Def Leppard's 'Pyromania' Dominates Stadium Tour Kick Off

Keavin Wiggins | 07-07-2024 10:44 PM EDT

While Def Leppard's live shows over the past couple of decades have focused heavily on their blockbuster "Hysteria" album, the pendulum swung in favor of its predecessor, 1983's "Pyromania," at the launch of the Stadium Tour.

The band kicked off their summer stadium jaunt with Journey at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri on Saturday night (July 6th) with the band's setlist slightly dominated by "Pyromania" tracks, seven in all.

They launched the show with album opener "Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)", and played the record's hit singles "Photograph", "Rock of Ages", and "Foolin'", but they also played deeper cuts from the effort including "Comin' Under Fire", "Too Late For Love", and "Die Hard The Hunter".

1982's "High 'N' Dry" was not overlooked with the band playing the hit power balled "Bringin' On The Heartbreak", as well as the instrumental track "Switch 625".

"Hysteria" was far from ignored, with the band breaking out six songs from the album including "Rocket", "Armageddon It", "Animal", "Love Bites", "Hysteria", and show closer "Pour Some Sugar On Me".

Fans were also treated to a performance of the band's brand new single "Just Like 73". Ahead of the tour launch, guitar Phil Collen told Ultimate Classic Rock Nights, "We changed the whole set. You know, there's a whole screen [production] and we've been using pretty much the same stuff for like 12 years.

"So, we've changed it completely. The stage show is drastically different. It's going to take a lot of energy. There's going to be a lot of running around." So, I'm working out, trying to get the stamina up and all of that. Vocally, too. You know, I'm having to sing every single day.

"We did rehearse in L.A. for a two week period and finished with a SiriusXM gig. Production rehearsals in St. Louis will lead up to the first gig.""

The co-headline tour will continue on July 10th in Orlando, FL at the Camping World Stadium, and will wrap up on September 8th in Denver, CO at Coors Field.