Pulse – Rock Music News

It was 50 years ago today (March 28th, 1973) that Led Zeppelin's fifth album, the beloved Houses Of The Holy, was released in North America. The collection went on to hit Number One the following May 12th, and held down the top spot for two weeks. In all, the album stayed in the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 albums chart for 14 weeks.

Houses Of The Holy -- which also topped the charts in England, Canada, and Australia -- was nominated for the Best Recording Package Grammy award. To date, Houses Of The Holy has sold over 11 million units in North America alone.

The eight-track album includes many of Zeppelin's best loved tunes: "The Song Remains The Same," "The Rain Song," "Over The Hills And Far Away," "The Crunge," "Dancing Days," "D'yer Mak'er," "No Quarter," and "The Ocean."

We caught up with Jimmy Page, who produced Houses Of The Holy -- as well as all the Zeppelin albums -- and asked him about the sessions the band held at Mick Jagger's English country estate, Stargroves. Seeing as how Zeppelin would be following the Who into the residence after they wrapped their own sessions -- we asked him if he asked either producer Glyn Johns and/or Pete Townshend about some of the prime spots to record in at Jagger's place: "I did actually go over to check out Stargroves and the Who were there -- I don't know if they were recording or rehearsing or what, to be honest with you. I just remember walking in and I'd hate that if someone walked in on my session. I sort of was invited into the house and they were sort of playing, and just remember seeing Pete Townshend on this orange Gretsch. But it was a trip! Y'know, it was Mick Jagger's country home and there were certain areas of the upstairs wing -- where the bedroom was -- it was out of bounds (laughs)."

Page explained his thought process behind layering the guitars on "The Rain Song": "On '(The) Rain Song' there's a whole sort of sonic perspective that was intended for the guitars on that; and to be frank, it's only the same sort of the sonic perspective that I would have for that particular track that I would have to another one -- although it would change, it would mutate."

Jimmy Page admitted there was a concerted effort to highlight Zeppelin's melodic capabilities on House Of The Holy: "I was definitely thinking in that mode -- from what you're saying. I mean, there's definitely an intent to come up with melody, whether it's in the form of a riff-induced thing, like 'Whole Lotta Love' -- I mean, that is like a voodoo melody. And when you come to something like, '(The) Rain Song,' that's an intentional sort of piece, a composed piece with melody. 'Dancing Days,' that really kicks its way into life, as, like -- it's a guitar riff with the bass and the drums sort of playing to it. And then Robert (Plant's) singing over it."

We asked Jimmy Page if there's footage of Led Zeppelin recording House Of The Holy -- or any of their albums for that matter: "No, no there isn't. Because it was a very sort of private world, it was ruthlessly efficient in its delivery of the music and there was no time for waiting to see whether somebody'd put a magazine in his camera and all of that. I mean, it was like pulling teeth just having a photographer in there on a couple of occasions. They were just interfering with the flow of what the music was about."

On October 28th, 2014, Led Zeppelin released a new, remastered edition of Houses Of The Holy, which features previously unreleased audio content in a variety of packages -- including a limited edition "Super Deluxe" box set.

Matt Cameron has denied reports from The Sun that he will be filling in for Taylor Hawkins when the Foo Fighters hit the road this spring.

The Pearl Jam drummer wrote in his Instagram Story Saturday (March 25th), "FYI the internet rumors are false, I haven't joined the Foos."

The Dave Grohl-fronted band will kick off their tour of North America May 24th at the Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion in Gilford, N.H.

JAMES HETFIELD SAYS JAMMING WITH OTHER MUSICIANS IS A 'NIGHTMARE': James Hetfield recently told Cigar Aficionado magazine that jamming with other musicians is a "nightmare" for him. The Metallica singer admitted, "I know individually we're all really average players, but when you get us together, something happens." He added, "Sitting down one-on-one with someone is a lot more anxiety ridden than standing up in front of 10,000 people, 20,000 people."

TAPROOT ADDS NEW TOUR DATES: Taproot has added two new dates to their upcoming tour in support of their new studio album SCSSRS. The PRP reports that the band will now make stops in Joliet, IL on October 7th and Harrison, OH on October 14th. SCSSRS, their first new album in over a decade, drops September 29th.

In an interview with Conan O'Brien, Chris Martin of Coldplay credited Bruce Springsteen for his eating habits. He says he skips the before-show meal because that's what The Boss does.

