In 1978, the members of Def Leppard were struggling to work their jobs, mostly manual labor, and start a band. When Rick Savage and Pete Willis met lead singer Joe Elliot, he originally tried out for rhythm guitars. After a few different drummers, they came upon 16 year old Rick Allen and started playing small gigs. In 1980, they released On Through the Night, with easy classics such as 'Rock Brigade', and 'Hello America'. After touring the states, they went back to realease High 'N' Dry in 1981. They were beginning to make their place in rock music with their hit, "Bringin' On the Heartbreak", but still were not EXTREMELY well known during this time period although they did have some following. Recording Pyromania was the last project lead guitarist Pete Willis has undertaken with Leppard before he was kicked out of the band and replaced by Phil Collen. Pyromania was destined to explode and sell over 10,000,000 records world-wide over the years (unbenkownst to the band) with the line up being:
Joe Elliot-Lead Vocals
Rick Allen-Drums
Steve Clark-Guitars
Phil Collen-Guitars
Rick Savage-Bass
After Pyromania which Lepp toured with Billy Squier, they had a long gap in between then and Hysteria, easily their biggest success, at which time drummer Rick Allen lost his left arm in a car accident, and Steve Clark OD'd during the making of Adrenalize, leaving them to recruit Vivian Campbell for the tour. Their first album without Clark was Slang, which was, "out there". Slang was followed by Retro Active, which in my opinion was very underrated. They released a compilation and in the year prior to the new millennium, they realeased Euphoria, which was nothing short of annoying compared to their past albums (exclusion of Slang of course). X is the most recent original album released by the band and it is nothing short of ***.
Now- The opening sounds heard in the beginning of this song make you think it is going to go into something with a pop beat and end with "Hit Me Baby One More Time". The song is acoustic for most of the time. The chorus is a bit toned-up and slightly heavier. The vocal job done on this track is actually just short of great, but it is nothing that we haven't heard from Joe. Sadly, the lyrics are very so-so and the progression of the song can be a bit slow. The second verse is a lot more like what we would expect until the song begins to repeat itself. The solo is annoying and sounds like it came from a punk group, not a classic rock band. One of the better tracks on the album, which is saying something, considering it is not a particularly great song, however it had a nice vibe live, if that makes up for anything about this song.
~3.5/5~
Unbelievable- This song is just one of the tracks on the album that denotes the hope of Def Leppard fans getting another Hysteria. All of the verses sound like they were remixed with drum machine and effects, with barely any guitar audible. The chorus sounds a little more like what a slow song off of Euphoria would sound. The lyrics again are so-so and the best part of this song is Joe Elliot's vocal job, which
does surprisingly fit with the lyrics. However the only unbelievable thing here is the musical performance on this track.
~2/5~
You're So Beautiful- This song is one of the few tracks that actually have some sort of a rock feel. The opening riff is OK and the guitar work on this is actually pretty average, and you actually get a sound of real drums on this track. However, this is not one of Joe's best performances. The verse is a little more toned-down in comparison to the chorus, which actually has some surprisingly good guitar work, as I mentioned. The high point of the song is one of the very few good solos that the album provides, although it is a little short. The lowest point of the song is definately the lyrics.
~3/5~
Everyday- This song is like the better version of "Unbelievable". All of the song features acoustical work, exclusively the entire verse. The electric guitar has no distortion and it has a nice sound to it, although it is still a little too "pop" to be Leppard. The solo is a little heavier, but barely. The lyrical and vocal work are actually a fairly good point of this song. The progression is OK and it seems to have the right amount of time, not too short or drawn out.
~3/5~
Long, Long Way To Go- The best song on the album, this is a very easy ballad that has almost a depressing sad feel to it, but not in a way that makes you not listen to it. It starts off just acoustic guitars and vocals, however the drum machine kind of ruins it. It doesn't sound very good in the verses. It kicks into regular force in the chorus which is basically a moderato version of the verse. The lyrical and vocal work on this track is easily the best of the album, being dedicated to British and American troops in the Middle East (or so Joe has said during a live show while touring X). The bridge is a little heavier but it stays based around one main guitar lick and the simplicity makes it a good song.
~4.5/5~
Four Letter Word- This song is nothing short of complete and total annoyance for the verse, which is slightly dampened during the chorus. That is until Joe sees the need to spell out L-O-V-E for us. It sounds like a funk-rock and bad Def Leppard train had the worst collision in the history of rock 'n' roll. The lyrics are nothing short of stupid and unoriginal, and the Joe's voice cannot be complimented with the way he sees fit to sing this song. The only part of this song that is commendable is the solo which is about 6 seconds long. This kind of track is the reason X sucks so f*****g royally, and it marks the beginning of the downward movement of the album (as if it could move further down).
