Def Leppard & Scorpions, Auckland NZ, 2018

Def Leppard & Scorpions

12th November 2018
Spark Arena, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Doug Peters.

Auckland was undoubtedly rocked from its head to its feet last night as the juggernaut of a double header in the form of Scorpions and Def Leppard rolled into town for their one and only New Zealand show.

It would be fair to say that trepidation hung heavy in the air for many Scorpions fans with the news that due to Klaus Meine’s vocal issues the band had had to pull out of both their Melbourne and Sydney shows. But the deities of rock bestowed their blessings on Auckland, trepidation soon turning to jubilant elation as the German rockers stepped out onto the stage looking amped and ready to make it up to New Zealand for having never visited before in their fifty-three-year long career.

Klaus Meine looked the picture of health as he stood before thousands of ecstatic fans, a small smile crossing his lips before the band exploded with ‘Going out with a Bang’ many fans down the front immediately leaving their seats and rushing to the barrier. Whatever vocal issues Meine had been suffering seemed to be nothing but a distant memory as he delivered the opener with gusto, moving quickly up and down the stage as the three man guitar line in the form of Rudolf Schenker, Matthias Jabs and bassist Pawel Maciwoda swirled around him; Schenker often breaking off and careening down the ramp that jutted out into the front rows before delivering some seriously fancy finger work to the fans down front who were hanging on every note.

Crowd favourites such as ‘The Zoo’ were performed without a fault, the ever so slightly younger members of the band providing much of the kick behind it. Meine even showed off his instrumental side by grabbing a cow bell and adding his two cents along the way before tossing dozens of drum sticks to the ravenous audience. With a little crowd banter in between Meine introduced the Scorpions 70’s period with a delectable medley before one of their more recent hits ‘We Built this House’ from the 2015 album Return to Forever saw the crowd good-naturedly sing along to the lyrics on screen as Meine continuously held his mic stand out over their heads. ‘Wind of Change’ however proved that Meine can indeed whistle impeccably live, the song prompting an arena sing-along that induced many a tear or two among the masses.

A monstrous drum solo from Mikkey Dee who officially joined the band in 2016 saw the crowd go wild; unsurprising really when he comes with a pedigree that boasts several years with not only King Diamond and Dokken but a twenty-three-year stint with none other than Motörhead. Often drum solos can be cliché and frankly a little yawn inducing, but Dee with his mop of long hair was both rhythmical and impressively precision drill fast.

A mini costume/instrument change saw Schenker return with a guitar that had its own exhaust pipe, billowing a plume of smoke that trailed behind him as he once again traversed the stage at speed during the rock tracks ‘Blackout’ and ‘Big City Nights’; Scorpions bringing it home with ‘Rock you like a Hurricane’ to thunderous applause. A well-executed and genuinely passionate set that was certainly worth the wait for all that had come to bear witness.

With a thirty-minute intermission in between bands it gave fans time to gather themselves, a booming voice over the PA system encouraging all to eat and drink before the Def Leppard portion of the show began. A big screen countdown clock was soon lowered across the stage, the anticipation building with every second that ticked by.

Promising to play their 1987 album Hysteria in full, Def Leppard hit the ground running – ‘Women’ and ‘Rocket’ leading the charge into some of the most enduring hair metal songs of the 80’s. ‘Animal’ and the smouldering ‘Love Bites’ complete with smoky haze and blood red lasers that fanned across the stage had the crowd crooning along with Joe Elliott before the epitome of all that was the music of the era wrapped up into one innuendo style package crashed down from the heavens; ‘Pour some Sugar on Me’ seeing a shirtless and decidedly well cut Phil Collen riff it out in style while Elliott proved that he can still hit those big notes without barely breaking a sweat.

Big screen visuals often framed the stage, the band’s touring years flashing across them; a tribute to fallen guitarist Steve Clark who passed away in 1991 tastefully done as old footage of him playing the intro to ‘Gods of War’ slowly faded to black, the current Def Leppard line up taking up the reins. A very slight dip in energy crowd wise came before and after the title track of ‘Hysteria’ the live version seeing the song capped with the chorus line from David Bowie’s ‘Heroes’. With the album section of the set finishing with ‘Love and Affection’, the band exited the stage thus allowing the thousands in attendance the chance to not only show their appreciation but in true rock show style, scream for more.

Def Leppard were in no doubt at this point performing a highly polished and well executed set that could not be faulted bar for the fact that it lacked a little of the raw passion and audience engagement of their predecessors the Scorpions. However, there is an obvious bond between these members that cannot be denied, subtle touches of it shining through as a brief duet between Elliott and Collen saw the guitarist cheekily peck Elliott on the cheek; the adulation and respect for their drummer Rick Allen who tragically lost his left arm in a car crash in 1984 obvious every time they drew the crowd’s attention to him.

Returning in his third costume change for the evening – Queen Elizabeth emblazoned with the Bowie lightning bolt adorning Elliott’s t-shirt – Def Leppard took the crowd through a five-song encore that bookended the Hysteria album timeline wise. ‘Make Love like a Man’ and the softer ‘When Love and Hate Collide’ leading into the stadium sized foot stomper of ‘Let’s Get Rocked’. While it would have been more fitting to have seen the band finish the last date of their Australasian tour on something punchier than 1983’s ‘Photograph’ no one could deny the sheer quality of their overall slick performance.

Both bands proving unequivocally that the anthems of rock will always be in their own unique way, timeless.

Were you there at Spark Arena to witness this stadium rock double header? Or have you seen Scorpions or Def Leppard perform live some other time? Tell us about it in the comments below!

Def Leppard Setlist:

1. Women
2. Rocket
3. Animal
4. Love Bites
5. Pour Some Sugar On Me
6. Armageddon It
7. Gods Of War
8. Don’t Shoot Shotgun
9. Run Riot
10. Hysteria
11. Excitable
12. Love And Affection
13. Make Love Like A Man
14. When Love And Hate Collide
15. Let’s Get Rocked
16. Rock Of Ages
17. Photograph

Scorpions Setlist:

1. Going Out With A Bang
2. Make It Real
3. The Zoo
4. Coast To Coast
5. Top Of The Bill/Steamrock Fever/Speedys Coming/Catch Your Train
6. We Built This House
7. Wind Of Change
8. Tease Me Please Me
9. Blackout
10. Big City Nights
11. Rock You Like A Hurricane

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