Rock titans Def Leppard have reached #1 in the USA Classical & Classical Crossover Charts. Wait… what? Did you read that correctly? Yes, you did. Legends of the ’80s era, Def Leppard have sold more than one hundred million records worldwide, are Rock and Roll Hall of Famers, and are one of the biggest-selling acts ever to have entered into the Classical Music realm. A curious bit of information, before you wonder what in the world it means, the answer is that the UK rockers have released a new album with London’s iconic The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Entitled Drastic Symphonies, and released on May 19, 2023, it is important to understand that this is not just an insistence of a Rock band doing a live gig with an orchestra and putting it to tape. In fact, it is a little more complex than it sounds.
So, the story goes that Def Leppard was offered to revisit some of their back catalog with the Royal Philharmonic, and eager to try something new, they jumped at the opportunity. Thus, instead of merely just re-recorded tracks with the orchestra, they opted to break out old masters, cherry-pick vocals and instruments from those tapes, remix them, and meld them into the live orchestra recorded in March of 2022 at Abbey Road Studios. Simple enough, right? No, because there is more to it. Pushing the envelope, they also did in fact re-record some new guitars and even new vocals; so, there are points on this record where you can actually hear an older Joe Elliot duetting along with his younger self. A rather interesting approach, what you get is far more than just a symphonic layer over Rock music.
What you do get instead is something entirely different in terms of some of Def Leppard’s most well-beloved songs, but also deeper tracks you may have never given the time of day in the past. A sad reality, the excitement in that is when you hear these lesser-known tracks it is like something entirely new because your first reaction is, “What is this… it sounds good!” This could be the case with cuts like 2003’s “Turn to Dust ” or 1995’s “When Love & Hate Collide,” which unfortunately never picked up much traction back at their original points of release. Just two examples of bringing new life to less appreciated Def Leppard music, in all honesty, this is where this release’s bread and butter lies. While the songs might not be new, hearing them on Drastic Symphonies is like finding buried treasure.
There are also a handful of recently released tracks from 2022’s Diamond Star Halos such as “Goodbye for Good This Time,” plus Angels (Can’t Help You Now), and they sound really awesome. Beyond this, you of course get a bundle of reimagined versions of classic hits including “Animal,” “Hysteria,” “Love Bites,” “Gods of War,” “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak,” and “Too Late for Love.” Although, arguably the most unrecognizable of all is the stripped-down version of “Pour Some Sugar on Me.” Something that might not appeal to everyone, you have to give it to the band to try something new with this one. That said, you will hear it and judge it for yourself.
This leads us to the actual sonic quality of Drastic Symphonies. A very important aspect, as stated, this album does not just sound like a live record of Hard Rock shoved together with an orchestra. A tactic some bands have used in the past, and for some reason always sounding cluttered, this album instead uses the orchestra to its advantage, adding texture to each track and amplifying color in sections. With this, you also do not lose the original structure of some of the hits, but rather get a cinematic imagery of them, and it sounds really fantastic.
Overall, Drastic Symphonies is a delightful surprise. It is not a throwaway release by any means and was handled with the most delicate of care. Something you are certainly going to want to listen to, it is fresh, fun, and a great addition to the story of Def Leppard. That is why Cryptic Rock gives Drastic Symphonies 5 out of 5 stars.
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