Vivian Campbell Reveals Unexpected Def Leppard Influence

(Classic Rock) Vivian Campbell has recalled how Soundgarden influenced Def Leppard in the mid-90s. The guitarist, who has also performed with Dio and Whitesnake, says the band were listening to iconic Soundgarden album Superunknown when they wrote 1996's Slang - which was widely regarded as a musical departure from their signature sound.

Campbell tells Eon Music: "We went into the recording and writing process for that record knowing only one thing - we could not make a classic sounding Def Leppard record. Other than that, we were clueless, so we were kind of making it up as we went along.

"We were taking on board a lot of what was going on in the current music genre. Soundgarden's Superunknown was the one album that we listened to more than any other when we were making that record. I think it was the best record of the grunge era.

"I love the songs, I love the sound of that record, so that was a very influential record for us when we were making Slang." here.

Def Leppard Music, DVDs, Books and more Def Leppard T-shirts and Posters More Def Leppard News Share this article Related Stories KISS, Springsteen, Queen, Journey Lead AXS TV's Rocktober Concert Specials Def Leppard Share 'Just Like 73' Live Video Def Leppard Share Video Of Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Visit Def Leppard Homecoming Concert Set For Release Def Leppard's 'Photograph' Gets Armand Van Helden Remixes