Album Review: Flick Of The Switch

Let's get something straight right from the beginning, if you don't absolutely fucking love this record then you are not an AC/DC fan.  Oh you might think you are, you might even be upset at being told you are not, unfortunately your feelings are irrelevant in the same way that verbs are unnecessary* in some of the lyrics, Flick Of The Switch is the purest distillation of Brian era AC/DC that exists. A remedy for all of the Mutt Lange meddling excesses which came before.

FOTS has the greatest start of any Brian era album.  None. No start whatsoever. No prop, no theme, no melodic intro. Thump.  The Rudd hits the snare and we are off, "Don't need no excuse, my body's for abuse." Too fucking right it is. The most intense relentless slow march AC/DC ever laid down. People talk about no light or shade when it comes to this record, well they should listen to Ang pick his way through the shadows before the storm breaks, we got howling winds, thunder rolls and the flash of lightning strikes, there's your light and shade.  With an opening call and response from the brothers Young, This House Is On Fire only increases the burning intensity, grooving and rolling along like a rock and roll truck. It's not like there was any messing about before but somehow the title track has even less frippery.  It's beautifully brutal, brutiful if you will, and boogies like no other band. FLICK THE SWITCH! FLICK THE SWITCH!

Quick take a breath. Ha ha! Nervous Shakedown.  You thought it had been intense before. You thought heavier, harder grooves weren't possible?  Ha ha! It's Nervous Fucking Shakedown.  Oh my. Otherworldly perfection.  Just listen to the The Rudd, he's so deep in the pocket he's never coming out. Every crash is like a slap around the face. SHAKE IT DOWN! SHAKE IT DOWN!  I hope you took that breath before because there's no room for air now. Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaandslide is upon you. The most ferocious boogie the boys ever recorded.  I don't know what level of inspired insanity enables you to create something like this.  Brian is possessed. A better song than most bands ever record.

Ha ha ha! I'm fucking laughing/crying at the madness, it's GUNS FOR FUCKING HIRE! A little tickle from Ang before being bludgeoned with a mountain.  AC/DC just fuck with you time and time again. An absolute onslaught, a display of power so consummate it borders on vulgarity. Joyous. The tempo might drop for the next track but you are still in over your head.  Deep In The Hole is a potent repetitive grind, it may or may not have something to do with sex. Maybe you were thinking that this album could do with a a little less restraint. Say hello to Bedlam In Belgium, bearer of an absolute core motif that the boys 'don't just play for pay' and riffs like brass knuckles on both hands. When that final verse comes in and culminates with "War!War!War!" all bets are off and it's a fight for survival. As if you hadn't been blessed with grooves before, Badlands unleashes one on the scale of the Grand Canyon replete with cowboy metaphors. If there is a moment that encapsulates Brian willingness to give everything it comes here just before the solo.  If you listen closely I'm pretty sure you can hear his larynx explode "Come on girl I'm gonna give you a thrill! Yarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!" How about an 'all out ride on a rocking suicide' to finish.  I mean you've come this far why not go 'toe to toe with a black widow?'  And how about a shuddering climax to finish with everybody banging everything at the same time. Thought so.  Lovely. I'm off for a lay down.

* Someone wrote about this once.  I forget who.  Credit where credit is due.

Album Review: Stiff Upper Lip

This is the sound of five guys and the brother of two of them laying down a wonderful rock and roll record. The sound, gritty and warm, on this album is extraordinary. It puts you right there in the room with boys or rather it puts the boys right there in the room with you. Every member of the band stands out throughout the record as the mix and production gives each their space to deliver stellar performances. On the title track Angus and Phil kick us off with a great bluesy lick and a counting hi hat as Brian comes in on a deeper register than usual before Mal and Cliff drop into the track Brian takes off ‘like a dog in a howl’ (maybe, who fucking cares?) and we get locked down tight into a groove from which you never want to escape. Angus blesses us with one of his most expressive solos in years, the ones where he tells you really what’s going on in the song through power of his SG and his fingers alone. As is so often the case the real stars of this song are Mal and his brothers in the world’s greatest rhythm section and in fact despite a record full of wailing leads from Angus and Brian giving every little thing to every single track this is true across the entire album. Stiff Upper Lip is conclusive proof that when it comes to laying down rock and roll grooves you can fight, fuck and dance to, AC/DC have no equals.

