Def Leppard/First Strike Remastered

This album is actually the EP “FIRST STRIKE,” released in 1984. As you can see from the schedule in the main commentary, it’s a studio recording made in the summer of 1979, but it’s not just an early demo. In 1985, after the band’s breakthrough with “PYROMANIA,” the Belgian label Flash remixed and released it without permission. The EP has a reputation for being recalled by the band itself. This was after they’d already released “THE DEF LEPPARD EP” and had replaced drummer Rick Allen. Perhaps due to the remix, the sound is fantastic, truly evocative of “ON THROUGH THE NIGHT.” Packed with rare tracks from before their debut, the content and sound of this album truly attest to its origins. Four of the seven tracks are early versions of “ON THROUGH THE NIGHT” tracks, and “Glad I’m Alive” also saw the light of day on “THE EARLY YEARS 79-81.” Although these are prototypes, they are far from unfinished, and the arrangements and performances (while still displaying a youthful energy) are perfectly executed. These are exceptionally rare, featuring repertoire such as “Heat Street” and “See the Lights” that cannot even be heard on the official “THE EARLY YEARS 79-81” album. Because they are unauthorized, they are not official works, but their level of perfection makes them hardly appropriate to call them “demos.” Focusing purely on the music, this is undoubtedly a semi-official EP that bridges the gap between “THE DEF LEPPARD EP” and “ON THROUGH THE NIGHT,” a truly elusive masterpiece lost to history. This is an album that I would have preferred to see reissued on the official “THE EARLY YEARS 79-81” album. The remastered sound, which had a humdrum, clunky feel, has been adjusted to create a more natural texture. Several needle noises have been corrected. DEF LEPPARD – FIRST STRIKE: REMASTERED (25:10) 1. Heat Street 2. Answer To The Master 3. See The Lights 4. When The Walls Came Tumbling Down 5. Wasted 6. Sorrow Is A Woman 7. Glad I’m Alive