Currently on tour in the US, Def Leppard frontman Joe Elloitt spooke with NUVO about life, death and new music. Following is an excerpt from the interview.

NUVO: How would you describe Def Leppard’s growth as a band over time?

Elliott: "We exist, we constantly exist like the Rolling Stones, or even like individuals like Paul McCartney. It’s a career, this is something we’ve always wanted to do and we don’t really want to stop doing it. We never saw a shelf life, as long as we enjoyed it, and as long we don’t become a parody of ourselves, we can still do what we do which is make a collection of songs into an album. Worldwide, I believe we are better at what we do as musicians. We are better songwriters than we were, we understand the process better, we can make records on our own and make them sound as good as any record we’ve ever made. 

And as people, we’ve all grown as well. Everybody is older, everybody has got different priorities, where the band starts to be less important when you’ve got families and kids and all that kind of stuff. It prioritizes what should be made a priority, and sometimes music will take the backseat for a while you’re dealing with family stuff. But that makes you appreciate it more because you’re not laboring on yourself. So, we’re just all-around better people better musicians than we were starting out. We still have the enthusiasm to keep doing it, keep playing shows because there’s an audience out there that wants to see it."
Go to this location for the complete interview.

Def Leppard have released a video for their new single, “Dangerous”, a track from last year's self-titled studio album. Watch the new clip, directed by Frank Gryner, below:

The band recently released another video, this one for “Man Enough”. Watch below:

Def Leppard's US Summer Tour is underway, storming across all parts of the US and Canada (tour routing below). A new tour trailer video can be seen below:

Def Leppard - Joe Elliott (vocals), Vivian Campbell (guitar), Phil Collen (guitar), Rick "Sav" Savage (bass) and Rick Allen (drums) - continues to be one of the most important forces in rock music. With 100 million records sold worldwide and two prestigious Diamond Awards to their credit, the group's spectacular concerts, filled with powerful melodic rock anthems, continue to sell out venues worldwide. For the past thirty years the band's epic live shows and arsenal of hits have become synonymous with their name, leading Def Leppard to be heralded as an institution in both the music and touring industry.

Def Leppard's influential career includes numerous hit singles and ground-breaking multi-platinum release's-including two of the best-selling albums of all time, Pyromania and Hysteria. The band's 2015 US tour was one of the year's highest grossing, hitting 70+ cities nationwide. In addition to the tour, Def Leppard debuted their self titled new album in October 2015. The album secured the #1 slot on Billboard's Top Rock Albums chart. It features the #1 Classic Rock chart single "Let's Go" and their new single "Dangerous" out now.

Tour dates:

July
2 - Chicago, IL - Hollywood Casino
5 - Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music Center
6 - Milwaukee, WI - Summerfest
8 - Pittsburgh, PA - First Niagara Pavillion
9 - Grand Rapids, MI - Van Andel Arena
11 - Wantagh, NY - Nikon at Jones Beach
13 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Center
15 - Detroit, MI - DTE Music Theatre
16 - Toronto, ON - Molson Canadian Amphitheater

August
6 - Madison, WI - Alliant Energy Center
8 - Evansille, IN - Ford Center
10 - Bristow, VA - Jiffy Lube Center
12 - Atlanta, GA - Aaron's Amphitheater
13 - Raleigh, NC - Walnut Creek Amphitheater
15 - Tampa, FL - MidFlorida Credit Amphitheater
17 - Birmingham, AL - Oak Mountain Amphitheater
19 - Austin, TX - Austin 360
20 - New Orleans, LA - Smoothie King Center
22 - Houston, TX - Cynthia Woods Pavilion
24 - Dallas, TX - Gexa Energy Pavilion
26 - Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center
27 - ST. Louis, MO - Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
29 - Cleveland, OH - Blossom Music Center
31 - Darien Center, NY - Darien Lake PAC

September
14 - Billings, MT - Metra Park
16 - Salk Lake City, UT - USANA Ampitheater
17 - Denver, CO - Pepsi Center
19 - Albuquerque, NM - Isleta Amphitheater
20 - Phoenix, AZ - Ak-Chin Pavilion
22 - Irvine, CA - Irvine Meadows Amphitheater
24 - Sacramento, CA - Toyota Amphitheater (no Tesla)
25 - Mountain View, CA - Shoreline Amphitheater
28 - Boise, ID - Taco Bell Arena
30 - Eugene, OR - Matthew Knight Arena

October
1 - Tacoma, WA - Tacoma Dome
4 - Omaha,NE - CenturyLink Center
5 - Minneapolis, MN - Xcel Center
7 - La Crosse, WI - La Crosse Center Arena
8 - Toledo, OH - Huntington Center
10 - Cedar Rapids, IA - U.S. Cellular Center