Martin explained that when Coldplay was in Philly, he had lunch with Bruce and wife /bandmate Patti Scialfa and realized that Bruce (his elder) was in better shape than he was. As they started talking about it, he found out that Bruce only ate one meal a day.

Martin says he now skips what would be dinner and doesn't eat after 4pm.

TL;DR:

Pinball designer Jack Danger revealed that the Foo Fighters couldn't be more pumped about the band's first-machines via Stern Pinball. Danger spoke to Billboard and shed light on how his love for the Foos and pinball coincided, explaining that the band's music followed him around his whole life: "There's me working at Subway making sandwiches (while listening to the Foo Fighters) and whenever a music game comes out it really speaks to fans of their music."

A Stern rep was quoted as saying the limited-edition version of the game -- 1,000 units at $12,999 -- has already sold out, but the premium machine at $9,699 and pro editions selling for $6,999 are still available. The machines feature such iconic Foo favorites as "All My Life," "Best Of You," "Breakout," "Everlong," "I'll Stick Around," "Learn To Fly," "Monkey Wrench," "My Hero," and "This Is a Call," among others.

Jack Danger admitted there was a point where the team was unsure whether to proceed after drummer Taylor Hawkins' sudden death: "There was a moment where we were like, 'do we keep moving forward with this?' But we decided to give them time to grieve and not bother them, but from a manufacturing standpoint we had to keep on the timeline." Ultimately all systems were a go with the band clearly thrilled with Stern and Danger's progress: "(There was)nothing but ‘'f***k yeahs left and right."

For more info on the Foo Fighters Stern pinball machines, log on to: https://sternpinball.com/game/foo-fighters/

Machine Gun Kelly and fiancé Megan Fox have paused their wedding plans. According to US magazine, sources say the two are on a break from each other.

Their current status was described as "pretty volatile," but they're communicating via text messages.

Rumors started when MGK showed up at a New Year's Eve party without her and then shortly after, there were stories of him cheating on her.

The couple got engaged just over a year ago, but never set a date for the ceremony.

TL;DR:

• Machine Gun Kelly and fiancé Megan Fox have paused their wedding plans.
• According to US magazine, sources say the two are communicating via text messages.

PRIMUS AND TOOL TO PERFORM BENEFIT CONCERT: Members of Primus and Tool are set to perform at an intimate Los Angeles benefit concert at the Belasco in Los Angeles in support of their close friend Jimmy Hayward, who is currently undergoing cancer treatment. The event will raise funds for Hayward and his family.

HENRY ROLLINS LOOKING TO LAUNCH SECRET PROJECT: Reports say that Henry Rollins has put his life savings into a project which he hopes to launch next year in Nashville. He told The Guardian about the project, "It's something I've been working on for a couple of years with my manager, Heidi May, and I've put my life savings into it. All I can say is that we're looking at launching 14 months from now in Nashville and it will make people smile until their faces hurt."

Wolfgang Van Halen's Mammoth WVH has just released the video for "Another Celebration At The End Of The World" -- a teaser for the band's second album, Mammoth 2, which drops on August 4th. Rolling Stone reported the video picks off where the clips from the first album left off, and features Van Halen firing his band -- which is made up of him on all the other instruments -- before substituting the touring lineup for the performance of the song.

Van Halen said in a statement: "I knew that I wanted the new album to contain elements of what people heard on the debut, but also giving me a chance to branch out a bit. 'Another Celebration At The End Of The World' is definitely a song that showcases what people can expect from the new album. It is a high-energy rocker with some fun guitar moments on it. I also pushed myself vocally and it is a song I can't wait to get out and play live. I can see it being a fixture in our live set moving forward."

Wolfgang told us a while back that his dad, the late, great Eddie Van Halen, was always a source of advice and inspiration to him: "He definitely has some quirky lines he gives me that definitely help me out, like, in terms of playing music, 'If you ever make a mistake, do it twice so the audience thinks you meant to do it' (laughs)."

Mammoth WVH performs tonight (March 23rd) at Seattle's Paramount Theatre.

For the past year, Weezer celebrated each season with a new EP release and with the coming of spring, they've now dropped an entire box set.

According to their post on social media, The Four SZNZ box set will not be the end of the celebration. They teased that there's more to come and wrote: "P.S. working on getting the next batch of SZNZ vinyl out to you soon too."

The SZNZ project is a collection of four short studio records released on the first day of each seasonal solstice.

TL;DR:

• The Four SZNZ box set is out.
• Band says they're working on getting the next batch of SZNZ vinyl out soon.

