AC/DC New album and Tour.

briany

jack presley wrote: »

I know it can be argues that all AC/DC sound the same (and that's part of the fun!) but following on from what Briany says about RoB sounding like Black Ice, the song Rock The Blues Away is very very similar to Anything Goes.

Edit - jaysus that's a short album. All done in about 35 mins. Not overly impressed on first listen but I'll give it a few more spins before writing it off.

35 mins is about right. It's a very straightforward album because it's a set of extremely standard rock song structures. AC/DC are not a band who are known for their complex songwriting, of course, but they have been known to slip in a breakdown or bridge here and there, giving songs a bit more length.

blastman

I've had one listen all the way through. Not classic but not bad, the production sounds pretty good to me. I'm liking Dogs Of War, too, a bit slower and more bluesy than the rest.

jack presley

briany wrote: »

35 mins is about right. It's a very straightforward album because it's a set of extremely standard rock song structures. AC/DC are not a band who are known for their complex songwriting, of course, but they have been known to slip in a breakdown or bridge here and there, giving songs a bit more length.

Still, Black Ice with the same producer and recorded in the same studio (as you pointed out earlier) is about twice a long yet apart from a bit of slide guitar, i wouldn't have called that too much of a departure from the traditional AC/DC sound.

I don't know, maybe they rushed or didn't give themselves enough time to expand the songs (or write more than 11). I know they have said the songs were written from riffs Angus and Malcolm had written so maybe Malcolm was the one behind expanding ideas and turning riffs into more complete songs but as he wasn't around, it must have affected the songwriting?

briany

jack presley wrote: »

Still, Black Ice with the same producer and recorded in the same studio (as you pointed out earlier) is about twice a long yet apart from a bit of slide guitar, i wouldn't have called that too much of a departure from the traditional AC/DC sound.

I don't know, maybe they rushed or didn't give themselves enough time to expand the songs (or write more than 11). I know they have said the songs were written from riffs Angus and Malcolm had written so maybe Malcolm was the one behind expanding ideas and turning riffs into more complete songs but as he wasn't around, it must have affected the songwriting?

I would say so, although these could be songs that were worked on by Malcolm as well. We know that Malcolm and Angus worked on the riffs but we don't know to what extent Malcolm was involved in the process of making them into actual songs, if he was involved at all. The AC/DC songwriting process isn't very well publicised. We could be smart about it and say, 'Well, they throw darts at a board with chords, E, B, G, D, A and C, plus various cliched rock words', but I'd say they're fairly organised in what they do because they record albums in a couple of weeks which is nigh on impossible unless you know your material beforehand. I'd say these were songs that had been completed, or half-completed for a while and were pulled out of the vault, so to speak.

briany

blastman wrote: »

I've had one listen all the way through. Not classic but not bad, the production sounds pretty good to me. I'm liking Dogs Of War, too, a bit slower and more bluesy than the rest.

"Dogs of War...

(Soooldier of forrrtune!)"

briany

Phil Rudd has been in jocular and defiant form, it would seem, at his latest court hearing. He was also late to arrive.

Here he is having a little fun with a fan outside the court :



Here he is putting on a bit of a show for the cameras by attempting, successfully, to piggy back on his bodyguard :



Telling off a cameraman :




This was shortly before he proceeded to back his car out into the street, unaware of the lorry that was driving toward him and which had to brake suddenly to avoid a collision.

ush

briany wrote: »

Where can I get a pair of those boot runners!

RayCon

ush wrote: »

Where can I get a pair of those boot runners!

Back to the Future 2 :

briany

I still wonder what lead Phil down the path from being a fairly quiet member of AC/DC to looking and behaving like a seriously dodgy uncle. It's a bit of a sea change. His public face used to be a fairly quiet, clean cut, and respectable - you wouldn't even know he was there sometimes. Why he's left it this late to go down the road of excess and it's associated pitfalls, I don't know.

sentient_6

That first pic is him outside his house a few days ago, stop making up bull****.

jack presley

sentient_6 wrote: »

That first pic is him outside his house a few days ago, stop making up bull****.

Well spotted. Different t-shirt as well!

seachto7

ush wrote: »

Where can I get a pair of those boot runners!

The auld Reebok pumps. Pretty cool alright:

http://www.reebok.co.uk/pump-omni-lite/M42973_510.html?pr=CUSTOMIZE_IMG_Pump%2520Omni%2520Lite

briany

jack presley wrote: »

Well spotted. Different t-shirt as well!