~2/5~
Torn To Shreds- The epitimy of what a bad heartbreak song should include. Corny distortionless riffs and shtity lyrics that contradict themselves like no other, e.g. Don't wanna fall in love/miss you more than words can say/torn to shreds/it hurts but i cant let you go. What the hell is that? Not a good rock song, that's all I know. The whole progression of the song is overbearing and it is drawn out. The chorus is a speedier version of the verse, and the solo, which could have had the potential to fix this song up, is again, 5 seconds long, and ends just when you think the track was worth listening to.
~2/5~
Love Don't Lie- Along with "Torn", these are some of the worst lyrical works you will find on the album. Although "Now", and "Everyday" are not great songs, they are examples of the fact that you can't say that just because the music sucks then the lyrics will too. Lepp has proven on this album that their lyrical work can still be over average and it is songs like this that make people rethink that fact. The progression of the song is slow and it is drawn out and nothing musically or vocally really stood out in anyway, good or bad. Except for the piece of crap they call a solo in the middle. The ending solo is the only thing about this song which I can really say I enjoyed.
~2/5~
Gravity- The worst song on the album, easily. No question. We'll start with something as positive as I can get. The lyrical work on this song is a bit strange however they are nicely written. Now the positive junk is out of the way, we can get accurate. The only guitar that is featured exclusively includes some annoying power chords in conjunction with some of the ***tiest noises Rick Allen makes on his drum kit on the whole album. This song is more hip-hop than anything and Joe is almost rapping to the extent of wearing his pants five inches down and having a gold chain around his neck.
~1/5~
Cry- If "Gravity" is the worst song on the album, then this song is the most annoying. The opening guitar, when I first heard it, is what made me completely detest it. Then I heard the lyrics and the vocal performance and I laughed. What the vocals sound like in the chorus are unexplainable, and can be summed up in one way. ***. The musical performance was underaverage and there is no way in Hell anyone so good could make such an annoying song without losing a bet. This is one of the sole reasons that X is a waste of money. Tracks like this bring down the band's reputation and whatever album it's placed on.
~.5/5~
Girl Like You- When I said after "4 Letter", the album goes down, I meant it. The intro to this song exclusively features God knows what and is also in the verses, along with a remix of some odd crap music. The chorus reminds me of some punk/pop fusion with a bad lineup playing the worst instruments man can make. Better than "Cry", just barely.
~.7/5~
Let Me Be The One- At first, this song starts out sounding like "Long, Long Way", and surprisingly, it is an OK track. At first I thought it was a sucky version of "Long, Long Way", but the track grew on me a little. The drums really aren't one of the first things you pick out, and although the chorus is a bit bland considering it is much like other ones on the album, it fits the song. It is overall average for the most part. The musical performance is not an extremely high point, but it is the lyrics that actually stand out in the best way with this song.
~3.5/5~
Scar- I think this song is very average at best, but it is so unnecessary that it's not funny. The verses and chorus are both well done, lyrically, vocally, and musically but I think to stick it as the closing track was not the best decision. This song should have replaced one of the crap songs like "Torn", and the album should have went out with "'Let Me". This song is overall a bit repetative but the guitars are catchy and sound a little more as if it were from the Slang era. The drums actually have some interesting fills (one of the few songs you'll hear that on this album). The bridge/solo progression is good and overall the best point in the song.
~4/5~
Def Leppard has been my favorite band since birth, let me tell you 14 years is a long time to love a single band that much, and the reason I let you know this is that if you think about it, if
me , a complete and total fanboy of Lepp can hate this album so intensely, you might not want to waste your money unless you really really love "Long Long Way" or "Scar". This is the worst Lepp album, aside from maybe Yeah!, however I couldn't say until I've heard the album (even if, Yeah! is probably better). For Lepp to think about making this album is one of the worst ideas they could have had. That is what they should have based the lyrics to "Unbelievable" around. They need to go back to an older sound now that they have a preppie and pop fan base as well as a rocker fan base. Even another record like Retro Active would be OK, but I truly believe that many Lepp heads will not be able to be held accountable for their actions if another album like this comes about.
So Let's Review, if your ears are not already bleeding.
Pros +
+Long, Long Way.
Cons -
-For the most part, everything else.
OVERALL: X GETS A WHOPPING 2/10, MAYBE 3 FOR THE SOLE FACT THAT I LIKE LONG LONG WAY.