Perry Farrell says working on new Jane's Addiction songs has been "one of the most exciting times" of his life. During a recent radio interview, he said, "I feel that this new bunch of songs… We don't know how many we're gonna put out. But I can tell you one thing: it's been one of the most exciting times of my life, because these songs are that good.

He continued, "So, we're putting something out that I'm listening to and I'm going… What I mean by it's that good… When a musician knows, when he's hearing something that he says to himself or she says to herself, ‘I can't wait for people to hear this.' That's what I've been experiencing."

Drummer Stephen Perkins added: "It's such a great experience to have not only the space and the time to make music together, but I find it a great challenge to make the best thing we can possibly make. What's our potential? Let's live up to it. Let's just go for it as hard as we can. Let's not give up until we reach that peak. That's what it feels like."

Red Hot Chili Peppers, Thirty Seconds To Mars, Knocked Loose and more are headlining the 2023 Lollapalooza festival.

Other headlines include Kendrick Lamar, Billie Eilish, Odesza and more. The festival will take place at Grant Park in Chicago, IL from August 3rd to August 6th.

U2's Adam Clayton believes that by reinventing some of the band's oldest tunes on their new Songs Of Surrender collection, the songs have only now grown into what they were meant to be.

Among the early tracks U2 has revisited some 40-years-on are such classics as "I Will Follow," "Two Hearts Beat As One," "Stories For Boys," "11 O'Clock Tick Tock," and "40."

We caught up with the famed bassist and he explained how the band went about restructuring some of their most beloved works: "I guess it was one of the more organic processes that U2 engaged in. Very unwieldy as an idea, y'know -- reimagining 40 songs. We started to see that a lot of the early songs that had felt incomplete, or unfinished, or naive -- when one looked at them now, in reality those were songs with a lot of DNA and intuition. That when you read them, when you looked back at them now at this position of being in our 60's, those lyrics and those songs meant something."

Adam Clayton explained that be pulling the songs apart and looking at them in a new light, the songs became something bigger than before: "It meant The Edge could slow them down, he could bring the keys down, Bono could deliver the vocals in a different way, and suddenly there was a personality that had much more the gravitas of a story that Johnny Cash or Willie Nelson might tell, and it engaged with you in a different way. It stopped you from thinking about that big old '80s rock band that had this big stadium-filling sound."

It was 48 years ago today (March 22nd, 1975), that Led Zeppelin's sixth album, Physical Graffiti, hit Number One on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The album, which marked the band's only studio double set, was released on February 24th, 1975 and topped the charts for six straight weeks, staying in the Top 10 for 12 weeks.

Physical Graffiti remains beloved by fans for such Zeppelin classics as "Kashmir," "Trampled Under Foot," "Houses Of The Holy," "In My Time Of Dying," "Down By The Seaside," "Boogie With Stu," "In The Light," and "The Wonton Song," among others.

Much like the Rolling Stones' 1972 double album, Exile On Main Street, Physical Graffiti is a hodge podge of new songs mixed with high quality outtakes from previous albums -- "Bron-Yr-Aur" was originally intended for 1970's Led Zeppelin III; "Boogie With Stu," "Down By The Seaside," and "Night Flight," were recorded in 1971 for that year's Led Zeppelin IV album. "The Rover," "Houses Of The Holy," and "Black Country Woman" were originally recorded in 1972 for the following year's Houses Of The Holy collection.

We asked Jimmy Page if he knew going in that Physical Graffiti was going to be a double album -- and whether half the set would be comprised of outtakes from the band's previous albums: "I thought about it, but it was as good as the material that we came up with. I knew it was going to be fun to revisit this stuff and sort of even go retro on ourselves. There's not many. . . nobody had done that, really. Not that I know of. And I just thought that it would be really good to add even more colors to the pallet. Because there was such variety across the other albums, and just to make something that was such a statement, that 'this is what we do, and how we do it, and nobody is anywhere near it.'"

Jimmy Page said that he laid the ground work for the new material while composing in his home studio: "I made it my business to make sure that we were gonna come up with that amount of material, because I had a good half-a-dozen -- even more than half-a-dozen pieces to go in with. And one of the ones I had was, like, ‘Ten Years Gone,' with all the guitar overdubs, because I had a home studio, a multitrack studio, so I could do all this sort of thing and I planned towards it. So, I had ‘Wonton Song,' I had 'Sick Again,' on and on and on."

