Def Leppard Atomic Mess News

Be honest: which of the songs on the compilation are you sick to death of?

I have to [answer that] two ways. In rehearsals, quite a lot of them. In front of an audience? None of them. I can't justify not doing any of these songs until I hear about Pete Townshend saying he won't do "My Generation" for an encore. That's why 60,000 people go ape when the Stones play "Satisfaction." The songs are part of their legacy, and you fall back in love with them over the years. The most frustrating thing for musicians who want to play stuff from the new album is when everyone goes out to buy a beer. 'Why don't you stay!' you wonder. "Because I don't f*cking know that song!"

You've been at this for more than 25 years; how does one age gracefully in rock?

You don't. You're not supposed to, are ya? If you don't physically age gracefully, it's a bit sad. I think Steven Tyler can get away anything, because he still looks like he did in '73. Especially from row Z backwards in an arena. As long as the Stones keep their hair and don't get fat they'll get away with the wrinkles.

Full text of article…

I want to focus on your new band at the very beginning of this interview. I get a ton of emails from a ton of bands I have never heard of asking us for coverage. I got a message about a band called Man-Raze. I had never heard of this band and I didn't even know they existed. At first I started to delete it. But for some reason I clicked on the link and I saw your name. I checked out the MP3s and I loved them. I usually know what is going on in the classic rock scene but I didn't even know this was happening. You must have kept this pretty secret.

We kind of did. We just got together and we just started recording. It was great - especially the rehearsing part. It just worked. Now we are ready. We have 12 songs that are in different stages of mixing.

Where did the name of the band come from?

At first we were going to call it Fay Raze - you know the girl from the King Kong movies. Simon wasn't into it and he was right as it was a bit limp. We kept the raze and called it Man-Raze. Man Ray was a photographer from New York. He died and was buried in France. It fit us really well. He was very surrealist.

Full text of article…

In this final interview, Joe Elliott responds to some of the points that Andrew McNiece brought up with his original talk with this same interviewer. Joe Elliott had previously spoken to the interviewer as well before seeing Andrew McNiece's responses.

• I was not aware of this review he did on X at the time. Like I've said, the reviews he does from Tasmanian rarely make it over to our shores so how could I possibly know this. That's beside the point. I didn't even know of this website until recently. I have yet to see this review of X, maybe I'm missing it but I don't have time to look for it.
• First of all, I don't know who sent him the track listing but apparently this is someone within the Leppard camp, otherwise, how would he get it? Secondly, anyone who logs onto a computer can go to the website and get the link to it.
• He is just trying to get to the bottom of this whole mess and although he might have an idea of who it might be, he's not going to flat out accuse them without proof, which is why he asked for details.

Full text of article…

This interview with Joe Elliott looks at his take on the review by Andrew McNieceMelodicRock.com of a unreleased rough cut of the covers album Yeah!. I previously posted a parallel interview with Andrew McNiece.

• Some love the idea and some hate the idea and would like to hear an album of new material from you guys. Any comments on that Joe?
• Do you think Andrew stole it, whether directly or indirectly Joe?
• Do you feel this could alienate some of your fans by the way you handled things when you wrote that letter?
• Do you have any idea who's behind sending Andrew the CD?

Full text of article…

The final part of the Andrew McNiece Interview. Part 1 is also available.

• Why did it bother you so much to get a false track listing from the band? Why not just let it go as being a good prank and leave it at that?
• If you had not been given a false track listing by the band, would you have still listened to it and given it your opinion on Melodic Rock?
• On your website, it was clearly stated that someone in the Leppard camp had sent that CD to you and felt you'd been black balled basically when you were sent the false track listing. Is this person closer to the band or closer to you? In the sense of friendship.

Full text of article…

Editor's note: The following set of interviews were conducted by an online reporter after a prerelease version (or demo) of the upcoming Def Leppard cover songs album Yeah! was reviewed by Andrew McNiece of Melodic Rock. This caused a hubub over at DefLeppard.com because the review was very critical in some aspects. Joe Elliott then responded with what some described as unnecessarily harsh words towards Andrew McNiece. These interivews of both Andrew McNiece and Joe Elliott are archived here as part of the record. Unfortunately, I can't find a copy of the original Yeah! review by Andrew McNiece. If you have a copy of this review, please contact me.

Here are some of the questions that were asked to Andrew McNiece:

• "Being a music critic is sure to have it's advantages, so what are some of them besides getting to review some of the best selling albums out there?"
• Do you ever get positive or negative feedback from the bands you review? Aside from the obvious I mean.
• From what I can gather, you were sent a false track listing from the band themselves and it turns out to be false. This apparantly started some controversy between you and the band.

Full text of article…

Black leather, gleaming silver, fast cars, girls in their scanties . . . these are the very least you would expect to find in the home of one of the towering figures in British heavy metal.

You're ready for Spinal Tap territory, where pool tables are the size of tennis courts, platinum discs line the walls and sofas are swathed in animal skins.

