Def Leppard frontman: New bands get a raw deal today

Def Leppard is currently touring with two other veteran classic rock acts, Styx and Foreigner, all of whom are able to play a show filled with hits, and make money without having a new record out. Def Leppard's lead singer Joe Elliott says, however, that new bands starting out today wouldn't be allowed to make money touring and growing their audience over the course of four or five albums, because record companies are so demanding and give new bands a raw deal: "Contracts nowadays, record labels, what's left of 'em, are trying to actually get parts of a band's merchandise when they tour. It's like, how dare you! It's two separate things! You know, I just can't see Roger Waters willingly giving up 20 percent of his T-shirts. Luckily we aren't in that kind of bag. I just feel bad for the new bands. I mean, there's the odd artist that can sell records these days. But most people, if they don't have a second record make profit, they don't make a third record."

While the band has mostly finished working on a new album, they aren't playing any of their new songs on tour, so it's a greatest-hits evening.

Their upcoming record will be called Songs From The Sparkle Lounge, but no release date has been set for it. It will be their first album since last year's Yeah!, which was a collection of covers of songs by artists who had influenced the band. Their most recent studio album was 2002's X.

Def Leppard/Styx /Foreigner tourdates (subject to change):
August 24 - Tampa, FL - Ford Amphitheatre At State Fairgrounds
August 25 - Atlanta, GA - HiFi Buys Amphitheatre
August 26 - Louisville, KY - Kentucky State Fair
August 29 - Selma, TX - Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
August 31 - The Woodlands, TX - The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
September 1 - Dallas, TX - Smirnoff Music Centre
September 3 - Saint Paul, MN - Minnesota State Fair
September 5 - Oklahoma City, OK - Oklahoma City Zoo Amphitheatre
September 7 - West Valley City, UT - USANA Amphitheatre
September 8 - Grand Junction, CO - Rock Jam
September 9 - Englewood, CO - Coors Amphitheatre
September 12 - Ridgefield, WA - The Amphitheater At Clark County
September 14 - Marysville, CA - Sleep Train Amphitheatre
September 15 - Kelseyville, CA - Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa
September 16 - Reno, NV - Reno Events Center
September 18 - Concord, CA - Sleep Train Pavilion At Concord
September 20 - Phoenix, AZ - Cricket Pavilion
September 22 - Las Vegas, NV - Mandalay Bay Events Center
September 23 - Irvine, CA - Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
September 26 - Auburn, WA - White River Amphitheatre
September 27 - Vancouver, BC - General Motors Place
September 28 - Victoria, BC - Save on Foods Memorial Center
September 30 - Calgary, ALB - Pengrowth Saddledome
October 1 - Edmonton, ALB - Rexall Place