Released on May 27, 2022, they christened the album title "Diamond Star Halos" citing the lyrics in the T. Rex song "Bang a Gong." Fittingly titled, the album honors their 70s glam rock influences in the likes of T. Rex, Mott the Hoople, David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust era, etc. as only Def Leppard can do it.
It has been a while since I have listened to new Def Leppard music. I checked out after "Adrenalize." The newer music just did nothing for me. Whenever I listen to Def Leppard, I go back to the older material. I will put on any of the first four albums. I rarely listen to anything after "Hysteria." Although, I will put on "Euphoria" now and then.
"Take What You Want" starts off the record with a nice guitar arpeggio and then kicks into a nice hard rock riff. Good solid opener. The middle section repeats the arpeggiated guitar lines with very Beatlesesque vocal harmonies. "Kick" reminds me a little bit of "Love and Affection" off of "Hysteria." It is a fun, carefree rocker that will work well in the arenas with the crowd singing along too.
"Fire it Up" is an O.K. song. It is a "Pour Some Sugar on me" wannabe.
"This Guitar" is a stellar track and an outstanding surprise. It is a country style duet sung with Alison Krauss. Great guitar playing by Phil and Viv. Joe and Alisson sound great together. "SOS Emergency" picks the pace back up and is a good, poppy rock song to crank up in your car with the windows down on a spectacular summer's day. "Liquid Dust" is one I will pass on. It is the only filler on this album.
"U Rok Me" is a funky acoustic guitar and bass driven song. "Goodbye for Good this Time" is a cinematic piano ballad accompanied by strings with a marvelous nylon string Spanish guitar solo. "All We Need" is an U2ish sounding mid tempo fun, earworm, rocker.
"Open your Eyes" starts off with an excellent bass line and sweet chorus. "Gimme a Kiss" is a lively bass driven rocker with some cheesy lyrics. But hey, we are here for a good time, so some cheesy lyrics are acceptable. "Angels (Can't Help you Now)" is another piano ballad. Good melodies and lyrics with some unique chords. Something a little different from the typical Def Leppard lexicon.
"Lifeless" sees the return of Alison Krauss for a jangly mid-tempo country tune. "Unbreakable" starts off with a nice guitar riff and some driving drums. Chorus is a bit to be desired. "From Here to Eternity" is a dramatic closer for The Lep's. The guitar riff reminds me of Aerosmith's cover version of The Shangri-La's "Remember (Walking in the Sand)."
The album has a nice ebb and flow between some solid rockers and ballads. The guys are sounding great musically. It is not the Def Leppard of old but going on for over 40 years and surviving all they went through garners a lot of admiration and still writing wonderful songs.
Overall, taking "Diamond Star Halos" at face value is a really good album from Def Leppard. It's overly complicated, it is fun, infectious rock and roll. Pretty much what a lot of their heros did back in the day by just creating good, fun rock and roll music for the times. And that is basically what Def Leppard has achieved.
Rating: 4 out of 5 guitar pics.
Band
- Joe Elliott – lead vocals, guitar
- Phil Collen – guitar, backing vocals
- Rick Savage – bass guitar, guitar, backing vocals
- Vivian Campbell – guitar, backing vocals
- Rick Allen – drums
Additional Musicians
- Alison Krauss – lead vocals on "This Guitar" & "Lifeless"
- Debbi Blackwell-Cook – backing vocals
- Dave Bassett – backing vocals
- Ross Hogarth – recording engineer
- Eric Gorfain – string arrangements
- Mike Garson – piano
Produced by Ronan McHugh
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