Search - Def Leppard :: Adrenalize (Mlps) (Shm)

Emerging Storms On The Horizon

Phoust | London, England | 10/14/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"`Andrenalize' was released 4 years after the mega-successful `Hysteria' and in many ways it is often compared to it's predecessor to it's own detriment. I however can't see why people think less of this album than they do of `Hysteria' because to me it just sounds like `Hysteria' Part II, yet that may be part of the reason. There were great songs on `Adrenalize' from the power ballads of `Heaven Is' and `Have You Ever Wanted Someone So Bad' to hard rockers like ` Tear It Down' and the smutty `Make Love Like A Man' and `Tonight' the socially conscious `White Lightning' to throw away fun like `Let's Get Rocked'. For me Def Leppard represented what rock was supposed to be about: Fun. Def Leppard also had great artwork at the time, something that they seem to have lost sight of (see X) which annoys me terribly because I believe in the whole package.



1992 was a terribly uncertain time for a band like Def Leppard when they released `Adrenalize', the previous year had seen the emergence from the underground of Nirvana with their `Nevermind' album. Seismic changes would be put into effect as a result of the emergence of what would be called alternative rock or grunge. It really difficult to pinpoint exactly why things changed, but the fact remains that 80's style hair metal within a year would become a dirty word. However at the time it was not unusual to see bands like Mr Big and Guns `n' Roses alongside Nirvana and R.E.M. in the charts. Def Leppard would later feel the effect of these changes and alter their sound in a bid for survival. Not only Def Leppard but also colossal giant of thrash metal like Metallica and Megadeth would follow suit and as a result 1994 - 1996 will always for me be the years of sell-outs. What they failed to recognise is that at the time fans would happily listen to Nirvana, Def Leppard, Metallica, Deicide, R.E.M., U2, Ice Cube, Culture Beat, Madonna and Snap all on the same day. It wasn't the fan that brought about the changes but the industry jumping on bandwagons, so don't blame fans for your falling fortunes, blame yourself. 1992 was the year that the buying public began to have more choice when it came to music, music was expanding and fracturing into a myriad of genres and sub genres until what we have to today, where what is in the chart is complete crap because what is bought is bought by the musically lazy with no real interest in music. The good stuff is still there, one just has to look for it and that is why the Internet is a vital tool and Amazon a godsend.

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Not My Favorite, But Still Good

Phoust | 04/08/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"As noted in the booklet, "Adrenalize" was dedicated to the late Def Leppard guitarist, Stephen Maynard Clark. His death was, in fact, Def Leppard's "starting point" for this CD. Although "Adrenalize" isn't one of my favorites by them (that would probably be "Hysteria"--which, of course, I have somehow lost), it's still one of their best earlier CDs, opening with a fluffy angst song for the young male crowd, "Let's Get Rocked." Like this first track, most of the songs on "Adrenalize" are fast and pop-oriented, but there are few good ballads thrown in, like my two favorites on here: "Tonight" and "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad." This CD is certainly worth a listen if you're a Def Leppard fan and/or like '80s/'90s pop rock."

Timeless

Michael Wetzel | Portland, Oregon United States | 10/22/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"just like the greats like Elvis, Jerry Lee and the rest, this can be listened to in any generation."