“Undefeated” is the title of one of the studio songs that you can hear on Def Leppard’s newest double live album, Mirrorball. An evocative title, which suggests that the band has remained second to none on their own turf these past 30 years. Who can claim to create such melodies, such complex vocal harmonies nowadays? And who can boast such an incredible collection of hits? Very few bands, that’s the answer.
Undefeated also because the band has been through difficult times, always bending but never breaking, contrary to a lot of hard FM/glam bands. In the middle of the 90s, the Sheffield band released several albums that can be seen as so many attempts at reappraisal: first with Slang, where they completely – and not without talent – transformed the music to fit the standards of the 90s, then with Euphoria, where they went back to the basics of their success, and then with X, lost in the popular soppiness of the early years of the 21st century.
But Def Leppard are still there, and they’re stronger than ever. The most compelling proof of that being the excellent Songs From The Spark Lounge they released three years ago and the ever-growing offers for shows all over the world.
Twenty years ago, when grunge was the big thing, Def Leppard made many people laugh with their light subjects and easy melodies. Now their longevity, inimitable know-how and first-rate live performances no longer make anybody laugh; rather, they inspire respect. Not only did Def Leppard prove, thanks to their first real live album, that they’re still a leading band; they also intend to keep on fighting – and winning. The future of the band looks particularly heartening, since they seem to want to strengthen the rawer approach their 2008 record hinted at.
That’s what Vivian Campbell, Def Leppard’s guitarist for the past 20 years and successor of the late lamented Steve Clark, explained to us.
Click here to read the interview…
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