In a new interview with Waleed Aly, co-host of Australia’s news and current affairs television program “The Project”, AC/DC guitarist Angus Young addressed the fact that the band never changed its style, focusing instead on fine-tuning its distinct sound over the years.
“With us, it’s to be expected,” he said (see video below). As my brother [late AC/DC rhythm guitarist Malcolm Young] used to say, when somebody said, ‘Every album you’ve ever made sounds the same,’ he said, ‘Yeah. It’s the same band.’ When we started, we weren’t reinventing the wheel. This is what we do best — we make rock and roll.”
Angus also once again confirmed that AC/DC‘s long-awaited comeback album, “Power Up”, is a tribute to Malcolm, who died in 2017 from effects of dementia at age 64. Malcolm is credited as a writer on all 12 tracks on “Power Up”, along with Angus.
“With Malcolm, he would just always get rolling,” Angus said. “That was him. A lot of these songs we’d done on this album, a lot of them are tracks he always said, ‘Well, we’ve gotta get these done.’ He always wanted them out there on an album.”
According to Angus, there are plenty of unreleased AC/DC song ideas left over that could surface on future LPs.
“Around the album ‘Black Ice’, which was the last album Malcolm was on, we had a number of years off and we had so much stuff that we had written together — boxes full of stuff,” Angus said.
“Power Up” hit the No. 1 spot in 18 countries, including in the U.S., where it sold over 117,000 copies in the first week. The LP marks AC/DC‘s sixth No. 1 album in Australia where the band is the only Australian group in history to have had a No. 1 album across five decades: “Back In Black” (1980s), “Ballbreaker Live” (1990s), “Black Ice” (2000s), “Rock Or Bust” (2010s) and “Power Up” (2020s). The album also holds Germany’s biggest first week of 2020 and the biggest first week for an international act in four years, as well as being the U.K.’s fastest-selling album of 2020 and the biggest first week of the year.
“Power Up” is the fastest-selling album of 2020 in at least three of its biggest markets — U.S., Australia and the U.K. — where it debuted at No. 1. In the U.K., it opened with first-week sales of 62,000. 52,955 units of these were on a physical format (CD, vinyl, cassette).
“Power Up” features AC/DC‘s 2020 lineup of Brian Johnson (vocals), Phil Rudd (drums), Cliff Williams (bass), Angus (guitar) and Stevie Young (guitar). The LP was recorded over a six-week period in August and September 2018 at Warehouse Studios in Vancouver with producer Brendan O’Brien, who also worked 2008’s “Black Ice” and 2014’s “Rock Or Bust”.
“Power Up” is available in multiple configurations, including digital, CD, and deluxe versions. The limited edition, one-of-a-kind deluxe “Power Up” box is the ultimate fan package. Hit the button on the side of the box and watch the flashing neon AC/DC logo light up while the opening bars of “Shot In The Dark” blast out of the built-in speaker. Inside the box is the full CD package in a soft-pack with a 20-page booklet that features exclusive photos and USB charging cable allowing the box to remain powered up and on display. The vinyl LP was pressed on 180-gram vinyl and housed in a gatefold jacket. Limited-edition variants of the LP are available at select retailers nationwide, as well as the band’s online store.
Photo credit: Josh Cheuse