I only spotted that after I posted it. I was going to amend it, but then thought no-one would notice. :pac:

briany

briany wrote: »

I still wonder what lead Phil down the path from being a fairly quiet member of AC/DC to looking and behaving like a seriously dodgy uncle. It's a bit of a sea change. His public face used to be a fairly quiet, clean cut, and respectable - you wouldn't even know he was there sometimes. Why he's left it this late to go down the road of excess and it's associated pitfalls, I don't know.

Midlife crisis?

briany

zorro2566 wrote: »

Midlife crisis?

Possibly, although he's getting to the stage where it might be better termed a 3/4 life crisis. Hopefully he sorts himself out and gets his head back where it needs to be. Right now, thoughts of whether he can get back with the band should be secondary. Even if he gets cleared of everything, the band would likely ask questions about whether they want to continue their association with him.

Since I steered the thread a bit away from the new album, I'll try to steer it back and say after a day with it, what are the opinions on it? I'll say it's an album of a band trying their best in tough circumstances, and they do well, there's conviction in the music, but it's pretty basic and stripped back even by AC/DC standards in a lot of places and misses those touches of colour that give life to the music.

Lithium93_

Rock Or Bust, nothing game changing, just good old reliable AC/DC.

jack presley

briany wrote: »

Since I steered the thread a bit away from the new album, I'll try to steer it back and say after a day with it, what are the opinions on it? I'll say it's an album of a band trying their best in tough circumstances, and they do well, there's conviction in the music, but it's pretty basic and stripped back even by AC/DC standards in a lot of places and misses those touches of colour that give life to the music.

I think Lithium93 sums it up well in the previous post. You get what you expect to get, nothing groundbreaking. It's not on a par with Black Ice, Stiff Upper Lip or maybe even Ballbreaker but it's not bad. I can't see myself still putting it on in 6 months time though.

jack presley

7 or 8 listens in now and Dogs of War is a fcuking great track. Probably the only classic on the album but a great song.

Wrongway1985

Angus on todayfm on Monday, on the same day after tickets on sale for 1st Slane hopefully they not being announced for the 2nd Slane.

briany

jack presley wrote: »

7 or 8 listens in now and Dogs of War is a fcuking great track. Probably the only classic on the album but a great song.

In the battle of AC/DC's war songs, I'd give it to DoW.

jack presley

All the talk a while back about how bland the cover is, now that I have the album, the cover is actually pretty cool the way the logo explodes when you tilt it.

Still not too important an issue I don't think but I wonder have any of the people who didn't like it changed their mind upon getting the album?

briany

jack presley wrote: »

All the talk a while back about how bland the cover is, now that I have the album, the cover is actually pretty cool the way the logo explodes when you tilt it.

Still not too important an issue I don't think but I wonder have any of the people who didn't like it changed their mind upon getting the album?

It's a minor quibble, but I would have liked to have seen some sort of Angus representation on the cover as well, fist raised defiantly. It would suit the theme of the album, if you think about it, with what they've been through.

NelsonVanAlden

Best album since Flick Of The Switch imo. Much better than Black Ice. Im actually surprised that people on here are saying its not great.

Say Your Number

I've given it a few listens, I think it's on the same level as Black Ice so far, I really like Rock The Blues Away, I know the lyrics are cheesy but it's a nice feel good tune, Stevie does a great job filling the big shoes of his uncle no doubt he'll be able to deliver live, if only Rudd wasn't such a f*cking eejit

blastman

I've been listening to it more over the weekend and I'm starting to really like it. It's definitely on a par with any of the recent albums, IMO. Being short and snappy kind of suits it, although another track or two would have been nice. All in all, 41 years in and after the recent trials and tribulations, I think it's a winner.

Oh, and I had a look at the cover in HMV yesterday and it is pretty well done, all right. Looking forward to my physical copy arriving in the post.

briany

Shortish interview with Angus & Brian on BBC Breakfast. Questions aren't very surprising. Angus can't particularly enjoy discussing the subject of his brother's dementia on each and every one, but it's the hot-button topic. At what point does he just say, though, "Look, if you wanna know how Malcolm is, you probably should have read one of the other 2 dozen answers I've already given on the subject."

Wrongway1985

Pretty sure there is an interview with Angus on Todayfm sometime after 7 o clock tonight too.

