In a new interview with Cleveland.com, Joe Elliott confirms that Def Leppard is indeed working on new songs for its next album.

Though unable to get together due to the pandemic, the band is “ahead of the game,” according to Elliott, with material in motion and being traded between the five band members.

The singer isn’t ready to hazard a guess about when something will be released, but he acknowledges that spending so much time with its past has only raised the standard for Def Leppard’s present, and future.

“Y’know, we’ve always said that what we’ve got to try and achieve before we kick it all in the head or we’re gone is to be bracketed among the greats: Lennon-McCartney, Jagger-Richards, Ray Davies, Pete Townshend,” Elliott says. “We probably never will, but we’re never gonna stop trying. We’re not interested in trying to be some second division, ‘Oh, that’ll do kind of thing'."

Read the complete interview at Cleveland.com.

This Friday, June 11, Def Leppard will release Def Leppard - Volume Three, a new limited edition box set UMe/Virgin. Pre-order here.

This set marks the third of four volumes of the band’s complete recorded output in both 180gm vinyl and limited-edition CD box sets. They contain all the recordings from the band in the 2000’s and features the original packaging on both formats. To date, X, Yeah! and Songs From The Sparkle Lounge have never been available on vinyl before.

The albums were mastered by Ronan McHugh and Joe Elliott at Joe’s Garage with assistance from Andy Pearce and cut by Greg Moore. Housed in rigid boxes the sets also contain a hard-backed book with rare photos by Ross Halfin and notes by Classic Rock Magazine’s Paul Elliott. Band members Joe Elliott, Rick Savage, Rick Allen and Phil Collen have also contributed to the set.

Def Leppard - Volume Three features 2002’s X, which was the groups sixth consecutive Top 20 record on the Billboard 200 chart and features songs such as “Now,” “Four Letter Word” and “Long Long Way to Go”, 2006’s Yeah!, the band’s first covers album featuring a collection of the groups favorite tracks re-recorded with the iconic Leppard sound, this is the first time this album will be available on vinyl. Also Def Leppard’s tenth studio album Songs From The Sparkle Lounge, released in 2008 the record marked the bands return to their signature sound and hitting the Top 10 both sides of the Atlantic, the album included the hit single “Nine Lives” which featured Grammy Award winning country legend Tim McGraw.

Also included are B-Sides, Yeah! Studio Covers and Yeah! Live. These albums have specially been compiled by Joe Elliott for this limited-edition release. B-Sides contains a rare compilation of B-sides that have never appeared on vinyl before. Yeah! Studio Covers includes some never before released on vinyl covers, Yeah! bonus disc exclusive release tracks and a compilation of the various covers recorded by the band over their career. Yeah! Live is a compilation of live recordings of covers by the band which include both tracks from 2006’s Yeah!, as well as previously unreleased live tracks from the past 30 years.