Except that's not the case - bar a disc or two - at Holmwood House in Sheffield, home of Rick Savage, the 43-year-old bass player of rock band Def Leppard. Instead, his Victorian mansion, built in 1864 out of honey-coloured Derbyshire gritstone, rolls with restrained good taste, high-quality antique furniture and domestic contentment.

Full text of article…

The original interview was printed in russian. Any mistakes in the translation are the fault of the automatic translation service.

How passes your round?

Super! It is second round Def Leppard in the Great Britain. We have already visited ño the program Japan and had time to give more than 50 shows! Have a little got tired, but this normal phenomenon. Before the beginning of round you feel vigorously, but then all these infinite crossings from city in city and concerts have an effect. You need to reconcile only that it is necessary to rise early in the morning to begin all all over again. The schedule of the actor is those!

And than you usually are engaged after concerts: be ready to drop, or still there are forces to pass a pair stakanchikov?

What is the time usually leaves at you on preparation of a new album?

Full text of article…

The "X" World Tour is almost over. Are you as exhausted as the rest of the band and the crew?

It's funny, it's only really hit me since we got to the UK. Maybe it's been the change of weather or the damp, but I'm really starting to feel it in my bones. I guess when we were in America and Canada it seemed easier because we've been touring there during the summer and early autumn, but we come over here and I feel the change of season more than I would if I was fresh. So yeah, I'm ready to go home. That would be nice.

Is that just because there's nothing fresh about the show any more?

It must be weird being back in the UK as you're British but haven't lived here for so long. Does it still feel like home or is it just the place you grew up in?

Full text of article…

You've been on the road, on and off, for well over a year. Are you looking forward to it being over shortly or is it the case of the grass always greener; when you're on tour, you look forward to going home and when you're home, you crave being on the road?

So why are you still doing more dates on this tour?

So why tag on the UK leg, especially considering you were here only a few months ago?

Is it a thrill to be going to the Eastern Bloc?

Full text of article…

All-American Reject Nick Wheeler Goes Face To Face With One Of His Favorite Bands.

At first listen, it might be easy to lump The All-American Rejects atop the pile of sugar-coated, power-pop acts dominating the charts as of late, but not so fast. While the Oklahoma quartet are characterized by every bit of seemingly superficial bounce that platinum-peers Good Charlotte, Sum 41 and Green Day have played unapologetically guilty to, more than a cursory listen displays a depth of songwriting character that few of their contemporaries can rival. In fact, after even a few spins through their self-titled Dreamworks Records debut, it becomes all too apparent that there's more to the band than just a few radio-ready jingles. Barely removed from their teenage years, The All-American Rejects transcend songwriting simplicity with orchestrations that are as rich as they are infectious, bringing to mind a bevy of influences including punk rock, glam rock, and a healthy dose of arena rock.

Nick Wheeler: Pretty much everything I know about you guys I learned from digging through my sister's tape collection when I was about seven-years-old and found Hysteria. Was there any band that got you guys into music in the first place, and got you into what you do?

Full text of article…

GS: So lets start off with the tour. How's it been going? How have the crowds been?

RS: Crowds have been great…..crowds have been really good. We're probably doing better business than we thought we would do especially considering the disappointing way the record company has handled the album. It's pretty obvious that the people who are coming are people that would have come if we had a new album or not. I mean, a lot of them may have bought the album but we are not really promoting the album any more as such. Certainly as far as the public are concerned. They're just coming because it's Def Leppard, not because it's Def Leppard and they've got a new album to promote or whatever.

GS: What about the numbers?

GS: So the idea of coming to arenas has been vindicated then?

Full text of article…

Cool and Def Leppard have been mutually exclusive throughout much of the veteran British band's 22 years. During the summer of '83, Def Leppard's breakthrough album, "Pyromania," catapulted the band into rock's upper echelon, but you were asking for it if you wore Union Jack outwear, which members did onstage.

"Are we blowing it?" asked Elliott with a laugh. "We don't care. As long as our fans show up, we're quite content."

Q. How did you guys go from being uncool to kind of cool?

Full text of article…

Def Leppard picks up its "X" tour with a 37-city North American swing including a stop Wednesday at Huntington's Big Sandy Superstore Arena. Guitarist Campbell spoke in a phone interview from the suburbs of Detroit about the tour and life playing with the video generation's first hard rock icons.

• Your video for "Rainbow in the Dark" with Dio shared airtime with Def Leppard in the early days of MTV. Did you have any relationship with the band back then?
• What's the difference between touring with Dio and Whitesnake as opposed to Def Leppard?
• Are you doing any writing with the group on the road?

Full text of article…

Rick Allen and Phil Collen joined an AOL chat to discuss the album Euphoria. Below are some of the questions asked:

• Do you have any say in what becomes a single or is it all the record company, and have you ever disagreed with their choices?
• "Euphoria" is good, but we really prefer the artistic synergism of "Slang". Are there any plans for something similar in the future?
• I was wondering how you prepare yourselves to go out on the road?
• Rick, will there be a chance for the fans to hear any of the side projects you did in LA with Mark Mason?

Full text of article…