Monday Metal

Next week (31 March) is the 30th anniversary of Def Leppard's Adrenalize. Back in '92*, we didn't even know Adrenalize was coming till we saw it on display at a massive record store in London, our grandparents took us there for a graduation present. When we got back to the hotel, we popped the cassette into our Walkman and were...kind of underwhelmed.

In the 15 years since Def Leppard released On Through the Night, they evolved from post-glamrock to  hardrock, to sharp-edged heavy metal to...early 90's rock. Adrenalize has a lot of soft guitar rifts and melodies. At least a couple of songs would make perfectly good romantic mood music. High and Dry (1981), where every song had searing vocals and guitar rifts, Adrenalize was not. 

Everyone likes to talk about Grunge, but the early 90s were also a time of pop one hit wonders and love ballads. Adrenalize is a product of its time. Also, lead guitarist Steve Clark had died in 1991, so the album was a four man rather than a five man effort. Adrenalize simply lacked the punch of High and Dry, Pyromania, and Hysteria.

Which isn't to say Adrenalize is bad. The album quickly grew on us that spring, becoming part of the soundtrack of and a great comfort during a very difficult time. This week is Adrenalize week at Stroock's Books, and we'll be doing a deep dive into the album. 

*Reference.