Rock or Bust

REVIEW: AC/DC – Rock or Bust (2014)

NEW RELEASE

IMG_20141227_171303AC/DC – Rock or Bust (2014 Columbia)

We all know the story, now.  Malcolm Young, felled by dementia, and his brother Angus carrying on without him (and possibly without drummer Phil Rudd).  AC/DC don’t want to dwell on the negative, and neither do I.  Angus assembled 11 new songs from parts that he and Mal had worked on together before he was too sick to continue.  Nephew Stevie Young, who filled in for Uncle Mal in 1988, stepped up again to do so, this time in a permanent capacity.  But you wouldn’t know any of that by hearing Rock or Bust.

Sharp as ever, “Rock or Bust”, the current single boasts one of those menacing AC/DC riffs paired with that slow groove they do so well.  “In rock we trust, it’s rock or bust”.  Nothing has changed!  There is little difference between Rock or Bust and the AC/DC back catalogue since 1980 in general.  New batch of riffs, songs, and melodies.  That’s about it!  “Play Ball” has that familiar “AC/DC single” vibe.  Not too heavy, not too fast, but just right for radio.  Brian Johnson’s voice has changed very little since the 1990’s.  He doesn’t screech like it’s 1981 (duh), but he gets the job done fine.  Johnson reported that he found it hard to continue on without Malcolm but his performance is full of the joi de vivre that you need in an AC/DC song.

IMG_20141227_171334“Rock the Blues Away” has future single written all over it.  This old-timey AC/DC riff is one of those classic rock and roll licks that they used to do with Bon Scott on albums like Dirty Deeds.  True to its title, the song does indeed rock the blues away and I can’t wait to give it a test run in the car.  This is a summer time song, not a December song!  However I should point out that it’s more or less the same song as “Anything Goes” from Black Ice.  A left turn on “Miss Adventure” yields some funky AC/DC grooves not unlike what they were doing in the mid 1980’s.  It’s unfortunately the first dud on the album for me.  “Dogs of War” redeems it, with a “Razor’s Edge” dark vibe.  The only real noticeable difference from past AC/DC albums is a slicker production on the backing vocals.

Do you need some rock & roll thunder?  AC/DC got it.  “Got Some Rock & Roll Thunder” has one of those jangly AC/DC riffs, backing a catchy chorus.  This sounds a bit like material from Stiff Upper Lip, which is a good thing to me.  “Hard Times” also sounds similar to that era.  They’re good enough songs to serve as AC/DC album tracks.  Then there’s “Baptism of Fire”, back to those fast AC/DC beats that you need every once in a while.

ROCK OR BUST_0001A track that I think should be played live is “Rock the House”.  This has classic written all over it.  Taking on a “Whole Lotta Love” groove, it’s hard to resist the urge to bang your head.  Go ahead, try.

“Sweet Candy” is an ode to strippers, of course.  What did you expect?  Look forward to another singalong slow AC/DC groove.  I have a feeling a few strippers are going to add this song to their repertoire next year.  Then, ending the album on a funky note is “Emission Control”.   There are also nods and winks to the Mutt Lange era of AC/DC with the thick backing vocals.  The song throws me for a loop a bit; I’m not sure if I like it or not.

I found Brendan O’Brien’s production to be a bit thuddy and less bright than Black Ice.  It still gets the job done, as does Rock or Bust.

3.5/5 stars

GALLERY: Christmas Phase Two (Christmas Day)

Disclaimer (1537!): meat and music content ahead!

It has been an incredibly busy week here at Chez LeBrain. They tell me it’s Saturday. I’ve lost all track of time. The first week of my holidays are gone! I have a feeling that the next week will be filled with lots of music….

After our annual family Christmas Eve dinner/gathering, we re-convened for Christmas Day. My Grandma’s 90th Christmas was also her first since breaking her leg in the summertime. She did awesome! Another amazing Christmas, all finished. Hard to believe.

On to the good stuff!

First up: the fun stuff. Some Kiss dolls. Is it Ace and Peter? Or is it Tommy and Eric? Who knows! A Kiss keychain to boot. Got some Transformers too. Should I open up the rare Treadshot figure? Or no? I can’t decide! Jen also bought me a Transformers pen with a light in it that acts like a Bat signal…but it’s a Bee signal!

Some assorted goodies…

That Fart game looks interesting.

Finally got the game Risk: Legacy.  Interesting twist on this one.  It must always be played by the same group of players.  Changes you make to the game are permanent.  What you do in game 1 may come back to haunt you in game 6.  Cards and the board itself are modified permanently as you go.  Most elements of the game are completely secret until you reach the point where you can break seals on additional instructions.  Cool eh?

