Joe Elliott denies metal stars’ claims that Def Leppard use backing tracks

Def Leppard frontman Joe Elliott has hit back at claims that his band use backing tracks live.

The Planet Rock presenter (Listen Saturdays from 5pm or on-demand after) addressed the comments during an interview with Stereogum.

He said: “I don’t normally comment on this kind of stuff, but a friend of mine just sent me some link to something on YouTube, a recent posting by, forgive me, I don’t know his name, Chuck something from Testament (singer Chuck Billy), I think it is, and (ex-W.A.S.P. guitarist) Chris Holmes accusing us of using backing tracks.”

He continued: “I don’t get angry at this. I’m flattered because their standards must be very different to ours. For anybody that thinks we use backing tracks, it must mean that when they hear us, they can’t believe how good it is for real."

"We don’t use backing tracks. We use effects,” Elliott added. “God, who wouldn’t? When there’s four people singing, we use effects. There’s no tapes of backing vocals."

Watch: Def Leppard - 'Pour Some Sugar On Me' (Live in Sydney 2023)

Elaborating further on the methods Def Leppard do use onstage, he continued: "We use keyboards. We use a few drum loops because, in fairness, two-armed drummers use drum loops, but Rick Allen, to play a song like 'Rocket', it’s a cacophony of toms that one arm couldn’t play.

“So, yeah, we use a triggered loop, which is part of his drum kit, but (U2 drummer) Larry Mullen’s been doing that for years. So have thousands of other drummers to enhance a sound.

“But backing tracks or playing along to a backing track — we’ve never done that, never. We’ve never mimed to the vocals, or we’ve never had multiples of stuff on tape. It’s literally live.”

Watch: Def Leppard - 'Rocket' Live, 'Hysteria at The O2 (London To Vegas)'

Holmes was guesting on a Q&A with The Metal Voice last year when he said: “I heard Mötley Crüe is doing it. Def Leppard has to sample. You can’t do them eight-part harmonies on the vocals — unless you have other people singing in the background.”

Testament’s Chuck Billy was also asked by the Syncin' Stanley YouTube channel for his opinion on singers who use pre-recorded tracks for their lead vocals.

He said: “I know there's bands like Def Leppard that use a lot of backing tracks, but that's also backing tracks for that big sound, 'cause, obviously, you can't get all their voices live unless you brought in a choir. So, there's an exception to the rule."

Gallery: Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe rock Sheffield's Bramall Lane Stadium, 2023

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