We told Page that "Ten Years Gone" -- one of the many unsung classics on Physical Graffiti -- might actually sum up the essence of him as a musician: "I really appreciate what you're saying about the, sort, of essence of it, and I must say that I really intended to make something that is like a guitar-orchestral piece, that's exactly what I intended. And when I was going through it, Robert (Plant) just came up with these lyrics, which were so bang on, it was just absolutely perfect, with a whole plaintive aspect of what it was. Y'know what I mean? It's emotional call. It was absolutely marvelous, really."

Prior to hitting the studio, Jimmy Page had spent a considerable amount of time demoing his new songs and working out his parts at his home studio, before bringing it to the band for their contributions: "I also had the riff and what becomes the brass and electric 12-string (guitar) interjections over that riff of ‘Kashmir.' And ‘Kashmir'; was the first thing that I was just busting to get in there with John Bonham -- and actually, how it worked out was exactly what it was. It was just me and John Bonham on the recording track. I said, ‘Alright, let's get on with it,' and we started playing the riff. And he absolutely loved the ‘Kashmir' riff. And we were playing it over and over, like trance music, and then we did a take of it and then we started overdubbing the extra parts to it, which were going to become the parts that you hear coming in on the orchestra; ‘cause I did think of this orchestral (part) right from the outset, and I also thought of it around the drums, building around the big drum sound and everything else."

In 2015, Led Zeppelin's deluxe, expanded three-disc reissue of the double album was released featuring unheard material and alternate mixes.

Set for release on June 2nd is Hollywood Vampires' first live album, titled, Live In Rio. The band, which features Alice Cooper, Aerosmith's Joe Perry, and Johnny Depp, was captured live back in 2015 -- only days after the release of their debut album -- performing in front of a whopping 100,000 fans.

Ultimate Classic Rock reported the collection includes such Alice Cooper standards as "School's Out" and "Billion Dollar Babies" along with covers of the Rolling Stones' "Brown Sugar," the Who's "My Generation" and "I'm A Boy," T. Rex's "Jeepster," the Doors' "Five To One," Spirit's "I Got A Line On You," the Jimi Hendrix Experience's "Manic Depression," and John Lennon's "Cold Turkey" -- with Halestorm frontwoman Lzzy Hale joining the band for a take on Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love."

Alice Cooper told us that opposed to his infamous image back in the 1970's -- he hasn't been considered dangerous or outside the mainstream for years: "I'll be walking down the street -- 'Hey, Coop! How's it going, man? How's the game? How's your swing? Hey, love the album!' I used to be the outer fringe. I think 'Alice' now is woven in as much as Simon & Garfunkel, as much as Tom Petty, as much as anybody that's in the fabric of American music. I'm Americana."

The Offspring has announced their 2023 Let The Bad Times Roll tour with special guests Sum 41 and Simple Plan. The 24 city tour will kick off on August 1st at the White River Amphitheatre in Auburn, Washington, and will make stops across the U.S. in Irvine, Phoenix, Atlanta, Tampa, St. Louis and more, before wrapping up in Mansfield, Massachusetts on September 3rd.

The Offspring frontman Dexter Holland said in a statement, "One of the best things about being on tour is traveling the world playing to great audiences, and it's even better when you can do it with your friends. We had sold-out international tours with SIMPLE PLAN and SUM 41, and we're excited that they'll be joining us this Summer in America. It's going to be great!"

Chuck Comeau said of Simple Plan, "We couldn't be more excited to get back on tour all across the U.S. with our friends THE OFFSPRING and SUM 41! We had such a blast touring with both of them last year that we just had to do it again and put together what we feel will be one of the most awesome tours of the summer. There's nothing like going to see a show outside on a perfect summer night, and we hope our fans will join us and enjoy this really special show. See you there!"

Meanwhile, Deryck Whibley of Sum 41 said, "We're so excited to be back touring the States with THE OFFSPRING and SIMPLE PLAN this summer! There's nothing better than hitting the road with your friends, and we can't wait to bring the tour to you. See you soon!"

