Rock icons, DEF LEPPARD, have extended their 70-plus US and UK tour to run riot Down Under, finally playing their landmark, longest recording in full – 1987’s seminal Hysteria LIVE! German rock legends SCORPIONS also join the tour for their first-ever New Zealand concert in the band’s 50-plus-years history.
Four years in the making, Hysteria is the groundbreaking, 12-track album that saw Def Leppard overcome the adversity of drummer Rick Allen’s car crash injury and conquer the world. An enduring legacy dripping with rock anthems such as “Animal”, “Pour Some Sugar On Me”, “Hysteria”, “Armageddon It”, “Love Bites”, “Woman” and “Rocket”. Igniting this epic piece of rock music history, Def Leppard will perform Hysteria in full alongside other songs from their 100-million-plus selling catalogue, at Auckland’s Spark Arena this November
“I’m delighted that we can bring the whole Hysteria album to New Zealand later this year. From ‘Women’ to ‘Love and Affection’ plus many other faves thrown in for good measure. We can’t wait!” – Rick “Sav” Savage
As mentioned, SCORPIONS join this tour as very special guests. The rock heavyweights played their debut Australian show in Melbourne in October 2016 as part of their 50th Anniversary World Tour however they never made it to New Zealand. Arguably Germany’s most successful rock band with massive hits “Wind of Change” and “Rock You Like A Hurricane”, their November performance will be the band’s first-ever New Zealand show.
Live Nation presents
Def Leppard
With special guests Scorpions
Monday 12th November | Spark Arena | Auckland
Tickets go on sale 1pm, Friday 4th May.
Spark Customers will be able to access a special pre-sale commencing 10am Tuesday, 1st May until 10am Thursday, 3rd May.
Live Nation pre-sale commences 2pm Thursday, 3rd May until 11am Friday, 4th May.
For complete tour, ticket and VIP Experience information, visit: livenation.co.nz
Press Release:
On January 19, 2018 around the world, legendary British rock icons Def Leppard debuted their full recording catalogue worldwide via https://DefLeppard.lnk.to/Digital. One of the last multi-platinum selling acts to be made available on streaming and download platforms, music fans from all corners of the globe have been streaming and downloading tracks and albums from Def Leppard.
The response has been extraordinary with a host of Def Leppard album and singles re-entering the charts across the world. Hysteria reached No 3 in the USA iTunes chart and No 5 in the UK iTunes chart.
As a cornerstone of rock and roll’s history, Def Leppard’s substantial career includes numerous hit singles including their first early chart hit “Wasted” to their radio and MTV staples “Bringin’ On The Heartbreak”, “Photograph”, “Rock of Ages”, “Too Late”, “Animal”, “Armageddon It”, “Love Bites”, “Rocket” and “Let’s Get Rocked.” Their ground-breaking multi-platinum albums—including two of the best-selling albums of all time with sales of more than 10 million copies each in the U.S. alone Pyromania and Hysteria, captured some of the group’s legendary tracks, bringing together classic Leppard hits such as “Pour Some Sugar on Me”, “Hysteria” and “Foolin’.” The group continued their success expanding into the world of film, covers, and new collaborations including “Two Steps Behind” from the film Last Action Hero, “No Matter What”, “Waterloo Sunset”, and “Nine Lives” with Tim McGraw as well as Def Leppard hits “When Love and Hate Collide”, “Slang”, “Work It Out”, “Promises” and “Now.” Finally, all of Def Leppard’s awe-inspiring music is available to everyone, around the world from the band’s eponymous debut EP through to their most recent album.
Def Leppard – Joe Elliott (vocals), Phil Collen (guitar), Rick “Sav” Savage (bass), Vivian Campbell (guitar) and Rick Allen (drums) – continue to be one of the most important forces in rock music. Over the course of their career the band has produced a series of classic ground-breaking albums that have sold more than 100 million copies worldwide and set the bar for generations of music fans and artists alike. The group’s spectacular live shows and arsenal of hits have become synonymous with their name, leading Def Leppard to be heralded as an institution in both the music and touring industry. The band’s most recent self-titled studio album debuted at #1 on Billboard’s Top Rock Albums and Top Independent Albums charts. The album also took the #5 spot on Billboard’s Top Current Albums and #10 spot on the Top 200, as well as claiming 15 top 10 debuts around the world.
In 1988, Scorpions were the first Western rock band to play ten consecutive sold-out shows in the then Soviet Leningrad. Returning the following year to play the Moscow Music Peace festival, Scorpions ultimately conquered Russia inspiring frontman Klaus Meine to write the track that became a theme song to the Iron Curtain’s fall: “Wind of Change.” The 1991 megahit ballad peaked at #2 on the Billboard chart and hit #1 in eleven countries, while the anthemic “Rock You Like A Hurricane” has been covered more than 150 times by different musicians.
Scorpions’ had further Top Ten hits, including: #1 “No One Like You” (1982), “Still Loving You” (1984), “Rhythm Of Love” (1988), “Tease Me, Please Me” (1990), “Send Me An Angel” (1991) and “Alien Nation” (1993).
1979’s Lovedrive was the band’s first album to reach the Billboard 200, followed by Top Ten hits Savage Amusement (1988), Love At First Sting (1984) and Blackout (1982). Top Ten Billboard hard rock albums include Sting In The Tail, Comeblack and MTV Unplugged, accumulating in combined unit sales exceeding 100 million.