Lastly, the music!  Here we go.

The first five Zep remasters!  Holy Zep overload!  These are all doubles.  Queen Live at the Rainbow ’74 — also a double.  Dio live in ’93, another double.  Several CD/DVD sets:  Bon Jovi New Jersey deluxe (yes!!)  with 2 CDs and a DVD.  Journey’s Escape Tour CD + DVD set.  (Listening that one right now, actually.)  Whitesnake Live in ’94 is another CD + DVD set.  Then some new music: Foo Fighters and AC/DC’s Rock Or Bust!  I really like the packaging on the AC/DC disc.  Can’t wait to hear it.

Last but certainly not least:  ZZ Top’s The Complete Studio Albums 1970-1990.  10 CDs, baby!  As if all that Zeppelin wasn’t enough, now this!  Thank you, Mrs. LeBrain’s Mom, for this one!  I only had one of these albums before, which is Eliminator.  Some of these discs are available separately with bonus tracks, but that’s OK: this box set is the only place you can get several of these Top albums in their original mix.  Remember in the 80’s when they remixed and re-released the Top back catalogue?  Those 80’s mixes have persisted on CD for a long time.   This box set represents the first time you could listen to albums like Rio Grande Mud in their original form on CD.  I like that very much.

NEWS: Phil Rudd of AC/DC update

PHIL BAIL

It appears as if the two people Phil Rudd was “attempting to procure a murder” for were hookers.  Err, “working girls” according to the mainstream media.

Those charges have been DROPPED.

He still faces the drug charges, and charges of making threats.

Meanwhile, AC/DC have said that the Rock Or Bust album and tour will proceed on schedule, with or without Phil Rudd.  I hope Simon Wright and Chris Slade have their phones charged.

More:  www.nydailynews.com/news/world/ac-dc-drummer-phil-rudd-procure-murder-charge-dropped-article-1.2002410

WTF? AC/DC’s Phil Rudd charged with “attempting to procure a murder”

This is just too weird for the “nice guys of rock”, AC/DC.  It’s way too early for me to comment.  This may explain, however, why Phil was absent from AC/DC’s new lineup band photo.

Some quotes from the article:

“The veteran rocker apparently tried to have two men killed.”

“He was also charged with possession of meth and cannabis.”

“He faces up to 10 years in prison.”

Rudd is currently out on bail, with a hearing on November 27.  The new AC/DC album Rock Or Bust is out on November 28.

Read More: AC/DC’s Phil Rudd Charged With ‘Attempting to Procure a Murder’

 

REVIEW: AC/DC – “Play Ball” (2014)

AC/DC – “Play Ball” (2014 Columbia)

Holy shit, AC/DC’s back. When we all heard about Malcolm’s health problems, I thought that was it. I really didn’t expect them to carry on with Stevie Young — but here he is, on AC/DC’s great new single “Play Ball”.

Judging by “Play Ball”, not much has changed in AC/DC land.  The flavour is still distinctly AC/DC: upbeat, great mid-tempo groove and solid riff.  And I swear you can hear some different fingers on the strings.  Listen carefully.  Yet regardless of losing arguably the most important member of AC/DC, it sounds like nobody else.  Brian’s still growling, his voice pretty much unchanged since the Ballbreaker album in ’95.   Musically, I’m thinking in territory similar to 2000’s Stiff Upper Lip.  I’ve heard the song six times as of this writing (three on the radio, three on my PC).  It’s nothing that will go down in AC/DC history as one of their greatest singles, but I can’t say anything bad about it either.

4/5 stars

Rock Or Bust tracklisting:

01. Rock Or Bust
02. Play Ball
03. Rock The Blues Away
04. Miss Adventure
05. Dogs Of War
06. Got Some Rock & Roll Thunder
07. Hard Times
08. Baptism By Fire
09. Rock The House
10. Sweet Candy
11. Emission Control

NEWS: AC/DC’s Malcolm Young IS suffering from dementia

BREAKING NEWS
Exclusive World Premiere Of AC/DC "Live At River Plate" Presented By DeLeon Tequila

I didn’t want to post ANYTHING about this subject until confirmed by the band.  Now AC/DC have confirmed that Malcolm Young (61) is suffering from dementia.  Dementia is a horrible illness, without a cure, and all we can really do is pray (if you so choose) and support the Young family.

AC/DC is continuing on with Uncle Mal and Ang’s nephew Stevie Young, who previously filled in for Mal on the 1988 Blow Up Your Video tour.  The new album, Rock or Bust, is out December 1.