DEF LEPPARD guitarist Vivian Campbell spoke to Ultimate Classic Rock about the progress of the songwriting sessions for LAST IN LINE's upcoming sophomore album, tentatively due in early 2018. "We've got about half the record written," he said. "We'll do the rest over the summer. We have some shows in the States and then we're going to Europe for three weeks. But we're scheduled to go back into the studio in mid-September, with Jeff Pilson [DOKKEN, FOREIGNER] producing again. "There's some really, really interesting song ideas going on," he continued. "I'm very excited for that. Hopefully, there will be even more guitar on that one. It's just been so much fun playing with Vinny Appice [drums] again, and playing with Jimmy [Bain, bass] prior to his passing away was great. Phil Soussan has stepped in and has taken over the bass duties. He's as close to Jimmy's sound as we can get. That was kind of heartbreaking for us when that happened. But we're marching on with that, and I know that Jimmy was very proud of the record and we felt that that was the right thing to do." Vivian added that the new LAST IN LINE songs are a progression from last year's "Heavy Crown" debut, having "really gelled" as a band through playing live shows. "Some of the arrangements for these ideas that are in play at the moment, I would say they're a little more complex than what's on the first record," he said. "But it's really starting to take shape as a band, and we do very much try to write as a band. That's how we did the first record with LAST IN LINE — we'd just get in there and kick around ideas. A lot of times, stuff would come out of nothing. "I've always said that I've been fortunate to play with so many great musicians and so many great drummers over the years, but Vinny inspires me like no other," he continued. "There's just times when we go in to write when I kind of feel like I don't have any solid ideas that I can bring to the party. Vinny will just play a beat, and he plays with such great intent. It just kind of inspires me. Frequently, we'll come up with ideas, just because of a groove that Vinny's laying down. It is very uplifting, I've got to say." LAST IN LINE's lineup is completed by singer Andrew Freeman, who has previously fronted HURRICANE and LYNCH MOB. Bain passed away in January 2016 at the age of 68. He was reportedly suffering from lung cancer at the time of his death.
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