Not a track goes by where there isn’t a touch here and there of magic that brings a special flavour to the usual ingredients, maybe the presence of brother George in the control room has something to do with this. The placing of the backing vocals on Meltdown, the raw as hell crashing chords that bring that song to an end; THAT guitar tone on House Of Jazz which is worthy of a place on the next satellite we send into space to introduce us to passing aliens, not to mention the moment when the whole thing kicks off and you can feel the elemental presence of true rock and roll, there’s a reason why thunder and lightning play such a prominent role in AC/DC iconography it’s because they literally play up a storm. 

Hold Me Back is a lesson on how to build a song from a series of basic components into an engine that feels like could run for ever on the energy it generates for itself, the placement of the cymbal crashes, the arrival of the guttural backing vocals, every part adds to the building intensity of the track. Even the quicker tracks like Safe In New York City and the bonus track Cyberspace have grooves you still move too, you just move quicker, there’s really no other choice. And if you ever doubt the band still mean it watch the video for the first of those tracks; you’ll sweat just watching it. Can’t Stop Rock And Roll makes you believe that it’s an established fact. Satellite Blues opens up with a classic stop start Young brothers riff before bemoaning the ‘dumbed down news’, that’s right now you can now dance to social commentary. 

The most joyful song on here for me is Come and Get It, a filthy blues stomp that invents the concept of a double decker bed whilst making it perfectly clear that should you want it, you can get it right here. The album closes out with Give It Up the very last thing you want the boys to do, it is everything you could ever want from an AC/DC song, the Rudd opens it up with a shimmering beat that begs Cliff to get funky while Mal and Ang produce an archetypal interlocking riff and Brian invites us, no demands, that we ‘rip it up’ and ‘stick it out’. Yessir, fucking right I will. You have made yourself very very clear.

An Armpit for A Hat: AC/DC Live Review: London 2016

This night may have been the most fun I have ever had to AC/DC's music. In company of regulars from acdcfans.net and some new faces we warmed up nicely in the Tap House and miraculously got to the stadium in time to be there when the doors opened. Even Azel. 

Terro flagged me in with his cap and we all hooked up halfway down the runway on Stevie's side. Rocker and The Wizard popped off to the bar and returned with enough beers for the entire inner circle. Which was kind of them.  Later Azel and I would surprise and delight the crowd around us by filling the empty pint pots with our own filtered home made beverage before knocking them over and dancing in the resulting puddles. So impressed were the boys behind us that they shared their Jack Daniels with us. Kindness is contagious apparently.


Belle may not have been quite so impressed. Although she did still let me have a patch of carpet to sleep on and thus save me from another random park bench. For which I am and will remain eternally grateful! 

The gig is really a massive blur punctuated with moments of clarity. For the first few songs it was the usual mayhem and all rather tasty where we were, with a pit forming seconds into STT. Rather than commit wholesale slaughter I spotted The Wizard and dived forward to join him a couple of squashed bodies from the front barrier. Flag firmly planted here we stayed for the remainder of the gig. The overall feeling I have taken from the gig despite several near death experiences is one of complete fun. Utterly drenched in sweat, wearing Azel's armpit for a hat for about three songs mid gig, my face in pain from smiling so much. Being so close I could see how much of a blast the boys on stage were having. The whole band fed off the reaction from the crowd. Angus played phenomenally, never missing a note, revelling in what he and his guitar were emitting. Granted my hearing may have been affected by the assorted body parts inserted into my ears at various points during the show. Axl prowled the edges of the stage a smile plastered across his face. His between song chat perfectly done, at one point he even asked Stevie if he was having a good time, unfortunately I missed the answer due to a toe in one ear and a boob in the other. 

