Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell has opened up about his thoughts on new rock bands, explaining that the newer generation “don’t have [the] balls” that their idols who came before them did.
Look, it’s no secret that the status of rock music is a contentious topic. In fact, while bands like Bring Me The Horizon have criticised the genre’s state, others like Nick Cave, have echoed this sentiment by saying rock music “needs to die for a while”.
On the other side of the coin though, Slipknot’s Corey Taylor has stuck up for the genre, while Slash has claimed that Greta Van Fleet are the future of the style.
Throughout all of this though, new bands have continued to form, and they’ve continued to write and record the music they want to. That’s all well and good, right? Well, not according to Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell, who claims that new bands “don’t have balls” like their idols did.
Check out Vivian Campbell’s thoughts on rock music:
Speaking at Belgium’s Graspop Metal Meeting over the weekend (via Blabbermouth), Vivian Campbell opened up about new bands and what they need in order to make a difference in today’s musical climate.
“You’ve got to find the right balance between being good at your craft and still having the right attitude,” Campbell began.
“When I hear a lot of bands — not necessarily rock bands, but all sorts of different genres; bands who come out in this day and age — a lot of ’em, what is missing… I mean, they have talent, they can write songs, they can sing, they can play, but they don’t have balls.
“And you listen to something back from the ’90s or the ’80s or ’70s, there was something earthy about it, there was an intent you had to have.
“Phil [Collen, guitarist] is 61. I’m not far behind,” Campbell concluded. “We’re all at a certain level and we’ve gotten really good at our craft, but we still go out there and we play it with a real fucking rock attitude.”
Of course, while this too is a divisive opinion, Vivian Campbell’s thoughts might indeed be worth something, considering that Def Leppard managed to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame earlier this year, having won the fan vote late last year.
Check out ‘Rocket’ by Def Leppard:
