Def Leppard takes fans on hit-packed trip 
By MATTHEW DIETRICH
STAFF WRITER 
August 18, 1999

English hard rock band Def Leppard spent the '80s perfecting the formula
for fusing heavy metal power and pop hooks, and the result was a stream of
memorable radio hits and a devoted worldwide following.

Judging from the reaction of the 10,117 boisterous fans who packed the
band's show Tuesday at the Illinois State Fair Grandstand, Def Leppard's
brand of hummable pop metal and thumping power balladry never went out of
style.

Playing in Springfield for the first time since 1988 (when it sold out the
Prairie Capital Convention Center in three days), Def Leppard gave its
fans a hit-packed trip through the past decade while offering ample hope
that the band will prosper in the next.

>From 1983 - when its power anthem "Photograph" was a Top 40 radio hit - 
through 1989, Def Leppard was unavoidable on radio and in the early days
of MTV. It's easy to take the band's fame for granted now, but Tuesday's
show demonstrated with emphasis why the Def Leppard became as big as it
did.

Led by singer Joe Elliott, whose screeching vocal would become the 
prototype for metal bands of the '80s, Def Leppard builds its songs around
big, grand choruses that get easily stuck in the listener's head and make
for great mass sing-alongs in concert.

On Tuesday, the band powered through all of the expected hits, and also
shrewdly introduced a handful of songs from its new album, "Euphoria."

"Demolition Man," the hard rocking song that opens the new album, came
second in the set, and showed just how favorably the band's new material
stands up to the better known hits.

"Promises," the new single now getting frequent radio airplay, revisits
the opening guitar lick of 1983's "Photograph" and grafts it onto a big,
powerful ballad that could easily have been recorded in the band's heyday.

Def Leppard has always had its share of detractors, who sneer at the
band's slick production (by Mutt Lange, known these days as Mr. Shania
Twain) and the commercial nature of its recordings. None were in
attendance Tuesday, as virtually everyone in the audience seemed to know
every word to every song.

"It's good to be back," belted Elliott as the crowd roared its approval
for "Promises." Obviously, Def Leppard's fans feel the same way.

For a band that's been together for 22 years and has weathered everything
from the death of one of its original members (Steve Clark died of an
alcohol and drug overdose in 1991) to the now famous 1984 car accident in
which drummer Rick Allen lost his left arm, Def Leppard remains youthful
and vital in concert.

Aside from Elliott's constant encouragement of the crowd to make more
noise, the other memorable element of Tuesday's show was shirtless
guitarist Phil Collen's non-stop gliding about the stage as he pealed off
trademark licks.

The last time Def Leppard played in Springfield, the opening act was hard
rock band Tesla.

The opening act Tuesday was Moon Dog Mane, a hard rocking unit 
founded by former Tesla guitarist Frank Hannon. (Tesla headlined at the
Grandstand in 1992, drawing a crowd of 10,600.)

Fans of Tesla will find much to like in Moon Dog Mane, whose sound is
grounded in metal but also features a significant dose of Southern rock
influence.

The band played a handful of songs from its debut album, "Turn It Up!,"
and also reached into the Tesla bag for a beefed-up take on that band's
hit, "Signs." Drummer Cortney DeAustine (yes, a female drummer in an
otherwise all-male hard rock band) hammered out an impressive solo that
dispensed with the traditional heavy metal drum cliches and was a study in
pure power.

Matthew Dietrich can be reached at 788-1509 or dietrich@sj-r.com.
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