Check out the tour dates below:

Aug. 01 - Auburn, WA - White River Amphitheatre
Aug. 03 - Salt Lake City, UT – USANA Amphitheatre
Aug. 05 - Mountain View, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre
Aug. 06 - Irvine, CA - FivePoint Amphitheatre
Aug. 08 - Chula Vista, CA - North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
Aug. 09 - Phoenix, AZ - Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
Aug. 11 - Austin, TX - Germania Insurance Amphitheater
Aug. 12 - North Little Rock, AR - Simmons Bank Arena
Aug. 13 - Dallas, TX - Dos Equis Pavilion
Aug. 15 - Atlanta, GA - Lakewood Amphitheatre
Aug. 16 - Tampa, FL - MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre at the FL State Fairgrounds
Aug. 18 - Charlotte, NC - PNC Music Pavilion
Aug. 19 - Bristow, VA - Jiffy Lube Live
Aug. 20 - Darien Center, NY - Darien Lake Amphitheater
Aug. 22 - Cuyahoga Falls, OH - Blossom Music Center
Aug. 23 - Clarkston, MI - Pine Knob Music Theatre
Aug. 25 - Noblesville, IN - Ruoff Music Center
Aug. 26 - Tinley Park, IL - Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre - Chicago, IL
Aug. 27 - St. Louis, MO - Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre - St. Louis, MO
Aug. 29 - Milwaukee, WI - American Family Insurance Amphitheater - Summerfest Grounds
Aug. 30 - Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music Center
Sep. 01 - Burgettstown, PA - The Pavilion at Star Lake
Sep. 02 - Wantagh, NY - Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
Sep. 03 - Mansfield, MA - Xfinity Center

Billie Eilish took to Instagram Sunday to share images of herself in hair and makeup for the Amazon Prime Video thriller Swarm.

One selfie showed the "Ocean Eyes" singer covered in fake blood while wearing a blonde wig, while another depicted Eilish smiling while covered in cuts on her face.

She captioned the post "eva," the name of her character in the Donald Glover-co-created series

Def Leppard's Rick Allen took to social media to thank fans for their "overwhelming support" afer he was assaulted last week in front of the Four Seasons Hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The 19-year-old suspect was arrested lastand is facing a chaege of abuse to an elderly or disabled adult without great harm. He has since bonded out of jail.

Allen wrote via social media,"Thank you everyone for your overwhelming support. Your love and prayers are truly helping. My wife Lauren was thankfully not with me at the time of the incident. We are together now, and working on recovering in a safe space."

He continued, "We are focusing on healing for everyone involved. We ask you to join us in our effort to move from confusion and shock to compassion and empathy. We understand this act of violence can be triggering for so many people. To all of the fans, veterans, and first responders in our global community we are thinking of you all. Together with love, we can all get through these difficult times."

Matchbox Twenty released a new single called "Wild Dogs Running In A Slow Dream," their first in over a decade. At the same time they announced a new album in the works titled, Where The Light Goes, it will be out on May 26.

The band featuring Rob Thomas, Brian Yale, Paul Doucette, and Kyle Cook will be kicking off a North American tour as well. Between May and August, they'll make over 50 stops in cities such as Vancouver, Chicago, Phoenix, West Palm Beach, Nashville, and Dallas.

The outing is the band's first since 2017's A Brief History of Everything Tour which marked the 20th anniversary of their Diamond-certified debut album Yourself or Someone Like You.

Matt Nathanson and Ben Rector are set as opening acts.

TL;DR:

• Matchbox Twenty released a new single called "Wild Dogs (Running In A Slow Dream") their first in over a decade.
• New album, Where The Light Goes, will be out on May 26.
• Beginning in May, the band will be kicking off a North American tour as well.

Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich has opened up about the surviving members of Pantera, including Philip Anselmo, Rex Brown, Zakk Wyldye and Charlie Benante reuniting for a world tour under the Pantera banner.

The band is set to headline a number of major festivals and concerts around the world and they will also support Metallica on their North American stadium tour in 2023 and 2024.

During an interview with Revolver, Ulrich said, "I think that the idea that they're out celebrating the music and the magic of Pantera is ... I know there's been a lot of talk in the community about whether people support that or not. But I'm the type of person, if Glenn Hughes wants to go out and play a Deep Purple set, I'd support that."

He continued, "I'm always in favor of people following their musical and creative ambitions; so this PANTERA reunion, I think, is good. And obviously having Charlie up there is great. I saw a video from one of the Mexico shows that felt like they were in the pocket. It'll be fun to have them out."

Speaking on Metallica's relationship with Pantera, he said, "We met the brothers on the 'Ride The Lightning' tour and became friends with them. This was in Dallas in — what — 1622 or something? It was about 400 years ago. We obviously loved both of them, and they had a posse down there, and we would see them whenever we came through Texas. We watched the band evolve over the years from more rock vibes into that creative, unique force that they became. So, we've had a relationship with them for decades and decades."

During a performance on BBC Radio 2, Bono let everyone know that he and U2 are all big fans of ABBA. He said "I didn't have the courage to own up to it when I was 16 and in the middle of punk rock." He went on to thank ABBA for their music.

