Marty’s review last week on Asia made me reminisce about this past Thursday’s concert that had a triple bill of Def Leppard, Styx and Foreigner. Not exactly the blood and thunder of your typical metal show but every band on the roster could teach some new acts today a thing or two about being rock stars and putting on a terrific show. The 2007 version of Foreigner, whose guitarist Mick Jones is the only original member, played a forty five minute set that was solely based on their biggest hits. They came out and played exactly what the crowd wanted to hear. New vocalist Kelly Hansen looked a lot like Steven Tyler with his black leather pants and open throated, loose, button up shirt. Just like Steven Tyler, his voice was in really good form. He managed an eerily, near flawless imitation of original singer Lou Gramm. Cold As Ice, Jukebox Hero, Head Games, Urgent you name it and it was played. Despite being up there in age they didn’t root themselves into one spot and boorishly meander through their catalog. Jason Bonham was filling in on drums and I liked the fact that the band didn’t overplay his father’s connection like so many advert stickers on cds. His short, but entertaining drum solo, segued into Urgent and sounded like it actually fit the song. Foreigner put on a great show, marred only by their seven PM start time which had them going on while it was still light outside.

Styx was up next and they ended up being the best performers of the night. I was curious as to see what they would play and secretly hoped they could eschew their number one hit Mr. Roboto or any other of their embarrassing faux musicals. Much like Foreigner, Styx played a set of their most well known songs. Similar to Def Leppard, each member of Styx plays an important part vocally. Tommy Shaw, keyboardist Lawrence Gowan, and James Young, all took the mic throughout the show. This reminded me of Journey when I saw them a year ago. It seemed like the songs were split evenly between Jeff Soto and drummer Dean Castronova. It was odd seeing Jeff do Anyway You Want It and then Dean for Lights. Tommy Shaw would sing for songs like Blue Collar Man and Too Much Time On My Hands while Gowan carried on (ha ha) with Come Sail Away amongst others. His antics were also entertaining to watch. He would climb on his huge rotating keyboard stand, run across the stage, and looked like he was having fun. Clocking it at fifty minutes, Styx put on a rocking, crowd pleasing set that was compact and full of well chosen songs. But dammit, they didn’t play Lady.

This is the third time I’ve seen Def Leppard in as many years. Their performance last year with Journey was not as energetic as the one prior, mostly in part because the setlist at each show contained the same songs only in a different order. Tonight however, they proved why they are on the top of the marquee. Opening with Rocket, which was a brilliant move because this time they couldn’t play a ten minute version of the song with Whole Lotta Love thrown in, they came out strong. Animal was next and it sounded a bit muffled compared to the studio version but its stripped down format did give it a heavier slant than normal. The only real foul up of the night was next in Exciteable. Most of the crowd, including me, were just kind of like, “what the hell is this?” Only one other cover would be played that night, Rock On and it was much better. I do wish they would drop this one and fit in something a bit more obscure, maybe Run Riot or Stagefright? Speaking of more obscure songs I can’t complain too much here because they went to the vaults and dusted off Mirror Mirror and Another Hit And Run. Two metal as hell songs back to back was the biggest surprise of the night. I’ve read interviews where the band is saying they “we were never metal,” and other such nonsense but that night they sure were. I never thought I’d hear those guitar harmonies in Mirror Mirror live and here they are. More hits followed like Foolin’ and Hysteria but three quarters of the way through and we get another surprise. With the exception of drummer Rick Allen, the band comes out to the catwalk with acoustic guitars and proceed to put on a mini acoustic set. Two Steps Behind was played in full and then Bringin’ On The Heartbreak was given the unplugged treatment. Well, the first half anyway. When the solo would kick in so did the Marshalls and it was back into full on electric mode. A closing combo of Photograph, Pour Some Sugar On Me, and Rock Of Ages made the finale a rousing event.

This was my first show in a big arena in a long time and I have to say that it was quite an enjoyable experience. The years that each band has had in terms of touring and performing for people in venues this size really shows as each band that night actually seemed larger than life. Frontmen were frontmen and not just singers that stood in one place. Def Leppard stepped it up and spiced their setlist up healthily with the fan requested songs and their acoustic set. If they had done the same damn show three times in a row I wouldn’t be expecting to go to the next one. Foreigner, Styx, and Def Leppard may not be as big of a draw to metal heads as Iced Earth and Judas Priest, but this is definitely a show to catch.