You probably read here that Def Leppard is involved in a contract dustup with their former label bosses, Universal Music Group. The band has a big beef with the royalty amount Universal offered for selling Def Lep’s music digitally at places like iTunes and Amazon’s MP3 store. Instead of accepting the deal, the band decided to begin re-recording back catalog, note-for-note “forgeries”, and make the songs available online at music retailers like iTunes.

This move would bypass the label’s involvement and Def Leppard could digitally sell the re-recorded versions directly to the consumer; they’ve already completed and released “Rock of Ages” and “Pour Some Sugar On Me.” Stephen Colbert, host of Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report, poked fun at the situation on a recent episode when he quipped, “I think it’s safe to say Def Leppard has a new career as the world’s best Def Leppard cover band.”