AC/DC: Still high voltage

Angus Young of AC/DC performs live on stage. Photo / Getty Images

AC/DC played at London's Wembley Stadium at the weekend ahead of the band's Auckland summer show. Des Sampson was there.

From the opening stomp of Rock Or Bust - the rallying cry for their world tour - to the deafening roar of their encore, For Those About To Rock (We Salute You), AC/DC's possible swansong at Wembley Stadium was as high-voltage, high-octane and highly charged, as you'd expect from the veteran rockers.

With Brian Johnson in his flat cap and black T-shirt prowling around the stage like a caged cat and Angus Young duckwalking the boards in his schoolboy outfit - this time in lush, red velvet - it was vintage AC/DC.

Notable by their absence are Angus' brother Malcolm Young forced into retirement by dementia and drummer Phil Rudd, out of the band due to his legal problems in New Zealand. But nothing could quell the thrill as their stand-ins Stevie Young - Angus and Malcolm's nephew - and Chris Slade helped the band tear through Shoot To Thrill, Hell Ain't A Bad Place To Be and a thunderous version of Back In Black.

Time may have taken its toll on the AC/DC's frontmen. Johnson's content to watch the giant bell sway above him during Hell's Bells rather than swing from it, like he once did. He's also dropped some screams an octave to accommodate notes he can no longer reach.

Likewise, when the now 60-year-old Young sheds his school uniform, his sweaty torso appears more age-withered than youth-ripped. At the end of each song, the band gather around the drum set to regroup, catch their breath and plot the rest of the onslaught.

Continuity and spontaneity isn't the key here though. Instead, it's raw energy, true grit, unbridled passion, showmanship and the towering rock songs that are AC/DC's forte.

So, as the sun sets, they light up Wembley Stadium with a succession of anthems, including Play Ball, Baptism By Fire and fan-favourites like Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, a deafening rendition of Thunderstruck and a blistering High Voltage.

When they unleash one of their biggest hits, You Shook Me All Night Long, revellers in the mosh-pit and across the terraces arise in sing-along unison.

A fittingly explosive T.N.T. follows - replete with fireworks and confetti cannons - as Wembley erupts.

Just when it seems like AC/DC can't possibly top what's come before, they let loose with Whole Lotta Rosie and Let There Be Rock - with Young's guitar solo a lesson in excess, as he drops to his knees, then on to his back to bang out bluesy riffs and chords as the rest of the band wander offstage.

An explosive encore of Highway To Hell follows - again with Young delivering a searing solo - and the dizzying, cacophonous For Those About To Rock (We Salute You). It's the end of the assault that's been loud, proud, big and brash.

- TimeOut