To me, Kick has a lot of that 70s sound to it, but it still sounds like Def Leppard. I am cautiously optimistic about a few songs on the album based on what has been said about them, but I'm still excited. Kick is far better than the leadoff single from the last album. Let's Go had a very very weak chorus. I thought Dangerous was 100x better
Far too many people have expectations of them doing an album that sounds like High n Dry or Pyromania. They need to stop. It's not gonna happen.
Personally, I don't compare bands albums to each other, no matter who it is. If I like it, I like it. I won't dislike an album cause it doesn't sound like previous albums. I think a lot of people do that though, and they're only doing a disservice to themselves.
In regards to Vivian, anyone blaming him for this shift is fooling themselves. He has very little say in even songwriting, why would they let him change their sound? It doesn't make much sense.
And to your point about Slang, I was 6 when it came out, so I didn't get to listen to it until years and years later after I got into them. I didn't like it. But, after a few years, I listened to it again, and started to hear things I didn't remembering hearing, and now I like it. Sure, it's not in my top 3 of favorite albums from them, but it's still good. I don't think they've ever released a truly bad album