http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/ae/music/1927076 HoustonChronicle.com Music May 30, 2003, 8:49AM New album 'X' marks Def Leppard's spot By JOHN NEMO Knight Ridder Tribune News Please whatever you do, don't lump Joe Elliott's group with the rest of those 1980s hard-rock /heavy-metal bands clogging up clubs and small theaters around the country with nostalgia tours. "I would hate to be called a nostalgia act," says Elliott, lead singer for the English Def Leppard, one of the most successful hair bands of the late '80s, towering above the scene thanks to 1987's Hysteria, an album that sold 16 million copies. But before you assume that Def Leppard is another one of those groups that's still touring on the strength of songs that were popular back when mullets and Trans Ams ruled the day, listen to Elliott. "For one thing, we're still creating and playing new and original material," he said. "We've put out albums in 2002, 1999, 1996 ... We're still putting out records and touring. And we're not playing small clubs. We're playing arenas and large theaters." Def Leppard is on the road in support of X, the band's 10th studio album. As the group headed toward a Saturday show in The Woodlands, Elliott, who started Def Leppard in 1977 with bassist Ric Savage, said Def Leppard has no plans to slow down. DETAILS Def Leppard performs at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands. Tickets are $29.50-$49.50. Call 281-363-3300. "I never put a time on anything," Elliott said. "When it feels unnatural, it will just come to its natural end. There's no way we'll take it out on the road for nostalgia's sake and just milk it for all it's worth." Elliott says Def Leppard spent weeks before this tour rehearsing 35 songs, including all the tunes from X and at least one song from every other album the band has put out. The band then picks 23-25 songs from that pool to play at each concert, with the set list changing every night. "Of course, when we get into the home stretch of a show, there are certain songs ... Well, I don't want to say we have to play them because we don't, but there are certain songs we will play, like Pour Some Sugar on Me, because we enjoy playing them," Elliott says. "And we don't want to disappoint people." X, the fourth album written by the band's current lineup of Elliott, Savage, guitarists Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell and drummer Rick Allen, has done anything but disappoint. Critics across the country have lauded it as a guilty pleasure, comparing X to Hysteria, which spawned such megahits as Animal, Pour Some Sugar on Me and Rocket. "The critical reception of X has been more than we expected," Elliott said. "But in this business, for every good review there's a bad one. I still remember when Hysteria came out, it got many more bad reviews than good o nes. And look at how well that one sold. So I think the biggest thing is getting the songs on the radio so people can hear the music themselves and make up their own minds about an album." While they went back to their trademark 1980s sound in making X, Def Leppard also gave a nod toward the present. The new album's signature ballad, Unbelievable, was written by the Swedish songwriting team of Max Martin, Andreas Carlsson and Per Alderheim, a trio that has penned hits for Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, Celine Dion and 'N Sync. Martin and company also wrote It's My Life, the smash that re-ignited the sputtering rockets of late-'80s relic Bon Jovi a few years back. Def Leppard no longer needs a big break to be declared a commercial success, having sold more than 45 million albums. "We just roll along, doing our thing," Elliott said. "We all still create and have energy and get a buzz from working together. As long as it keeps happening, and there's a decent fan base out there that wants to hear it, we'll be happy to keep going."