It is 2002 and the sound on the radio is now very different. Pop bands rule the world. Heck, even Bon Jovi had turned more to a Pop band with an album called ‘Crush’. Def Leppard chased the trend with this album and have moved completely away from their known rock sound to a more melodic pop record. They even brought some of the Swedish pop writers to help like Andrew Carlsson and Max Martin. Also included in on the writing was famed writer Marti Frederiksen who had worked with Aerosmith on the song “Jaded”. Phil remembers hearing this song and wanting Leppard to have a song like that. All these changes are huge and we probably thought this is not an album we were expecting from the band, but as it turns out, it was one we needed.

The album ‘X’, (or Ten), is the band’s 8th studio album, but its 10th album release if you count ‘Retro Active’ and ‘Vault’. The album was released on July 30, 2002, but only reached #11 on the Billboard charts. The album had 3 singles and never did well on the charts, I don’t remember hearing them on the radio. Heck, ‘X’ didn’t even get certified anything by RIAA…might be the first album of theirs to not get at least Gold. This album was a big change in more ways than one.

There wass one constant with Def Leppard and that was the line-up. It was still Joe Elliott, Rick Allen, Rick Savage, Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell. 10 years with this line-up and we are now 12 years after this and they are still the same line-up. Kudos to them. Maybe the band was in a good place at this time because this does seem like a happier album at times. I have even heard this album called the ‘Love Album’ as it has a lot of ballads and a lot of pop songs. I don’t have a problem with them doing a pop album…even Kiss did with ‘Unmasked’ and I like that album. So why not Def Leppard. Is this as bad as everyone says it is…maybe I’m the contrarian here, but I think it is awesome. I am a huge pop music fan, so this satisfies that side of my taste quite nicely. Let’s get in to it.

The first track and single off the album is the song called “Now”. The song was written by the band with the help of Marti Frederiksen who we mentioned earlier. If Phil wanted a song like “Jaded” with the classy, perfect production, well, he got it. “Now” is as slick of production as it comes. The opening acoustic guitars, the beautifully lush keyboards, a crazy cool bassline and a great snare beat, “Now” opens as great as any song they’ve done and when that chorus hits, the song is huge, with delicious harmonies and a great energy that drives the song. There is a rock element to the song, but let’s be honest, it is pop in all its glory. It is modern, but still has the Leppard tone to it that shows the band is still in there somewhere.

I mentioned this album was loaded with ballads and the first one is up called “Unbelievable”. This was not written by any member of the band and not a cover song. It was written for the band by the Swedish hitmakers, Max Martin, Andreas Carlsson and Per Adelhelm. The one thing recognizable as Leppard are those harmonies, layers and layers of the boys. It feels more Backstreet Boys then Leppard, but that doesn’t take away from the fact is a pretty good ballad with a catchy hook of a chorus. You will sing along!

“You’re So Beautiful” sees the boys back with Marti and another slickly produced track. The guitars sound like Leppard and is a great upbeat pop track. One thing cool with it is even Phil gets on the vocals a little more which is always a plus. There is a bounce to the song that puts a bounce in your step. The chorus is layered with more harmonies in the famous Lep fashion. Not a bad track.

The last of the Frederiksen penned tracks is “Everyday”. More acoustic guitars open the song and the song is full of slick productions. It is a partial ballad but does the chorus pick up the song too much to make it a more poppier track, maybe. Another well-crafted pop song. And if this point you doubt the band was ever going to make a rock record, put those thoughts to bed because this record is not that.

The second song completely written by outside parties is “Long Long Way To Go” which was written by Americans this time, Wayne Hector and Steve Robson. Wayne has worked with Nicki Minaj and One Direction (What???). This is yet another ballad and might be my favorite on the album. More acoustic guitars and Joe’s vocals are perfection. Emotive and heartfelt, slow and gentle. The layers or harmonies on the chorus and the beauty of the string arrangements makes this one of the best ballads they have done. I would put it up there with “Love Bites”. That’s right.

“Four Letter Word” might the closest we get to a rock song. This one is a little cheesy and might have fit nice on Adrenalize. It starts to border on “Personal Property” territory which I absolutely hate (worst Lep song ever), but thankly it hangs on and doesn’t go there. The song has grown on me and since it is the most rocking song, I don’t skip it.

My favorite song on the album is the short, but sweet “Torn to Shreds”. It is almost a ballad, but I think more rocker. The sonics of the song make me feel like it could’ve been on ‘Slang’ and that is a good thing. There is a cool tone, a seriousness to it. The chorus is massive and draws you in. There is a swagger to it, a confidence and maturity to it you don’t expect and it is welcome. Written by the boys and one of their best.

