Def Leppard - London Review

As I write this I am not long back from a long weekend away in London - having spent four nights in the capital taking in three different gigs. Following my Queensrÿche-related disappointment of a couple of weeks ago I really needed to get away and put that behind me - so it was with excitement that I travelled up to London last Thursday ready for more live music, and a much longer than stay in London. Later pieces will chronicle my time in London in more depth, but the main reason for the trip was Metallica's 'No Repeat Weekend' at the London Stadium - two shows I had purchased tickets for well over a year ago. Whilst these Metallica shows were clearly the main event, when Def Leppard announced a UK tour which coincided with Metallica's plans it seemed like an opportunity not to miss. A band the size of Def Leppard cannot exactly be called an added extra to existing plans - but their tour felt like something of a bonus, and I wonder how many others tagged a night of 1980s melodic rock onto their long weekend of thrash - I cannot have been the only one.. Whilst I had not seen Metallica live before this past weekend, Def Leppard are a band that I am very familiar with in terms of concert experiences. I first saw them live back in 2011 when I was at university; and, including this most recent time, I have now seen them live five times. Whilst they might not shake up their setlists as much as some bands do, all of their shows have felt different enough to make each trip worthwhile - and they generally deliver in terms of a polished live sound and strong visuals. My last time seeing the band came back in 2023, when they played at Wembley Stadium with Mötley Crüe in tow. This was something of a repeat of that 2011 show and, as was the case back then, Def Leppard came out on top. I like Mötley Crüe and they have always been fun when I have seen them live, but Def Leppard are clearly the better band - and it was fun seeing them in a stadium environment even if the place was not exactly full. There were likely more people in attendance than could have fitted in one of the city's arenas, though, so the venue made sense - but this time, without a co-headliner, the band opted to return to the O2 Arena. Despite this very much being a Def Leppard headline show, extra interest was provided by the presence of Extreme in support. Extreme are a band that I like very much, and had seen live three times previously, so their presence on the bill was additional incentive. Given that the Metallica tickets and associated hotel stay were not exactly cheap, adding another ticket and night in a hotel hit the bank account somewhat - but with no additional travel costs it all made sense. It did mean that I was staying in a different hotel for the first night of my trip, which was more convenient for the O2 Arena, but following that I was based in the same place. The trip did not exactly start smoothly, though, with a heavily delayed train trip up to London. Problems with some of the train's engines meant that it was not able to go as fast as it should - and there were also delays whilst staff decided how to proceed. In the end, the train was diverted onto a longer route so that it could make use of the overhead power lines - but due to how long it had already been delayed at this point the decision was taken to terminate at Reading. This meant catching a different train for the last leg of the journey - and I arrived in London over an hour and a half late. As such, I had less time than anticipated - so I just headed straight to the hotel and got checked in. Given the relatively early door and show times, there was not really time to do anything in the afternoon - so I had an hour or so in the hotel before making the short trip under the river to the venue.

I was sat high up in the venue's top tier, as is often the case when I go to gigs at these sort of venues, but I was pretty much front-on to the stage - meaning that the overall view was pretty good. By the time I had gotten to the venue and snaked around it to find the right entrance, there was not too long to wait before the lights went down and Extreme took to the stage. Afforded an hour, Extreme did not feel like a traditional support act - and they had a bit of a stage show themselves, making good use of a big screen behind them. I last saw Extreme in 2023, too, so I was looking forward to seeing them again - despite the more truncated format. That show was very much focused on new album Six (which I reviewed here), despite plenty of old favourites being included, whereas this set was more focused on fan-favourites - whilst still including a couple of new cuts. As could perhaps have been expected for a set like this, the riffy and evergreen Decadence Dance kicked things off. Whilst the band's sound never seemed perfect, as it was quite boomy and frontman Gary Cherone was sometimes a little low in the mix, they certainly did not suffer too badly. Not everyone around me were familiar with Extreme, but there were a few who clearly were - and the atmosphere in the room, even up where I was sat, was pretty good from the off. I have often said that Nuno Bettencourt (guitar/vocals) is the best guitarist that I have seen live, and he impressed again this time even though I was much further away than I had been in the past. His fluid soloing during the opening cut was great - as was his riffing during the heavier, darker #Rebel, one of two new songs played. The set was split into three, with the first third being an all-hard rock affair. The slightly grander Rest in Peace and the high-octane shred-fest of Play with Me rounded out the first four numbers - where the band's funky hard rock-meets-hair metal sound shone. Acoustic numbers have always been a big part of the band's sound, though, with the jaunty Hole Hearted following, which prompted a small-scale sing-a-long, before Bettencourt's acoustic guitar showcase Midnight Express was wheeled out. Given the truncated nature of the set, I would have perhaps left the latter out and played another rocker - and there were people around me getting a little bored. It was the only somewhat misstep, though, as the ever-present More Than Words brought everyone back onside - and it was the first proper sing-a-long of the night. It brought the set's second third to a close - and Bettencourt strapped his electric guitar back on for the brief, kinetic Flight of the Wounded Bumblebee - which acted as an extended intro to Get the Funk Out. Pat Badger's (bass guitar/vocals) really drove the song, and it was another that woke up a few of the casuals around me - with quite a few singing along to the punchy chorus. It was a great hard rock number to start the home straight - which then moved into Rise, the final new track played. The song deserves to be a setlist staple going forward, as it contains a great chorus and one of Bettencourt's best solos. That could have been it, but given Bettencourt's participation at last year's final Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne show - the band closed out with a medley of three Ozzy Osbourne classics. Cherone delivered them with conviction - and it was great seeing Bettencourt deliver some Randy Rhoads and Jake E. Lee riffs and licks with ease. The setlist was:

Decadence Dance

#Rebel

Rest in Peace

We Will Rock You [Queen cover]/Play with Me

Hole Hearted

Midnight Express

More Than Words

Flight of the Wounded Bumblebee [Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov cover]

Get the Funk Out

Rise

I Don't Know [Ozzy Osbourne cover]/Bark at the Moon [Ozzy Osbourne cover]/Crazy Train [Ozzy Osbourne cover]

I spent quite a bit of the half an hour between the two bands queuing for the toilet, as there never seem to be enough in arena-type venues, but at least it meant that I stretched my legs a bit - and by the time I got back to my seat there was not too long to wait before Def Leppard's set. Despite the band largely sticking to the hits, there were still five songs played that I had not seen them do live before - and I thought that setlist overall was good and flowed nicely. In terms of a stage show, too, the band had a triangular lighting rig that was utilised throughout the set on various songs to provide some visual interest and classy lighting on the stage. For the first number, newer stand-alone single Rejoice, the band were all stood up alongside drummer Rick Allen, contained by the lighting rig - only for it to rise and the band take their usual places for the final chorus. Overall, the sound was good. Def Leppard's smooth live sound generally comes across well - although I did feel that frontman Joe Elliott sounded a little rougher than usual. He has fared better than many of his peers, though, and he still sounded pretty good - but I did feel as if he had lost a bit more of his higher register since the last time I saw him. The trademark harmonies were there to help him out, though, with the smooth Animal and the big gang vocals of Let's Get Rocked getting the casuals on side following the likely unfamiliar Rejoice. My only real complaint with the set was the decision to include two covers. The band have been playing David Essex's Rock On on and off for years, but why they decided to include a version of Depeche Mode's Personal Jesus I am not sure. I would much rather have heard something from the latest album, which was ignored, or a deep cut instead - and it was not exactly anything special. It felt like an early bump in the road, but Bringin' On the Heartbreak and its typical instrumental follower Switch 625 got things back on track - with the latter bringing the best out of guitarists Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell. One of the overall highlights for me actually was the newish single Just Like '73, a fun glam rock stomper that felt energetic and had a strong chorus. Def Leppard's newer material is underrated in my view, and the single was a good addition to the night. The aforementioned Rock On was also fun, with Rick Savage (bass guitar/vocals) opening it with a bit of a bass solo, whilst Elliott appeared up in the top tier to sing with the crowd. Another personal highlight followed for me, with a relatively rare appearance of the epic White Lightning. Due to Elliott needing to get down from the top tier, Collen opened the song with a solo - before the cinematic, slow-moving rocker felt like the mid-point of what had largely been a powerful set. Bettencourt later joined the band for the funky and hard-hitting Slang, during which Elliott took a trip around the venue whilst the guitarists traded funky riffs and leads. It was another overall highlight for me as it is not a song that is played all the time - as was the excellent Promises that followed. The latter should really be seen as a classic, but it is not wheeled out as often as it should be in my opinion. By this point, though, it was very much left to the classics to wrap up the last big chunk of the night. There are a couple of the band's big hitters that I could do without in truth. Rocket was played earlier on in the set and has never been a favourite, whilst Rock of Ages always feels like a bit of a clunker - but I always enjoy hearing Armageddon It live. It feels like a showcase for Campbell - who is often overshadowed by Collen. Campbell is a much better guitarist than his long-standing job in Def Leppard suggests - but Armageddon It generally allows him a bit of time in the spotlight. Love Bites always goes down well live, too, in my opinion, and the main set was rounded out with a stomp-along version of the ever-present Photograph. A few were heading for the entrances at this point, but there was time for a three-song encore. My favourite Def Leppard ballad in the form of When Love & Hate Collide was wheeled out first - before the smooth AOR of Hysteria felt like the encore's centrepiece. It was stretched out with a bass intro and an extended sing-a-long section towards the end - and the band built towards a hard-hitting, set-closing Pour Some Sugar on Me, which had everyone out of their seats. There was plenty of singing along during this final number - and what had been an excellent night of live music ended on a real high. The setlist was:

Rejoice

Animal

Let's Get Rocked

Personal Jesus [Depeche Mode cover]

Bringin' On the Heartbreak

Switch 625

Just Like '73

Rocket

Rock On [David Essex cover]

White Lightning

Slang/Get Up Offa That Thing [James Brown cover]/Fame [David Bowie cover w/ Nuno Bettencourt]

Promises

Armageddon It

Love Bites

Rock of Ages

Photograph

-

When Love & Hate Collide

Hysteria

Pour Some Sugar on Me

Def Leppard are always worth seeing live - and Thursday's show was no different. It was fun hearing a few different songs live, and I thought that the overall stage show was the best that the band have put together in recent times. The O2 Arena is not my favourite venue but the sound and my view was largely good - and it was great seeing such a large crowd in attendance to generate a strong atmosphere. Perhaps the main events were to follow, but Def Leppard's show still felt special - and it got my trip off to an excellent start.