DEF LEPPARD will embark on a massive U.S. summer tour with STYX and TESLA. The trek will storm through over 40 cities throughout North America, kicking off on June 23 in Tampa, Florida.The dates are as follows:Jun. 23 - Tampa, FL - MIDFLORIDA Credit Union AmphitheatreJun. 25 - West Palm Beach, FL - Cruzan AmphitheatreJun. 27 - Birmingham, AL - Oak Mountain AmphitheatreJun. 28 - Atlanta, GA - Aarons Amphitheatre at LakewoodJun. 30 - Charlotte, NC - PNC Music PavilionJul. 02 - Bristow, VA - Jiffy Lube LiveJul. 03 - Virginia Beach, VA - Farm Bureau LiveJul. 05 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun ArenaJul. 07 - Gilford, NH - Bank of NH Pavilion at MeadowbrookJul. 09 - Mansfield, MA - Xfinity CenterJul. 11 - Bethel, NY - Bethel Woods Center for the ArtsJul. 12 - Darien Center, NY - Darien Lake Performing Arts CenterJul. 14 - Toronto, ON - Molson Canadian AmphitheatreJul. 15 - Youngstown, OH - Covelli CentreJul. 17 - Clarkston, MI - DTE Energy Music TheatreJul. 21 - Mt. Pleasant, MI - Soaring Eagle Resort & CasinoJul. 23 - Wantagh, NY - Nikon at Jones Beach TheatreJul. 24 - Saratoga Springs, NY - Saratoga Performing Arts CenterJul. 25 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts CenterAug 07 - Sturgis, SD - Buffalo Chip CampgroundAug 08 - Sioux Falls, SD - Sioux Falls ArenaAug 10 - Oklahoma City, OK - Chesapeake Energy ArenaAug 11 - Kansas City, MO - Starlight TheatreAug 14 - Sedalia, MO - Missouri State FairAug 15 - Des Moines, IA - Iowa State FairAug 17 - Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music CenterAug 18 - Nashville, TN - Bridgestone ArenaAug 21 - Dallas, TX - Gexa Energy PavilionAug 22 - Woodlands, TX - Cynthia Woods Mitchell PavilionAug 23 - Austin, TX - Austin360 AmphitheaterAug 27 - St. Paul, MN - Minnesota State FairAug 28 - Grand Forks, ND - Alerus CenterAug 30 - Noblesville, IN - Klipsch Music CenterSep. 01 - Allentown, PA - Allentown Sep. 03 - Louisville, KY - KFC Yum! CenterSep. 04 - Maryland Heights, MO - Hollywood Casino AmphitheatreSep. 05 - Tinley Park, IL - First Midwest Bank AmphitheatreSep. 16 - Auburn, WA - White River AmphitheaterSep. 17 - Ridgefield, WA - Northwest AmphitheaterSep. 19 - Mountain View, CA - Shoreline AmphitheaterSep. 22 - Chula Vista, CA - Sleep Train AmphitheatreSep. 23 - Phoenix, AZ - Ak-Chin PavilionSep. 25 - Albuquerque, NM - Isleta AmphitheatreSep. 26 - Denver, CO - Pepsi CenterSep. 28 - West Valley City, UT - USANA AmphitheaterSep. 30 - Spokane, WA - Spokane ArenaOct. 02 - Bozeman, MT - Brick Breeden FieldhouseOct. 04 - Bismarck, ND - Bismarck Civic CenterDEF LEPPARD is putting the finishing touches on a new studio album for a tentative late spring release. Asked how the material on the CD is sounding so far, the band's lead singer, Joe Elliott told Shredload.com: "Varied. Yeah, real good. Some of the stuff sounds absolutely like us. Some of the stuff sounds like things that people our age should be writing these days. So it's a bit of everything, really. Stuff that reminds us of stuff that we grew up listening to. So it's very much in the classic-rock mold, but it's also not stale and sterile."He continued: "For us, it's kind of exciting, because we're doing a lot of stuff that we've never really done before. It's the odd, kind of Merry Clayton kind of
like THE [ROLLING] STONES would use horns on certain songs
Just varying things up a little bit, but it's still essentially got the sound. Because with our guitar sound and my voice, it's a distinctive sound. And Rick's [Allen] drum sound is a distinctive sound. It's the songwriting that is variable, because of everybody's input. It's different. Sav [bassist Rick Savage] writes a certain way, I write a certain way, Phil [Collen, guitar] and Vivian [Campbell, guitar] write a certain way. Even Rick Allen's written stuff on this record, which is really good. So there's a lot of variety there. I'm quite excited at the moment."Elliott added: "Until we kind of get the other six [songs] that are bubbling away that need a little bit more work done, I don't really know what direction it's going in fully, but it's varied. And that's what I've always liked about our records. When you hear an AC/DC record, you know what you're gonna get and it doesn't really veer off that track much. But, say, like a QUEEN record, you can have 'Tie Your Mother Down' and 'You Take My Breath Away' on the same album, and it's almost two different bands. And that's what we like being more in that direction [where] we can dip our toe into different sounds."
More...
More...