“Love Don’t Lie” is a pop song, no doubt. The vibrating guitar notes, the electronic drum sounds, the almost dance beat…did they go too far. Almost. The chorus saves the song as it is a little contagious with a strong hook. Still, one of the weaker songs, but not terrible either.

We now get to the song that is the most irritating pop song on the album, “Gravity”. I guess they had to have one. This doesn’t feel or sound like a Def Leppard song. It isn’t as childish or degrading as “Personal Property”, but it is as bad. Ugh!

If you want guitars, we finally get some with “Cry”. The only song with any kind of real riff. But it isn’t really a rock song, more pop rock. Joe’s vocals are in a box with an effect, I don’t care for that too much. The chorus is okay, it is upbeat and has a lot of energy, but overall, not one of my favorites. There is a softer break before picking back up. Doesn’t do much for me.

“Girl Like You” starts off with some cheesy lyrics, but at least the song is a upbeat and poppy. The sound effects in this are a little irritating though, grating on the skin. We have hit a major lull in the album with these last three songs. Wait, this album is 13 tracks and three bad songs in a row…maybe this should’ve been a 10 song album.

We are now to another huge ballad with “Let Me Be The One”. A soft, gentle piece with a big chorus. What can I say, I like a ballad if it is done well and Leppard can do them well. Not as memorable as say some of the earlier ballads on here, but way better then the last three songs as at least this one has some heart in it.

The final track is “Scar” and is another unsung classic in their catalog.  “Scar” has all the elements people love about the band. The song is full of layer upon layer of vocals and harmonies that give it the unique Lep trademark vocals.  It has a power ballad feel to it which suits Joe Elliott’s vocal perfectly and it actually seems like it would have fit nicely on one of their best albums, ‘Slang’.  It has a lot of the same tone and feel of that album. Another piece that I like about the song is the guitar playing of Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell.  There is a hypnotic element to the riffs and when you get to the solo, the back and forth between the two is sensational.  It takes me back to when Phil and Steve would play off each other.  Overall it made feel good.

Track Listing:

1. Now – Keeper
2. Unbelievable – Keeper
3. You’re So Beautiful – Keeper
4. Everyday – Keeper
5. Long Long Way To Go – Keeper
6. Four Letter Word – Keeper (1/2 Point)
7. Torn To Shreds – Keeper
8. Love Don’t Lie – Keeper (1/2 Point)
9. Gravity – Delete
10. Cry – Delete
11. Girl Like You – Delete
12. Let Me Be The One – Keeper
13. Scar – Keeper

The Track Score is 9 out of 13 Tracks or 69%.  Def Leppard has always claimed to really be a pop band and with this album, they finally proved it.  I know they were chasing the sound of the scene at the time and thus the Swedish Hitmakers, outside writers, etc…but this album still has elements of Def Leppard all over it. The production is slick, the songs are good (mostly) and it is a modern day pop album that hit the goal they set for themselves. I know a lot of people hate this one, and that is fine, you can’t always be right.  This is a great pop record and I one I’ve liked from the moment I heard it back in 2002.  I love pop music as much as rock music, so this is great for me.  There are couple amazing songs on here that are a couple of my favorite Lep tracks and that is “Scar” and “Torn to Shreds”. So at the very least, check these two out.  My Overall Score is a 3.5 out of 5.0 Stars.  

