Album Review — Def Leppard

Def Leppard — Diamond Star Halos

After seven years of re-releases and live albums, Def Leppard is back with a new album titled “Diamond Star Halos”. The album comes out just before the band is to embark on the “Stadium Tour” this summer with Motley Crue, Poison and Joan Jett.

Def Leppard is one of those bands that is associated with a specific era. Anything Queensryche releases will always be compared to Operation: Mindcrime. Anything Journey releases will always be compared to the Steve Perry era. And for me, anything Def Leppard releases will always be compared to their early 80s records, or as I now think of it, the Steve Clark era. Clark was the main songwriter while he was in the band and if you look at the band’s career, they have never sounded the same since he passed away after the Hysteria record.

So as I listen to this record and anything else that the band has released post-Clark, I try to remember that this isn’t the same band. Most of the band members are the same, but the sound of the band changed when Clark died. So with that in mind, off we go…

“Take What You Want” — The opening sounds a bit like early Def Leppard and then it kicks in to a relatively heavy track. Joe Elliott doesn’t have that fifth gear that he used to do but he sounds just fine. It’s a good start.

“Kick” — the first single from the record and sounds like the more modern Def Leppard of recent years. It’s very 70’s glam-influenced and quite poppy.

“Fire It Up” — has a bit of a “Pour Some Sugar on Me” delivery from Elliott in the verses. Other than the delivery, it’s a far cry from the Def Leppard of my childhood.

“This Guitar” — the trend of rock bands having country artists guest on their songs continues with Alison Krauss adding vocals to this ballad. I guess if I wanted Def Leppard to go country it would be ok. But I don’t.

“SOS Emergency” — A mid-tempo rocker that ticks all the modern Def Leppard boxes. It’s pretty tame but still sounds like the band. I like this one.

“Liquid Dust” — I actually liked the “Slang” record a lot. It’s probably my favorite post-Clark Def Leppard record and this one sounds like it could have been on that record. So I’m a fan of this one.

“U Rok Mi” — It makes me sad that I just typed that title. This is exactly where I don’t want the band to go. You guys are Def Leppard, you don’t need do be gimmicky.

“Goodbye for Good This Time” — This one has that 70s epic feel to it. It’s not my preferred sound for the band but it’s a well crafted track that Elliott shines on.

“All We Need” — We get a little bit of “Hysteria” feel on this one. It’s not exactly the throwback sound I’m looking for but it’s a really good track and I’ll take it.

“Open Your Eyes” — This is a long record. We are just past the halfway point. This is a more modern sounding Def Leppard. It’s not bad.

“Gimme a Kiss” — This record is pretty poppy. Yes, it has guitars and the big vocals, but a lot of these are pop songs that have the rock trimmings. I miss the angry Def Leppard.

“Angels (Can’t Help You Now)” — A piano ballad that features Bowie pianist Mike Garson. This one is more Bowie than Def Leppard.

“Lifeless” — If it wasn’t enough to have Alison Krauss on one track, we get another. This one isn’t a ballad but still too much country for my taste. I remember when country artists tried to sound like Def Leppard. Now it’s the other way around.

“Unbreakable” — This one has a promising start but the electronic beat kills that quickly. I’m not sure why the band keeps relying on technology. The song has good bones but is overproduced for my taste. I think things would have gone better if the guys just set up and played.

“From Here To Eternity” — Another 70s sounding track to end things. It’s the longest track on the record and it’s decent.

Overall, there are some good songs here. But I think someone needs to pull the band aside and remind them they are Def freaking Leppard. They don’t need to bring in country artists, they don’t need technology tricks and they don’t need to rely on their influences. They are rock legends and it would serve them better to dig in to who they are.

That’s just one guy’s opinion. I miss Def Leppard. I don’t hear anything that reminds me of “Lady Strange”, or “Mirror Mirror” or “Another Hit & Run”. It doesn’t even sound like the same band.

If you like the post-Clark Def Leppard then there are some good songs here. And if this wasn’t Def Leppard and you took the top ten songs here, you’d have a good record. But I’m always going to want them to sound like them.

So it’s another album with 4–5 good tracks that I’ll listen to some but I’ll keep going back to the old records if I want my Def Leppard fix.

85 out of 100

Track Listing

1. Take What You Want *
2. Kick
3. Fire it Up
4. This Guitar [feat. Alison Krauss]
5. SOS Emergency *
6. Liquid Dust *
7. U Rok Mi
8. Goodbye for Good This Time *
9. All We Need *
10. Open Your Eyes
11. Gimme a Kiss
12. Angels (Can’t Help You Now)
13. Lifeless [feat. Alison Krauss]
14. Unbreakable
15. From Here to Eternity

*Best Songs