Angus and Axl are really having a good time together. I think my highlight of the gig was the third verse of Sin City watching Angus doing that foot stamping back arching stomp prior to duck walking across the stage before seeing Axl high kick his way into the chorus. It was funny as fuck and rocked like hell. This was a gig that I will not forget easily it was like something from years ago. Being part of a singing, sweaty, heaving, bouncing mass of mayhem down the front. Arms around each other, leaning on your mate next door to catch a breath before the next ripper roared over you. I’m smiling now and I was smiling then. It was that kind of night.

The above picture can now be found in place of the original definition for joy in the Oxford English Dictionary.

New Book: High Voltage: The Life of Angus Young AC/DC's Last Man Standing

Coming later this month on the 28th the first book to focus on Angus alone.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/High-Voltage-Angus-Young-Standing/dp/1863959580

Album Review: Powerage

Rock’n’Roll Damnation crashes in as a statement of intent “They say that you play too loud, well baby that’s tough!”and straight into a classic ‘DC riff. Handclaps, gang vocals and Bon straight talking and reflective on the rock and roll way of life; what more could you want?  A pulsing bassline, a pounding beat and strutting guitar line announce the arrival of Gimme A Bullet. The story of a man kicked to the kerb by his girlfriend and looking for another woman, any woman to fill the hole left and numb the pain just for the night. Bon knows he’ll be OK in the long run “Come tomorrow, come to grips, with me all alone.” But right now, tonight, he needs a bullet to bite on to stop the ache, just so he can “make believe” that he hasn’t lost her.  You only have to hear the delivery on the next tune to know that truth is being spoken. Down Payment Blues is heralded by chiming, gruff guitars subtly joined by a driving rhythm section building to a galloping charge of an intro that drops down a notch to allow Bon room to meditate on the ‘rock and roll lifestyle’ . Couple this with a great solo from Angus and you have a bona fide classic.  

For me Gone Shootin’ is the centre of this album and the Bon eras finest five and a bit minutes. It boasts an effortless groove, an almost funky interlocking riff topped off with that fabulous bluesy lick from the Young’s and Mr Scott’s greatest lyric. Here Bon tells us the story of another love lost, this time to drugs, “She backed her favourite nag, but she could never win”. This is the song that made me realise that Bon was not just a 'cut out' rock and roller. When you add in that solo and just before that superb coda the “ I used to love her so…” it is just a perfect beautiful heartbreaker rock and roll song.  Riff Raff, what can you say? Killer, killer riff, astonishing opener for a live gig, witness the Glasgow ’78 footage. Rebel lyrics from Bon this time, but it is all about the other boys. It’s just a lethal track.

Another tune, another classic, Sin City, a story–esque lyric from Bon about looking for that one chance to make it big. Mal’s superb slashing rhythmic chords power this monster along, Phil’s sounds like he’s smashing glass with his crashes, and Ang produces a solo that takes you right to the edge before that dark breakdown in the middle of the song before Bon ramps up the atmosphere for the final charge and Ang loses it totally. Even if Bon hasn’t got a “hope in hell” he’s still going in even if he is destined to be another loser. Awesome live, witness Midnight Special.  What’s Next To The Moon adds yet more variety to the mix. A rolling riff and a tribal beat from Phil produce another dark edged track. Bon’s lyrics only add to the air of mystery.  Worked incredibly well live, where the chorus was absolutely thunderous.

Surely time for a breather but not a chance, Up To My Neck In You. It’s a juggernaut of a song, a total destroyer of a track, all slashing chords and relentless beats, while Bon weaves his magic again, managing to sound regretful, grateful and filthy at the same time. This song also has a claim to feature Ang’s greatest solo, furious and tuneful. Naturally it is a beast live.  Cold Hearted Man is a true ‘story song’. Again full of darkness, aided by the space created by the boys and Bon’s delivery. Loss hangs heavy on this track again, as Bon explains how an orphan child “Called her Ma, called him Pa, but he was born to someone else”, grows through experience and heartbreak ,“one time lover, heart in his hand” to be a cold hearted man “you can’t trust nothing you don’t understand”. Bon acknowledges the other side of the hard man image, and how it can it form, in the breakdown before the final chorus. It is a magnificent song.  To end the album? As close to a straight ahead rocker as can be seen on this album. A faster tempo, with guitars that crash in waves while Phil powers the tune like a machine. Bon vents his spleen on a women that ‘done him wrong’, and in the final verse on all womenkind. Hard edged rock and roll, full stop. No other band, no other frontman could deliver with such authority.