NEXT UP: DEF LEPPARD – ‘HYSTERIA: CLASSIC ALBUMS’ (2002) – DVD REVIEW

THE DEF LEPPARD COLLECTION SERIES

1. Def Leppard E.P. – 7″ Single (1979)
2. First Strikes 1978-1979 (Bootleg CD)
3. Girl – Sheer Greed (1980)
4. On Through the Night (1980)
5. When the Walls Came Tumbling Down (April 26 1980) (2020)
6. High & Dry (1981)
7. Too Many Jitterbugs – B-Sides And Rarities (2020)
8. Raw – Early BBC Recordings (2020)
9. Girl – Wasted Youth (1982)
10. Pyromania (1983)
11. “Photograph” 7″ Single (1983)
12. “Too Late For Love” 12″ Single (1983)
13. Live at the L.A. Forum 1983 (2018)
14. Seattle, August 3, 1983 (Bootleg CD)
15. Pyromania TV Collection (Bootleg DVD)
16. Hysteria (1987)
17. “Animal” 7″ Single (1987)
18. “Women” 7″ Single (1987)
19. “Pour Some Sugar on Me” 7″ Single (1987)
20. “Hysteria” 7″ Single (1987)
21. “Armageddon It” 7″ Single (1988)
22. “Love Bites” 7″ Single (1988)
23. “Rocket” 7″ Single (1989)
24. Animal Instinct – The Def Leppard Story – Book Review (1987)
25. Rarities – Volume One (2018)
26. Live in Mountain View – August 17, 1988 (Bootleg DVD)
27. Historia – DVD (1988)
28. Live: In the Round, In Your Face (CD Video / DVD) (1989)
29. Adrenalize (1992)
30. “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad” – Cassette Single (1992)
31. “Tonight” CD Single (1993)
32. Live Sheffield 1992 (Bootleg DVD)
33. Retro Active (1993)
34. Visualize DVD (1993)
35. Hard Rock Café – Singapore, Malaysia October 26, 1995 (Bootleg DVD)
36. Vault: Def Leppard Greatest Hits (1980-1995) (1995)
37. “When Love & Hate Collide” – CD Promo Single (1995)
38. Video Archive (1995)
39. Slang (1996)
40. Montreal: The Classic 1996 Broadcast (Bootleg CD)
41. Live Bites: FM Broadcast (Bootleg CD)
42. Live in Argentina 1997 (Bootleg DVD)
43. Euphoria (1999)
44. Rarities – Volume Two (2019)
45. Rarities – Volume Three (2019)
46. Tokyo 1999 (Bootleg CD)
47. Cybernauts – Live (2000)
48. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (2001)
49. X (2002)
50. Hysteria: Classic Albums DVD (2002)
51. Best of Def Leppard (2004)
52. Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection (2005)
53. Yeah! (2006)
54. Songs from the Sparkle Lounge (2008)
55. Man Raze – Surreal (2008)
56. B-Sides (2021)
57. Yeah! II (2021)
58. Yeah! Live (2021)
59. CMT Crossraods – Taylor Swift & Def Leppard (2009)
60. Down ‘N’ Outz -My ReGeneration (2010)
61. Man Raze – PunkFunkRootsRock (2011)
62. Down ‘N’ Outz -The Further Adventures of… (2014)
63. Def Leppard (2015)
64. The Lost Session (2018)
65. Personal Jesus 7″ Single (2018)
66. Down ‘N’ Outz -This is How We Roll (2019)
67. Hits Vegas: Live at Planet Hollywood – Vinyl (2020)
68. Hysteria: Live – Vinyl (2020)
69. Def Leppard Acoustic Vegas – 10″ Vinyl (2020)
70. Down ‘N’ Outz – The Music Box E.P. (2020)
71. Diamond Star Halos (2022)
72. High & Dry – Picture Disc (RSD) (2022)
73. Drastic Symphonies (2023)
74. Drastic Symphonies – Picture Disc (2023)
75. Definitely: The Official Story of Def Leppard (2023)
76. Def Leppard – ‘One Night Only: Live at The Leadmill’ (RSD) (2024)

PREVIOUSLY POSTED:

1. The Def Leppard E.P. (1979/2017)
2. Def Leppard: Interview Picture Disc (1982?)
3. “Bringin’ On the Heartbreak” – 12″ Promo Single (1984)
4. Live at the Top (Bootleg) (1987)
5. “Pour Some Sugar on Me” –  5″ Shaped Picture Disc (1987)
6. Hysteria U.S. Tour 1988 – Tour Book (1988)
7. “Make Love Like a Man” – 12″ Single (1992)
8. “Let’s Get Rocked” – 12″ Single (1992)
9. Adrenalize: The 7 Day Weekend Tour (1992/1993)
10. X: World Tour (2003)
11. Mirrorball – Live & More (2011)
12. Def Leppard: The Definitive Visual History – Book Review (2011)
13. Viva! Hysteria (2013)
14. And There Will Be A Next Time…Live from Detroit (2017)
15. Hysteria: 30th Anniversary Box Set (2017)
16. The Story So Far – The Best of (2018)
17. The Collection, Volume 1 (2018)
18. Hysteria: The Singles Box Set (2018)
19. Live at Abbey Road Studios (2018)
20. Def Leppard: Concert Review – Charlotte, NC June 9th 2018 (2018)
21. The Story So Far – The Best of Volume 2 (2019)
22. The Collection, Volume 2 (2019)
23. London to Vegas (2020)
24. Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 29 March 2019 (2020)
25. The Early Years ’79-’81 (2020)
26. The Collection, Volume 3 (2021)
27. Def Leppard Funko Pop!