AC/DC drives 'Rock N' Roll Train' into Rosemont
Despite its volume, AC/DC's sold-out concert at Rosemont's Allstate Arena on Thursday, Oct. 30, was a soothing spectacle. The Australian hard rock quintet's first area show since 2001 brought back many of AC/DC's typical songs and stage tricks, but the grizzled hooligans' honest energy proved strangely comforting in these uncertain times.
Their latest, "Black Ice," is currently the best-selling album in America. It's AC/DC's first release to hit No. 1 here since 1981's "For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)," despite only being sold through the band's Web site and at Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores. Yes, it sounds like no one but AC/DC. But let's dispel one popular myth right now.
Like most earsplitting rockers accused of the feat, AC/DC has not spent the past several decades repeatedly making the same album. "Black Ice" is miles away from the grimy, scrappy pub-band boogie of their early albums. Its crisp, modern guitar tone and bloated length cannot compare with the compact primal punch of 1980's legendary "Back in Black," still their most popular album, having sold more than 22 million copies in the United States alone.
The group is not repetitive. It's reliable. That, along with its accessibility and lyrical attention to blue collar values (rockin', womanizin', kickin' tail), is key to the AC/DC brand's enduring multigenerational appeal.
The band's extended absence may also be somewhat responsible for the success of "Black Ice," although the Thursday night audience didn't greet new material such as show-opening single "Rock N' Roll Train" with the expected volume. The glorious caveman stomp of "Back in Black" finally roused the crowd, which howled heartily with singer Brian Johnson on the classic rock radio staple.
Then, dependably, hit after hit of similar bone-shaking magnitude punctuated the evening. How satisfying to hear "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" in its proper element: a stadium stuffed with chanting voices, stomping feet and pumping fists, "Deeds," along with other expertly executed favorites "Thunderstruck," "Hells Bells," "T.N.T." and "Highway to Hell" were made for it. Sadly, though, it's still tough to hear "You Shook Me All Night Long" without feeling like you're at a wedding.
Johnson seemed a bit quiet compared to Angus and Malcolm Young's guitars, but his trollish shriek was often pitch-perfect. As for Angus, sure, the AC/DC axeman/mascot went up on a hydraulic platform for an extended "Let There Be Rock." Yet, after he effortlessly tossed out a sharp, searing solo during "Whole Lotta Rosie," still one of the best rock n' roll songs ever written, no one could accuse the man of pretension. And after the 53 year-old's customary striptease, who'd bother?
AC/DC performs again Saturday, Nov. 1. The show is sold out.