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Boston Globe
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
AC/DC can still hit the big notes
Even so, Laug, Chaney and Stevie Young were strictly background, the latter two only leaving their spots flanking the drum kit to walk mid-stage to their microphones for the occasional group chant before retreating once again. Johnson and Angus Young, on the other hand, had full reign of the stage, each with their trademark apparel: the singer playfully slumping in his workingman's cap and the guitarist duckwalking and skittering in his schoolboy uniform (albeit one a little more bespoke these days). Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up There were indications this many decades down the road that AC/DC was slowing down, but only indications. Angus Young's prismatic opening riff of 'Thunderstruck' was a hair sluggish – the song picked up noticeably after the pause announcing the arrival of the song's title – and the guitarist's madman stage moves were doled out in smaller, discrete chunks. And Johnson was largely garbled and incomprehensible, both during the songs and between them. Advertisement And it didn't matter. The singer was audible enough to fill his role and the guitarist was impish enough to still throw off sparks. The sound itself was resilient enough for 'Back In Black' to hit like a hammer, 'Whole Lotta Rosie' to swing like a wrecking ball and the guitars themselves to sound rude in the gleefully self-deprecating 'Shot Down In Flames.' Even the newest songs, 2020's 'Demon Fire' and 'Shot In The Dark,' did exactly what AC/DC songs need to do. And Angus Young still played with fire. 'Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap' was mean and nasty (in both senses of the term), and the rangy whirlwind lead of 'Riff Raff' was a good match with the headlong propulsion of the rhythm. And 'Let There Be Rock' ended the set with a 25-minute showcase for the guitarist, who burned as the band played a one-note riff behind him before bouncing short chord bursts off the back of the stadium and launching into an extended solo above the drums. The rest of the band came back for an explosive 'T.N.T.,' followed by 'For Those About To Rock (We Salute You).' That's when the cannons came out. AC/DC With The Pretty Reckless At: Gillette Stadium, Sunday Marc Hirsh can be reached at officialmarc@ or on Bluesky @ Advertisement
USA Today
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
AC/DC storms back on Power Up tour, the band's first US trek in nearly a decade
AC/DC storms back on Power Up tour, the band's first US trek in nearly a decade Show Caption Hide Caption Mariah Carey & Oasis Among 2025 Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Nominees. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has revealed the 14 artists nominated for induction in 2025, eight of whom are first-time nominees. unbranded - Entertainment MINNEAPOLIS – The sight of Marshall amps stacked three high and more than a dozen across the back of a stadium stage can mean only one thing: AC/DC is back. Taking the stage for their first U.S. non-festival performance since 2016 with a guttural roar in the form of 'If You Want Blood (You've Got It),' the quintet accelerated through two hours of sweat-inducing, fist-thrusting rawk in support of 2020's 'Power Up' album. There wasn't anything flashy about their stage at Thursday's US Bank Stadium concert, the first of 13 shows the band will play this spring, because there doesn't need to be. A trio of video screens (and panels on the side for those with an obstructed view), a wall of lights and occasional lasers were the only necessities to complement the focal points of the show – the duck-walking Angus Young and wild-eyed king of gesticulation Brian Johnson. More: AC/DC setlist: All the iconic songs rocking the Power Up tour Though Johnson's patented shriek was somehow overpowered by the music for the first couple of songs, the sound leveled out in time for 'Demon Fire,' accompanied by video of a cloaked figure conjuring smoke from (not on) the water. Seeing Johnson, 77, back onstage was particularly poignant considering he was forced to leave AC/DC's 2016 Rock or Bust World Tour due to severe hearing loss (it's since been rectified). And while the vision of Young, a vigorous 70 in his trademark schoolboy shorts, tie, crew socks and black shoes, is always amusing, there was nothing but serious respect for his finger-blistering playing. The whizzing notes of 'Thunderstruck' – a locomotive rumbling into overdrive – and the chunky chords of 'Highway to Hell,' which included Young sporting the devil horns that hundreds in the crowd wore in rock 'n' roll solidarity, proved his dexterity is undiminished. Young is the only original member of AC/DC, having co-founded the band with brother Malcolm, who died in 2017 from the effects of dementia. Stevie Young replaced his uncle Malcolm on rhythm guitar in 2014, but there were a couple of different faces in the backline since AC/DC's last tour when erstwhile drummer Phil Rudd departed to care for longtime partner Toni Wilson (who was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer in 2023), and bassist Cliff Williams announced his retirement. The booming AC/DC rhythm section is now anchored by Matt Laug and Chris Chaney, respectively, who muscled through the bottom-heavy 'Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap' and the band's 2020 No. 1 rock hit, 'Shot in the Dark.' While fans bellowed every time Young took a heel-to-stage bounce down the catwalk, Johnson's moves were equally electrifying. He looked like Joe Cocker on epinephrine during 'Whole Lotta Rosie' – a cartoon image of the titular character outlined in neon writhed on the video screens – and swaggered across the stage like a boisterous barkeep throughout 'Have a Drink On Me,' one of the bluesiest songs in the band's canon. More: Las Vegas Sphere concerts: All the bands that are playing and how to get tickets Johnson's reedy yowl echoed through the venue as he sang 'Hells Bells' underneath the signature gold AC/DC bell hanging ominously above the stage, but he also knew when to cede the stage to Young, whose molten playing on 'Riff Raff' and 'Let There Be Rock' threatened to melt his strings. AC/DC's setlist – a replica of the shows they played in Europe last year – peppered album tracks such as 'Sin City' and 'Shot Down in Flames' with song staples of barroom jukeboxes worldwide. Is there a music fan on the planet who hasn't been tempted to whip out their best air guitar to the iconic riffs of 'You Shook Me All Night Long' or 'Back in Black'? It's been 50 years since AC/DC released their debut album, 'High Voltage,' and while it was uncertain in recent years if the band would ever stampede across stadiums again, there's no doubt now. So to a band that still continues to rock, we salute you.