And before doing a slow version of "S.O.S." The Edge called them "great songwriters," and said their music "grew on him over the years."

TL;DR:

• During a performance on BBC Radio 2, Bono let everyone know that he and U2 are all big fans of ABBA.
• And before doing a slow version of "S.O.S." The Edge called them "great songwriters," and said their music "grew on him over the years."

Both Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders and Courtney Love have taken time out to slam the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Love, who posted a sprawling op-ed in London's The Observer, lambasted the institution for its lack of diversity regarding women and minorities -- with Hynde just reminding fans how lame she thought the Rock Hall was and remains.

Love, who has been eligible for induction with Hole since 2016, posted, in part:

If so few women are being inducted into the Rock Hall, then the nominating committee is broken. If so few Black artists, so few women of color, are being inducted, then the voting process needs to be overhauled. Music is a lifeforce that is constantly evolving – and they can't keep up. Shame on HBO for propping up this farce.

If the Rock Hall is not willing to look at the ways it is replicating the violence of structural racism and sexism that artists face in the music industry, if it cannot properly honor what visionary women artists have created, innovated, revolutionized and contributed to popular music -- well, then let it go to hell in a handbag.

Chrissie Hynde, who was inducted into the Rock Hall as part of the Pretenders back in 2005 posted on Facebook:

If anyone wants my position in the rock ‘n' roll Hall of Fame they are welcome to it. I don't even wanna be associated with it. It's just more establishment backslapping. I got in a band so I didn't have to be part of all that.

I was living a happy life in Rio when I got the call I was being inducted. My heart sank because I knew I'd have to go back for it as it would be too much of a kick in the teeth to my parents if I didn't. I'd upset them enough by then, so it was one of those things that would bail me out from years of disappointing them (like moving out of the USA and being arrested at PETA protests and my general personality).

Other than Neil Young's participation in the induction process, the whole thing was, and is, total bollocks.

It's absolutely nothing to do with rock ‘n' roll and anyone who thinks it is is a fool.

At the time of the Pretenders' Rock Hall induction Chrissie Hynde admitted that she was somewhat ambivalent about the honor: "Well y'know for me, I felt I was recognized because I got to be in a rock n' roll band. I didn't really want any more. I didn't want the fame particularly, I don't really like to be very big, I feel like we represent the losers in the world, y'know, I like to stay in the dark, I don't like too much exposure."

Def Leppard is going the orchestral route on May 19th with the release of their latest album, titled, Drastic Symphonies, featuring, "tracks dramatically reimagined by London's iconic Royal Philharmonic Orchestra" -- along with new vocals and instrumentation from the band.

Frontman Joe Elliott said in the album's official announcement, "When the offer to revisit some of our back catalogue with the Royal Philharmonic was presented to us, we all jumped at it. Although we're far from the first band to ever do this, working directly with an orchestra at Abbey Road on some of our more orchestrated songs seemed too good of an opportunity to pass up."

Guitarist Phil Collen added: "We decided to create something special where we would have something classic but present it in a brand new way that would involve making everything work in the context of Drastic Symphonies. Recording new parts, remixing previous sounds, taking some of our instruments out so the orchestra could breathe, and literally making a new album."

Joe Elliott remains amazed that bands with multi-decade histories are still able to move sizable numbers of new records and pack arenas and stadiums across the globe: "We were in the front end of a whole new way of doin' this and we're lucky that we've stayed together to be able to exploit that and enjoy it and all that kind of stuff. But even when we got together, we thought (we'd be around) maybe five or 10 years -- because that's all there was. There was an eight-year-old Led Zeppelin when we formed. The Beatles had only been split for seven, the Rolling Stones and the Who were essentially, maybe, 13, 14-years-old. So, there was no band that was around for 40 years. So, it's insane when you say it off the top of your head just like that."

Def Leppard and Motley Crue kick off their next set of joint North American dates on August 5th in Syracuse, New York at JMA Wireless Dome.

The tracklist to Def Leppard's upcoming Drastic Symphonies is:

"Turn To Dust"
"Paper Sun"
"Animal"
"Pour Some Sugar On Me (Stripped version)"
"Hysteria"
"Love Bites"
"Goodbye For Good This Time"
"Love"
"Gods Of War"
"Angels (Can't Help You Now)"
"Bringin' On the Heartbreak"
"Switch 625"
"Too Late For Love"
"When Love & Hate Collide"
"Kings Of The World"
"Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad" - vinyl and Blu-Ray bonus track