Def Leppard’s ‘Diamond Star Halos’ Is One Year Old, So Let’s Talk About It | Album Review

On May 27, 2022, English hard rock band Def Leppard released their twelfth studio album Diamond Star Halos. Today, the album is exactly one year old. Isn’t it crazy how fast time flows by?

I was really excited when Def Leppard announced the album because it was my first new studio release since becoming a fan of the band. I was also nervous, however, because I wasn’t fond of the 2015 self-titled studio album and I knew that they weren’t going to make another High ‘n’ Dry (1981) or Pyromania (1983). Maybe it’s a good thing they never tried to repeat their past, but it’s taking a long time for me to accept Def Leppard’s current sound. In fact, I simply tossed aside Diamond Star Halos after a couple of listens last year. I spent more time listening to On Through the Night (1980) than Diamond Star Halos; I bought the former around the same time. 

With Diamond Star Halo’s one year anniversary, I decided to revisit the album to see if my thoughts have changed and if I find some enjoyable stuff on there. Also, I’ve never done a Def Leppard album review on my blog before, so I might as well check that off the list.

Def Leppard’s current sound is very commercialized. Big backing vocals, infectious melodies, decent guitar riffs, and loads of pop hooks. “Kick”, the album’s first single is a throwback to the band’s glam metal sound with an insanely catchy chorus, perfect harmonies, a solid beat, and loads of melodies. “Gimme a Kiss” is a stadium rocker that follows the same format. “Liquid Dust” is a nice, moody track about self-reflection. “Open Your Eyes” has a killer groove, thanks to Rick Savage’s bass line, and it sounds like it could’ve been on the band’s alternative Slang (1996) album. “From Here to Eternity” is Def Leppard doing Queen; it’s got that dramatic and grand feel to it.

As for the downsides, let’s start with the fact that there are way too many songs on the album. There are 15 tracks total and it’s over an hour long. As to why the band chose to do this, maybe it’s because they wanted to fill up as much room on the CD as possible or they wanted to give listeners more music to make up for not releasing new material for seven years. Either way, Def Leppard did not need to include 15 songs on Diamond Star Halos.

Some of the lyrics on the album are pretty bad, as well. The opening track, “Take What You Want” sounds like something Disney Channel would put together. It’s way too tame and poppy. “SOS Emergency” and “U Rok Mi” are just as bad lyrically; notice how Def Leppard intentionally spelt “rock” wrong in the weirdest way possible. Then, the band went country again with “This Guitar” and “Lifeless.” The blues-based riffs on both songs are good, but they’re not good Def Leppard songs. Considering how “Nine Lives” with Tim McGraw left some fans scratching their heads, it’s unbelievable the band decided to risk their career and go down that path once more.

For some reason, I like to complain about my favorite bands and Def Leppard is no exception. I respect them for continuing on after Steve Clark’s death, but where’s the rock ‘n’ roll? The big and nasty guitar riffs are nowhere to be found on Diamond Star Halos. Unfortunately, it’s obvious that the band’s heavy rock days are long gone and they’re fine with that. I guess, I have to be fine with that too. 

You have to wonder, though, what would’ve happened if Steve Clark hadn’t died or if Pete Willis wasn’t fired from Def Leppard. Would the band be as popular today? I’ll admit, I enjoy some of Def Leppard’s modern stuff, heck, I even adore the X (2002) album, but I miss the pounding drums and ferocious riffs from their heydays. The band doesn’t even play their modern stuff live anymore because they’re too busy playing their songs from the ‘80s. With Pyromania, Def Leppard had a good blend of commercial pop and hard rock, but they took the commercial element too far on Hysteria (1987) and it’s been that way ever since (not including Slang). Sorry for rant there.

Look, some of the songs on Diamond Star Halos are good and the production is fine for what it is. But again, there are way too many tracks and the lyrics could’ve been touched upon better. Thankfully, the album is growing on me and my thoughts could change again a year later. For now, I like eight out of the 15 songs, which is about 53 percent. With that in mind, I’ll give Diamond Star Halos a rating of 2.65 out of 5.0 stars.

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Take care and see ya real soon!

Lana