McDave

Bought ROB yesterday and have listened through 6 or 7 times already, so I'm giving it a rest before refamiliarising myself with it.

I'm assuming most people here are fans and will buy it themselves, and will try to get to any Dublin concert that might be scheduled. So here's my tuppence worth.

Pluses
- Really strong opening. 'Rock or Bust' and 'Play Ball' both sound really good, and are straight additions to the AC/DC canon. Classic stuff;
- Stevie does a really good job, especially on those opening tracks. He's got a bit of the DNA alright;
- Brian's vocals are very good;
- Rudd's drumming is up to his trademark standards, whatever about the reported difficulties getting him into the studio.

Minuses
- The album really tails off after the storming start. TBH it almost sounds like a different band from track 3. Someone mentioned that 'Rock the Blues Away' sounds like another version of 'Anything Goes' off Black Ice. They have a point. While it's not bad, IMO it's far too poppy for AC/DC;
- I'm struggling to remember tunes or riffs from later songs. It's not that they're bad. They're just not striking enough. In time they may turn out to be slow burners, and more qualities might shine through.

Overall
I'm getting a bit of an SUL vibe off this album (my least favourite album outside FOTW). To me SUL was a half-hearted effort with a couple of knock-out tracks. So far, I'm hearing nothing to elevate ROB above SUL, let alone better later-era albums like Black Ice and Ballbreaker. For instance Black Ice had a few really good tracks, plus an interesting departure in 'Stormy May Day'. They haven't used that direction as a springboard for a foray into, say, a bit of southern Skynrdy blues, with added hardness.

I'm prepared to give ROB more time to grow, but there's no way I'd be giving it any more than 3/5 at this stage.

Wrongway1985

Wrongway1985 wrote: »

Pretty sure there is an interview with Angus on Todayfm sometime after 7 o clock tonight too.

Tuned in it's been postponed didn't say till when, perhaps there was an announcement to coincide with it is the reason its put on hold then again might be reading too much into it.

briany

McDave wrote: »

Bought ROB yesterday and have listened through 6 or 7 times already, so I'm giving it a rest before refamiliarising myself with it.

I'm assuming most people here are fans and will buy it themselves, and will try to get to any Dublin concert that might be scheduled. So here's my tuppence worth.

Pluses
- Really strong opening. 'Rock or Bust' and 'Play Ball' both sound really good, and are straight additions to the AC/DC canon. Classic stuff;
- Stevie does a really good job, especially on those opening tracks. He's got a bit of the DNA alright;
- Brian's vocals are very good;
- Rudd's drumming is up to his trademark standards, whatever about the reported difficulties getting him into the studio.

Minuses
- The album really tails off after the storming start. TBH it almost sounds like a different band from track 3. Someone mentioned that 'Rock the Blues Away' sounds like another version of 'Anything Goes' off Black Ice. They have a point. While it's not bad, IMO it's far too poppy for AC/DC;
- I'm struggling to remember tunes or riffs from later songs. It's not that they're bad. They're just not striking enough. In time they may turn out to be slow burners, and more qualities might shine through.

Overall
I'm getting a bit of an SUL vibe off this album (my least favourite album outside FOTW). To me SUL was a half-hearted effort with a couple of knock-out tracks. So far, I'm hearing nothing to elevate ROB above SUL, let alone better later-era albums like Black Ice and Ballbreaker. For instance Black Ice had a few really good tracks, plus an interesting departure in 'Stormy May Day'. They haven't used that direction as a springboard for a foray into, say, a bit of southern Skynrdy blues, with added hardness.

I'm prepared to give ROB more time to grow, but there's no way I'd be giving it any more than 3/5 at this stage.

This is a nice in depth analysis of the album. I judge AC/DC albums by the filler, not the singles, and I'd be of the opinion that the filler on RoB sounds unfinished, basically. A lot of people might say that AC/DC have a formulaic sound but at their best they can always find little twists on it to keep it interesting. Here, it's one riff, straight chords and a solo, like clockwork almost.

I don't agree that they sound like a different band after track 2, they still sound like AC/DC, but AC/DC a bit hard up for inspiration, basically. Rudd's drumming is dutiful and keeps the beat, but similarly it misses those little touches that really give life to a song. Knowing what we know now about his situation, you can't help but wonder was his mind 100 percent focused on the task at hand?

Also, it's always funny how taste varies for AC/DC because I think SUL is a little cracker of an album. I always felt it was their 'grooviest' album, too.