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Published: Friday, September 19, 2003

Def Leppard reinvents itself once more on 'X'

By Alan Sculley
Special to The Herald

On the surface, Def Leppard's latest CD, "X," looks like a carefully
orchestrated attempt to revive the career of a band whose fortunes have faded
sharply since the days when albums such as "Pyromania" and "Hysteria" were
racking up sales in the tens of millions.

The song "Unbelievable" finds Def Leppard teaming with songwriters Andreas
Carlsson, Per Aldeheim and Max Martin - the tunesmiths who helped bring Bon Jovi
back to its platinum-selling ways with the hit "It's My Life" from the 2000 CD,
"Crush," and who have written multiple tracks for Britney Spears, the Backstreet
Boys and 'N Sync.

Def Leppard also joined forces on three tracks with Marti Frederiksen, another
hit-making songwriter who became Aerosmith's primary songwriting partner on that
band's most recent release, "Just Push Play."

Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen is well aware that such collaborations seem to
follow a record company blueprint for crafting a hit album by bringing in
so-called song doctors to help create radio-ready tunes.

But Collen said the outside involvement on "X" was entirely the band's doing.
More importantly, it helped breathe fresh life into the creative process for Def
Leppard, which celebrates its 25th year with the "X" CD.

"It wasn't the record company's idea. It was my idea. I wanted to do that on the
'Euphoria' album, use multiple producers," Collen said, mentioning Def Leppard's
previous studio effort. "And I think it was essential that we used new blood. I
think it was great. I actually think we probably wouldn't have done the record
had we not done that. We were kind of at the point where it was getting pretty
stale doing the same old ... same old, same old."

For the band, which was formed a quarter century ago in Sheffield, England by
singer Joe Elliott and bassist Rick Savage, the past decade has been a period of
adjustment after several triumphs in the 1980s.

After building a foundation with early albums "On Through The Night" (1980) and
"High 'N' Dry" (1982), Def Leppard hit paydirt with the 1983 CD "Pyromania."
Powered by hits such as "Foolin'" and "Photograph," the album went on to sell
seven million copies.

The group then rose to even loftier heights despite facing tragedy when drummer
Rick Allen lost his left arm in an auto accident on New Year's Eve 1984.

Allen returned to active duty after building a specially rigged drum set that
enabled him to trigger beats with his left foot. And after several false starts
in the studio, Def Leppard finally released its next CD, "Hysteria," in August
1987. With hits such as "Animal" and "Pour Some Sugar on Me," sales of that CD
soared, eventually topping 15 million.

But once again, tragedy struck. In January 1991 guitarist Steve Clark died of an
accidental overdose. Scrapping original demos that featured Clark, the four
remaining band members (Elliott, Savage, Collen and Allen) finished the next CD,
"Adrenalize," in time for a March 1992 release.

The CD sold three million, but was seen by some as a commercial disappointment.
It wasn't long before the band, which replaced Clark with guitarist Vivian
Campbell following the "Adrenalize" sessions, faced even tougher times.

With grunge transforming the sound of early '90s rock radio, Def Leppard's
meticulously produced style of catchy pop-metal fell out of favor.

The band attempted to adapt with the 1996 CD, "Slang," which dispensed with the
group's familiar trademarks of layers of guitars and vocals in favor of a raw
and stripped down sound.

The shift alienated a large portion of Def Leppard's fan base and failed to
attract fans who were drawn to the rough and ready grunge sound of groups such
as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains and Soundgarden.

Def Leppard responded by trying to recapture its classic sound on 1999's
"Euphoria." Again, that album stiffed.

For "X," Collen said, band members decided to cast aside any preconceived
notions about the Def Leppard sound.

The obvious product of that outlook was the collaboration with outside
songwriters, which brought a decidedly different accent to the group's music.

The song written by Aldeheim, Carlsson and Martin - "Unbelievable" - is the
biggest departure. A big-bodied ballad featuring pulsing programmed rhythms, the
song sounds like a classic power ballad in the mold of Aerosmith's "I Don't Want
to Miss a Thing."

The three tracks written with Frederiksen - "Now," "You're So Beautiful" and
"Everyday" - rock harder, but also have more of a burnished pop feel than the
band's '80s hits.

In fact, it's not until six songs into "X" that the CD yields a classic-sounding
Def Leppard track with "Four Letter Word."

But, Collen said, even the band-written songs (produced by the band and
"Euphoria" co-producer Pete Woodroffe) were influenced by the studio approach of
Frederiksen.

Where Def Leppard had been accustomed to meticulously building tracks instrument
by instrument in the studio, Frederiksen favored a more spontaneous live band
approach, to the point that some parts recorded on the original demos for songs
were used on the finished tracks.

This time around, the song itself dictated the production approach the group
took.

"With the 'X' album, we said whatever the song needs," Collen said.

Copyright © 2003 The Daily Herald Co., Everett, Wash.