Why is Powerage this band’s greatest achievement? Because it goes beyond being just a hard rocking album, it adds loss, longing and heartbreak to the mix, in short it is their most human, most honest album. Bon opens up on this album and lets reality and us in, giving this album a depth that none of their other releases even approach. This is Bon’s record and it is a thing of fierce, raw and bleeding beauty.

Wine, Wizards and Song: AC/DC Live In Lisbon 2016

The weeks leading up to the Lisbon gig had been the strangest I could remember in more than three decades as a fan.  The sudden departure of Brian from the band to "prevent further hearing loss" had shocked the fanbase. A rumour mill that was swirling in full effect, whispers from here, there and everywhere.  Then a statement from the record company that guest singers would help to finish the tour.  Cue even more rumours of singers, auditions and writing sessions.  A photograph of Axl Rose in Atlanta provoked a massive reaction.  Really? Axl Rose? Fronting the greatest rock and roll band in history?

By now there were splits in the fan community.  Some felt that Brian had not been shown anywhere near near the respect he was due, some wondered how things could even continue without him, all wanted to hear from Angus.  However after the first couple of days following Brian's exit and the stories which came out, loose lips were firmly zipped and things returned to the way they always had been, absolute silence.

Photographs of Axl leaving the same studio as the band were also seen and passed by without comment.  Brian posted his own statement in an effort to set the record straight, which helped some fans to rationalise what had happened.  And then Axl Rose was confirmed as the guest singer for the 2016 European Tour.  My overwhelming feeling at the time was one of relief.  Like you all I love AC/DC, over the years they have become part of me, I felt the 'Rock Or Bust' tour was the last time the boys would be on the road, I didn't want this goodbye to be tarnished, I needed whoever was going to step in to be able to do these songs, these great and mighty songs, justice.  I thought Axl had a shot at doing this, maybe this could work and Angus and Cliff would be able to bow out with dignity.

The recordings of the rehearsals in Lisbon certainly suggested that this might be the case and so I got my stuff together and headed down to the airport more anxious and excited for an AC/DC gig than I had been in for over thirty years.

The Friday night before the gig hundreds of fans from Sweden, Germany, Scotland, Holland, England, Austria, Ireland, Norway and even Panama collected in the bars, squares and side streets of Lisbon.  Flat caps were in full effect and a tribute to Brian and despite the mess of the last few weeks it seemed everybody was there to do what we always do when AC/DC are in town, have a bloody good time.  So drink was drunk, songs were sung and new friends became old friends. 

Rain had started to fall as we made our way to bed in the early hours of Saturday morning and by the time we woke the rain had become an absolute downpour.  So much for sunshine and partying on the beach.  As it was we ran through the streets and hopped from bar to bar working our way closer to the site of the concert.  The weather continued to worsen and by mid-afternoon there was even talk that the show would have to be cancelled.  The roads were rivers. We delayed our departure until the last minute in the hope that the storm might blow itself out.  Wreathed in our cheap plastic ponchos we queued up in our thousands and finally reached the 'beach' or more accurately the part concrete part construction site slurry.  Ten minutes after the support band finished the sun broke through behind the stage and the clouds drew away.  We took off our first four layers of plastic and basked.  The sky darkened for a second time but this time it was only night that was falling.