USA Today
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
AC/DC storms back on Power Up tour, the band's first U.S. trek in nearly a decade
AC/DC storms back on Power Up tour, the band's first U.S. trek in nearly a decade Show Caption Hide Caption Mariah Carey & Oasis Among 2025 Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Nominees. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has revealed the 14 artists nominated for induction in 2025, eight of whom are first-time nominees. unbranded - Entertainment MINNEAPOLIS – The sight of Marshall amps stacked three high and more than a dozen across the back of a stadium stage can mean only one thing: AC/DC is back. Taking the stage for their first U.S. non-festival performance since 2016 with a guttural roar in the form of 'If You Want Blood (You've Got It),' the quintet accelerated through two hours of sweat-inducing, fist-thrusting rawk in support of 2020's 'Power Up' album. There wasn't anything flashy about their stage at Thursday's US Bank Stadium concert, the first of 13 shows the band will play this spring, because there doesn't need to be. A trio of video screens (and panels on the side for those with an obstructed view), a wall of lights and occasional lasers were the only necessities to complement the focal points of the show – the duck-walking Angus Young and wild-eyed king of gesticulation Brian Johnson. More: AC/DC setlist: All the iconic songs rocking the Power Up tour Though Johnson's patented shriek was somehow overpowered by the music for the first couple of songs, the sound leveled out in time for 'Demon Fire,' accompanied by video of a cloaked figure conjuring smoke from (not on) the water. Seeing Johnson, 77, back onstage was particularly poignant considering he was forced to leave AC/DC's 2016 Rock or Bust World Tour due to severe hearing loss (it's since been rectified). And while the vision of Young, a vigorous 70 in his trademark schoolboy shorts, tie, crew socks and black shoes, is always amusing, there was nothing but serious respect for his finger-blistering playing. The whizzing notes of 'Thunderstruck' – a locomotive rumbling into overdrive – and the chunky chords of 'Highway to Hell,' which included Young sporting the devil horns that hundreds in the crowd wore in rock 'n' roll solidarity, proved his dexterity is undiminished. Young is the only original member of AC/DC, having co-founded the band with brother Malcolm, who died in 2017 from the effects of dementia. Stevie Young replaced his uncle Malcolm on rhythm guitar in 2014, but there were a couple of different faces in the backline since AC/DC's last tour when erstwhile drummer Phil Rudd departed to care for longtime partner Toni Wilson (who was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer in 2023), and bassist Cliff Williams announced his retirement. The booming AC/DC rhythm section is now anchored by Matt Laug and Chris Chaney, respectively, who muscled through the bottom-heavy 'Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap' and the band's 2020 No. 1 rock hit, 'Shot in the Dark.' While fans bellowed every time Young took a heel-to-stage bounce down the catwalk, Johnson's moves were equally electrifying. He looked like Joe Cocker on epinephrine during 'Whole Lotta Rosie' – a cartoon image of the titular character outlined in neon writhed on the video screens – and swaggered across the stage like a boisterous barkeep throughout 'Have a Drink On Me,' one of the bluesiest songs in the band's canon. More: Las Vegas Sphere concerts: All the bands that are playing and how to get tickets Johnson's reedy yowl echoed through the venue as he sang 'Hells Bells' underneath the signature gold AC/DC bell hanging ominously above the stage, but he also knew when to cede the stage to Young, whose molten playing on 'Riff Raff' and 'Let There Be Rock' threatened to melt his strings. AC/DC's setlist – a replica of the shows they played in Europe last year – peppered album tracks such as 'Sin City' and 'Shot Down in Flames' with song staples of barroom jukeboxes worldwide. Is there a music fan on the planet who hasn't been tempted to whip out their best air guitar to the iconic riffs of 'You Shook Me All Night Long' or 'Back in Black'? It's been 50 years since AC/DC released their debut album, 'High Voltage,' and while it was uncertain in recent years if the band would ever stampede across stadiums again, there's no doubt now. So to a band that still continues to rock, we salute you.
