The Classic Metal Album Grudge Match:

Artist: Def Leppard

Title: High n' Dry
Label: Mercury
Release Date: 1981

Rating: 4 Skulls

 VS.
Title: Pyromania
Label: Polygram
Release Date: 1983

Rating: 4 Skulls
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    • Solomon's Review:
    With the current wave of boy bands and rap metal acts hitting Billboard these days, it's hard to remember when stuff like this sold by the boatload.

    Hysteria was my first real exposure to the band, but this platter stands out in my mind as the truly definitive Def Leppard experience. Pyromania has elements of gloss that later records would expand upon, but there's still enough raw guitar to make it a metal record, and this one has most of my favorite Def Lep tunes on it. Calling it "metal" seems kind of silly given the pop appeal of this album, but then again, the term isn't too far off base. Def Leppard's third effort helps reveal the band's diverse pedigree: part AC/DC, part Iron Maiden, part Bon Jovi, NWOBHM meets Michael Jackson. Pyromania came out when I was in the 4th grade, so it was a little before my time, but I would say the album's success was probably due in part to this fusion of influences: there's enough sugar to get them on the radio and enough of an edge to keep them relevent to die-hard rock/metal fans. Def Leppard are good songwriters: the tunes are relatively short, contain fairly tame lyrics that appeal to common love/sex themes, and feature sing-along choruses that fall just short of angelic. This thick, heavenly gang-vocal attack has become the band's signature, and a Def Leppard record is not complete without them. There's a little bit for everybody on Pyromania. "Rock Rock (Till You Drop)" and "Action! Not Words" provide a dose of upbeat crotch-rock (not my favorites) while moodier stuff like "Foolin'" and "Too Late For Love" (killer riff at 1:45) keep the band firmly rooted in the Euro-metal camp. Pyromania is not a metallic feast of stellar guitar solos and furious dynamics, but it shows a band who knows how to write hard-edged songs that actually sound different from one another. It gave metal a serious commercial boost to boot. A "lite metal" staple.
    Pyromania: 4 out of 5

    Death's Review:
    You have to admit, "Def Leppard" is one of rock's all-time stupidest band names. But I have to admit, Def Leppard is one of a handful of bands (including Ozzy Osbourne, Motley Crue, Dio, Born Again–era Sabbath, Judas Priest and Quiet Riot) which got me into hard rock and heavy metal in 1983. I can almost pinpoint in my mind the day I bought Pyromania on cassette back in eighth grade 'cause I, like everyone else in the country, loved "Photograph" so much.

    But now, with the wisdom of many years of listening to music behind me, can tell you with absolute certainty that the album before Pyromania, High n' Dry, is the better album and is the pinnacle of Def Leppard's career. "Let it Go" is a killer rock opener, with buzzsaw guitar riffing, and a down and dirty, reckless vibe which sounds like NWOBHM with a darker and catchier bent. This is the type of music you want to play loudly while driving really fast down a lonely stretch of road, or while throwing back shots with a room full of drunken friends. "Another Hit and Run" carries the vibe forward, and "High n' Dry" solidifies the party HARD theme. This shit is more metal than AC/DC or anything else that was big in hard rock in 1981. "Bringing on the Heartbreak" is quite overplayed by now, but at the time it was a great rock ballad, and together with songs like the Scorpions' "No One Like You," defined the metal power ballad which would dominate the radio airwaves later that decade. Finally, the instrumental "Switch 625" rocks to this day. I think a moden undergound metal band should cover this one – no joke.

    So forget Pyromania and everything else you know about Def Leppard. If you've never listened to High n' Dry, you've never heard the band's most worthwhile material.
    High n' Dry: 4 out of 5
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