The familiar film started up although my eyes were fixed firmly on the stage and the chair. That was the first major difference of the night. My eyes weren't searching for Ang, they were waiting to see whether Axl was mobile. As it was he strolled onto the stage sat down in his chair and the main man ran out front and centre. The riff roared and we dropped into Rock Or Bust. Talk about an apposite song. In seconds I would know if this was going to work in any way at all. The first thing I noticed about the sound was that all treble had been removed from drum sound, there was hardly any at all, Stevie was well up in the mix just like Cliff, Ang had some serious edge to his guitar but I was waiting for the first line. For the first time ever I was studying the band, I’d come to RTFO but I was waiting before I put out. By the end of RoB I was all in. Axl sang it easy, with inflection and power. 

Shoot To Thrill ripped out and it was on. A track I had been worried about, I mean this STT we are talking about, the first song I play to people who have never heard AC/DC’s music. This is important. It was easy. So easy. Angus looked really fired up. He was out there full guns blazing. HAABPTB smashed in and hit its stride straightaway, we had groove back on the table Chris seemed to be getting down a little with his badself. The first Bon song of the night and another test. I paid attention or at least as much as I could and Axl inhabited the song. He sang it right but he also sang like it himself. The music was good. 

Back In Black was fucking monstrous hard and heavy from the band, hard and high from Axl. No Mamas at all. I should have been missing Brian but I wasn’t. And I didn’t feel guilty, I was just having fun.

 Rock and Roll Thunder up next and this is a misstep and needs to go. I’m glad I heard it once but I never need to hear it again. However here was something new, the backing vocals were superb, loud and full and entirely wounded goat free. Dirty Deeds took us back up, and this may get tiresome but Axl was spot on. Despite being restricted to a chair the man is getting down, living out the lyrics, making sure you get what he means. And then it all got a bit silly. Axl started telling a story about the band releasing a single which was getting rotation on FM radio, a first for the boys. But they weren’t playing it live so at the next concert the record company hired a plane and towed a banner over the stadium with “Play Rock and Roll Damnation” on it. I’d never heard that before. What the fuck is all that about? The man isn’t just up there nailing the shit out of the songs now he is teaching me shit about a band we clearly both love. DAMNFUCKING NATION! I fucking love this song. It was perfect. 

Thunderstruck opened up next. Another examination. No sign of any issues from Stevie that I could hear, Angus seemed to get everything spot on and then I waited for Axl. He just sang it right out. Just like in ’91 the “Yeah, it’s alright! We’re doing fine! “ section carried weight. It meant something. They were. Straight into High Voltage and another key moment for me. THE breakdown. A moment I love with Brian and missed badly last time around. Axl did what he did well but I missed the “Highiiieeeehighiiiiiieeeeeehigh” bit. It was better than on the last leg but not better than ever. A shout of “All aboard!” and Rock and Roll Train came down the line. I don’t know why but I prefer this song on this tour than the BI tour. Makes no sense but there you go. Fucking BONG! This was the moment when I stopped examining every little detail and just let it all go. Axl fucking killed this track, the archetypal Brian era song and he fucking wailed. Game over. Game on.

GTDAB was a touch off at the beginning but once it was into its stride all was good. First time I’ve ever it live. A track that can go though. Sin City may well have been the high point of the gig so far. The ending was blinding. YSMANL was YSMANL. Introduced with “ Here’s a song they wrote about my life story”, even a touch of self-depreciation (Is this the monstrous cunt we have been warned about?), Shot Down In Flames was absolutely brilliant. Axl was loving this, he was having a blast and doing the songs justice and taking me along with him. I wanted this to go well. I wanted it to be a success. For Angus. “You thirsty?” You fucking bet I am. Let’s fucking go! The best performance of HADOM I have ever heard. TNT and Rosie were there usual awesome selves. LTBR felt slower than usual although Ang’s solo felt shorter. A weird pay off. 

Highway To Hell was strong and solid although by now my expectations were so fucking high that I expected the scream between the last two courses. Riff Raff and I'm gone.  It's wonderful. Truly wonderful. Hardly anyone in the crowd knows it I’m told afterwards. Couldn’t. Give. A. Fuck. The night doesn’t just end in cannonfire and fireworks, under the smoke and the blinding lights Angus comes to the front of the stage, taps his heart with his fist and salutes the crowd.

The little cunt had done it.