From: "Mike N. Reinemann" Date sent: Wed, 30 Aug 2000 17:06:11 -0400 Subject: Def Leppard shakes stands at Allentown Fair Def Leppard shakes stands at Allentown Fair Rockers serenade 5,295 with sound, lights, old hits and new songs. 08/30/00 The five members of Def Leppard love soccer, and Tuesday night they did their very best to turn the Allentown Fair Grandstand into a football stadium. They played beefy, catchy rock perfect for arm waving, seat banging and singing along. The band's first record label was Bludgeon Riffola. Twenty years later, they're still bludgeoning senses with masses of massive riffs. Tuesday evening, lead singer Joe Elliott shook concession stands with primal screams of tough, tart lyrics. Drummer Rick Allen and bassist Rick Savage built a concrete bunker of crunching, creeping noise. Guitarists Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell ripped off the roof with shooting-star, sawed-off-shotgun solos. This gleeful, take-no-prisoners attitude was pumped up by enough flashing lights to equip a major airport and enough speakers to blast away the Republican and Democratic national conventions. The assault reminded me of Campbell's Internet thank-you to fans: "Without you, all we are is loud." The show, which drew 5,295 listeners, was predictably divided into racehorse numbers such as "Rock Rock (Til You Drop)" and strutting, throbbing numbers such as "Animal." There were, however, a few deft touches. "Paper Sun," from the latest CD, "Euphoria," massaged the ears with a pleasantly psychedelic chorus. Splitting "Bringin' on the Heartache" into acoustic and electric versions energized a rather draggy, square interpretation. And the thumping, dry-humping "Excitable" should have been added to the tour years ago. One question nags: Why don't the boys crack their sonic fortress with something slippery, something spacy? I'd love to hear them wail on "Suffragette City," "Heroes" or other anthems by Elliott's hero, David Bowie. Guess we'll have to wait for Collen's tribute to Bowie guitarist Mick Ronson, which he cut with two Spiders from Mars. Days of the New opened the bill with a few heavy-metal wrinkles. The quartet played springy power chords and hide-and-seek drones on acoustic rather than electric guitars. Unlike many colleagues, drummer Matt Taul avoids sludgy patterns and airless accents; he's got the flash and efficiency of a jazzman. Not every song thrashes; "Down Town" is raw power pop, an edgy ode to their hometown of Charlestown, Ind., across the Ohio River from their home in Louisville, Ky. The group is hampered by bad habits. Acres of barbed-wire beats offer little room for soloing. Lead vocalist Travis Meeks needs to sing more than scream. And he should definitely leave the megaphone-aided, disembodied voice to police raids. Contact Geoff Gehman 610-820-6516 geoff.gehman@mcall.com © 2000 THE MORNING CALL Inc.