteria”
The tight leather pants … the killer power chords … the bangin’ drum solos … the sweaty guitarists on bended knee and most importantly … that crazy big hair.
Anyone wishing to bask in warm memories of the days when ‘80s hair metal ruled the Earth had their dreams answered at the Def Leppard/Billy Idol show that rolled into Wright State’s Nutter Center on Thursday, Aug. 21.
If you’ve ever been to the Nutter Center for a concert then you are familiar with the major challenges the acoustics present, so there’s no need for us to harp on the ricochet reverb and endless echoes. It’s there, it’s always been there and this show was no exception.
Venue acoustics aside, rock concerts never, ever seem to start on time, so imagine our surprise when Billy Idol took the stage a few minutes early to open the relatively well-attended 7:30 p.m. show with “Cradle of Love.”
Backed by a four piece band which included long time guitarist Steve Stevens who looks like he stepped right off of the cover of a metal magazine (from the ‘80s, natch) and seemed to play as well behind his head as in front of it, Idol wasted no time in showing us that famous sneer that was as cool now as it was back in the day.
Playing mostly well-known hits including “Dancing With Myself,” “Flesh for Fantasy,” “White Wedding, Part 1,” “Mony, Mony,” “Eyes Without a Face” and “Blue Highway,” midway through his set, Idol played the only new tracks (“John Wayne” and “New Future Weapon”) off of his most recent release, a best of compilation entitled “Idolize Yourself.”
For Idol’s rocking rendition of the Doors’ “L.A. Woman” he substituted Dayton for L.A. — a nice touch that the audience happily and positively responded to.
Idol ended his hour and 15-minute set with his shirt off singing “Rebel Yell.” He has the body of a 30-year-old and the face and the throaty vocal range of his more than 50 years. Still, he proved he continues to have what it takes.
A slick video homage of Def Leppard over the years did a striking job of announcing the headliner.
These impressive visuals played in one form or another behind the band throughout the evening. Say what you like, but it’s nearly impossible to resist the sweet licks these guys were laying out. The visual, energetic show, which lasted just under two hours, opened strong with “Rocket,” “Animal” and “Foolin’ ”
On tour pimping their 14th studio album “Songs from the Sparkle Lounge” which came out at the end of April, the band paraded out “Nine Lives,” a collaboration with country music superstar Tim McGraw of all people.
“Love Bites” and a cover of David Essex’s “Rock On” with a bass line to end all bass lines followed shortly after. The band took it down a notch with a predominately acoustic set for both “Two Steps Behind” and “Bringing on the Hearbreak” but the calm didn’t last for long with the band amping things back up for “Hysteria” and “Armageddon It.”
A camera mounted on the end of guitarist Phil Collen’s guitar on “Photograph” only added to the already visual show.
“Pour Some Sugar On Me” came at 10:30 p.m. and saw the audience eating it up by the time “Rock of Ages” was being played.
Def Leppard ended the evening’s entertainment with “Let’s Get Rocked” and made certain their fans knew before they left the stage how much they appreciated them coming out. Lead singer Joe Elliott, whose vocals just don’t seem to quite hit all the notes anymore, ended the evening saying, “until next time — and there will be a next time — do us a favor … don’t forget us and we won’t forget you.”
Billy Idol was the appetizer and Def Leppard was the main course in this British rock buffet. They came, they saw, the audience got rocked and, Elliott will be relieved to hear, likely won’t soon forget it.
Permalink | Comments (12) | Post your comment | Categories: Music - Popular, Review
Comments
By Roscoe
August 22, 2008 9:05 AM | Link to this
Great show and the reviewer was right the crappy acoustics of the Nutter Center made the band washout the vocals quite a bit. Billy Idol was awesome. Def Leppard was good although I’ve seen them do better the other 8 times I’ve seen them over the years. All in all it was a good time…..By Brock
August 22, 2008 10:19 AM | Link to this
Billy Idol still is rockin it! I wish there would have been more of him! I thought he was much better than Def Leppard.By Jeff
August 22, 2008 10:50 AM | Link to this
Excellent review by Larsen. It was definitely a great show! I especially liked the band intro on the big screen behind the stage. Acoustics for Billy Idol were fine. Acoustics for Def Leppard were actually great when bass guitar was not playing. In my opinion, the bass guitar was too loud and generally drowned out lead, rhythm and vocals throughout the show. During acoustic guitar songs and intros without bass guitar, the sound was very good. When Sav switched to his second bass guitar, bass sound was much better. Despite the bass being too loud it was still an amazing show and look forward to seeing Def Leppard come back to Dayton.By null
August 22, 2008 11:29 AM | Link to this
First off congrats to the DDN for actually having a very good reviewer. She stuck to reviewing the show and not using over half the article to rehash a groups career (like Ms. Simmons). Yes a great show! Idol started slow, I think because the fans did also. By the end of his set they were eating out of the palm of his hand. Great showman. Joe Elliot was losing his voice after a long tour. He couldn’t hardly talk backstage before the show so I was surprised he even hit some of the notes he did. Both bands were great bunch of guys. Would love to see them here again.By Dan
August 22, 2008 2:54 PM | Link to this
It was a great show. Brought back a lot of memories from the last time I saw Billy Idol (1985) and Def Leppard (1987).By null
August 22, 2008 3:54 PM | Link to this
Billy Idol put on a good show but we really went to see Def Leppard…, what more can you ask for, nearly two hours of songs everyone loves. Can’t wait to see them next year.By YABrian
August 22, 2008 4:37 PM | Link to this
The concert was great. I also agree about the acoustics in Nutter, but I think Def Leppard’s sound team could have balanced out the vocals just a bit better. There was a couple of spots where the guitar drowned out the vocals, and a few where you just didn’t hear vocals. Wished they played more songs from the new album though since that is what the tour was promoting.By connie
August 22, 2008 5:24 PM | Link to this
def leppard is the best band there is.I thought they sounded great and looked great my best friend and i drove 5 hours to see them and it was well worth it. we love those guys and will go see them every year they come back. joe elliott and rick savage are hot!!! we love them.By sue
August 22, 2008 5:37 PM | Link to this
My best friend and I traveled from Ripley,WV to Dayton to see Def Leppard.We have been big fans since the early 80’s and will be until we die. We thought they were great and can’t wait until they come back, we never wanted the night to end.I don’t think they honestly understand how much they are loved and how much there fans depend on them.they and their music have gotten me through some tough times in my life.I just want them to know they are loved very much and thanks for all they do and for all the memories.By Debs
August 22, 2008 9:36 PM | Link to this
I agree, it’s fantastic to see a review that’s worth reading. Thanks for that! I didn’t attend the show this time around, so it’s nice to see the photos (even though there are more Idol photos than there are Leppard and WHO is the headliner?!) and read a great review!By Lori
August 22, 2008 9:43 PM | Link to this
I saw the Leps here in 2003. They always rock in my book. Glad to read an honest review. If you want to know more about Def Leppard or Rick Savage check this out - www.savageattitude.com/By Lori
August 22, 2008 9:44 PM | Link to this
I saw the Leps here in 2003. They always rock in my book. Glad to read an honest review. If you want to know more about Def Leppard or Rick Savage check this out - www.savageattitude.com/