DEF LEPPARD – Viva! Hysteria [2CD] (2013)

*

For the first time ever, DEF LEPPARD played their definitive album ‘Hysteria’ in its entirety during an eleven-show residency which started on March 22, 2013 at The Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. All was recorded & filmed and just has been released as “Viva! Hysteria” on various formats by Frontiers Records.

Basically, seeing and listening Hysteria wholly performed live has been a fantasy of fans for a couple decades. And then it happened. And it’s a really enjoyable experience.
The recording is almost perfect, there’s a superb mix & mastering. The band sounds hot and tight, the guitars come out clean and sharp, the bass pumps and the trademark backing vocals / harmonies really stand out.
Now, before you ask, yes, Joe Elliott deliver the goods. I still remember his terrible, recent Download Festival performance, and evidently he has taken note of this and is back in fine form here. I’m sure they punched up some spots in post production but it sounds genuine.

CD 1 features the full “Hysteria” in the same song sequence as the original. It’s a pleasure listening to classics like “Pour Some Sugar On Me”, “Animal”, “Love Bites”… all in fact. Def Lepp returns on stage for the encore with “Rock of Ages” and “Photograph”.
What a pair of ‘bonuses’ eh?
At these Las Vegas concerts, the band played themselves as ‘opening act’ under the fictitious name of Ded Flatbird, showcasing some fan favourites and very rare songs from the early years besides a selection of their greatest hits, highlighting classic material from throughout their career.
That’s what we find on CD 2; delightful renditions of “Rock Brigade”, “Stagefright”, “Mirror, Mirror”, “On Through The Night”, “Bringin’ On The Heartbreak” and more.

“Viva! Hysteria” is a great one, it comes in a deluxe packaging including a 28-page booklet with lots of pictures, a very colorful glossy printing, and you can choose various formats for a very reasonable price.
It’s Def Leppard, It’s Hysteria, and I love it.

CD 1 :
01 – Women
02 – Rocket
03 – Animal
04 – Love Bites
05 – Pour Some Sugar On Me
06 – Armageddon It
07 – Gods Of War
08 – Don’t Shoot Shotgun
09 – Run Riot
10 – Hysteria
11 – Excitable
12 – Love And Affection
13 – Rock Of Ages
14 – Photograph

CD 2 :
01 – Good Morning Freedom
02 – Wasted
03 – Stagefright
04 – Mirror Mirror (Look Into My Eyes)
05 – Action
06 – Rock Brigade
07 – Undefeated
08 – Promises
09 – On Through The Night
10 – Slang
11 – Let It Go
12 – Another Hit And Run
13 – High ‘n’ Dry (Saturday Night)
14 – Bringin’ On The Heartbreak
15 – Switch 625

Joe Elliott – lead vocals
Rick Savage – bass, keyboards, backing vocals
Rick Allen – drums, backing vocals
Phil Collen, Vivian Campbell – guitars, backing vocals

BUY IT !
www.bestbuy.com/site/viva-hysteria-cd-dvd-deluxe-10-21-dvd-deluxe-edition-cd/2156015.p?id=2758270
.