DEF LEPPARD singer Joe Elliott spoke with Andrew Williams from Metro.co.uk recently about a number of topics. A few excerpts from the chat follow:

Metro.co.uk: What’s happening with Def Leppard?

Elliott: "We’re taking a year off. I’m doing this because I have the time. After you have a hit like Hysteria and you’re signed to the corporate machine it becomes an albatross around your neck. As much as our music is anthemic rock’n’roll it’s a business at the end of the day. It’s stressful and gets harder each time you make a record. No one’s comparing this to Hysteria, it’s got nothing to do with it. It’s a refreshing change. It’s like being a teenager in a 50-year-old body."

Metro.co.uk: What was it like trying to start a metal band in the punk era?

Elliott: "It was exciting. I was 17 when punk happened but I was still buying QUEEN and THIN LIZZY. We liked punk but didn’t want to be in a punk band. The first song we learned was 'Suffragette City'. The good thing was that punk got rid of the 15 minute guitar solo."

Metro.co.uk: Do you think people look down on rock?

Elliott: "Rock’s ploughed its own furrow for 30 years but still music magazines don’t give rock its due and still rave on about NICK DRAKE. How many more front covers do PAUL MCCARTNEY and MORRISSEY need? Our album will sell more than Morrissey’s so why don’t we get the same kind of respect? There are more people than BONO and MICHAEL STIPE to put on the cover of a magazine. Whether it’s SIMON LE BON, GARY KEMP, BRUCE DICKINSON or me, there are more musicians out there. It’s not just LENNON and JIM MORRISON. Bands who have sold shitloads of records, whether it be us or DEPECHE MODE, are becoming footnotes."

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