AXL ROSE SHOOTS TO THRILL WITH AC/DC IN LISBON, PORTUGAL, ENTIRE CONCERT POSTED ONLINE
Mark Sutherland of Rolling Stone reports:
AC/DC must be starting to think someone up there doesn’t like them. A catalogue of misfortune has beset this most enduring of hard-rock bands during the past two years. First, founding guitarist Malcolm Young stepped down from the band due to dementia. Then drummer Phil Rudd left in a haze of criminal charges. Most recently, singer Brian Johnson had to quit touring or face total hearing loss, while the band faced a backlash from fans unhappy at the manner of his departure and/or his superstar replacement: Axl Rose, singer of the newly reunited Guns N’ Roses, and a man who recently faced some adversity of his own in the form of a fractured foot.
Rose just doesn’t seem very AC/DC somehow. Like Johnson, the singer keeps a hat jammed to his head at all times, but there the similarities were expected to end.
Yet Rose actually seemed happy to play a different role here. From his opening greeting of “Nice to meet you!” – just five minutes later than billed – he was a deferential and pleasant presence between songs and an energized, brooding one during them. He remained seated throughout the main set, his leg still encased in a brace, but even his perch was more low-key than during the recent Guns N’ Roses shows: It resembled a humble office chair that had been jazzed up at the last minute with a few lumps of metal and some devil horns.
But while Rose’s body might be ailing, his voice remained in great shape. From the opening salvo of Rock or Bust, Shoot to Thrill and Hell Ain’t a Bad Place to Be, it was clear that, musically at least, the GN’R man is a great fit for AC/DC.
…Rose seemed particularly at home on Bon Scott-era classics such as Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap and High Voltage and happy to defer to Angus Young’s all-action, duckwalking showmanship. Once Rose is mobile again – and that can’t be far off, as he walked on and off the stage between encores – that dynamic may change, but for now, Young handled the heavy lifting, leaving Rose free to enjoy himself…and enjoy himself he did, self-deprecatingly introducing Shot Down in Flames as “a song they wrote about my life story”
Read more at Rolling Stone.
Watch the whole concert below.
Set List:
Rock or Bust
Shoot to Thrill
Hell Ain’t a Bad Place to Be
Back in Black
Got Some Rock & Roll Thunder
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
Rock N’ Roll Damnation
Thunderstruck
High Voltage
Rock N’ Roll Train
Hells Bells
Given the Dog a Bone
Sin City
You Shook Me All Night Long
Shot Down in Flames
Have a Drink on Me
T.N.T.
Whole Lotta Rosie
Let There Be Rock
Encore:
Highway to Hell
Riff Raff
For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)
source: rollingstone.com
Sorry, but this just does not sound right to me. Brian is and will be sadly missed – and yes I can see people in the audience (in the front row, that is!) being happy but I am sure many old fans are not. Sounds more like Guns and Roses to me which goes to show how much influence the singer has on a band’s overall recognition. That is what the band failed to acknowledge to their fanbase regarding Brian’s contribution and status.
The band failed nothing; that’s your opinion only. Let AC/DC handle it like they want to handle it – and bear in mind, you have NO idea what was said between Angus, Cliff, and Brian – and let each fan make their own decision. I don’t for the life of me understand this need for some people to have life played out in the media and in social media.
I for one applaud AC/DC – and Brian – for sticking to their guns. They’ve never been a very press-hungry band, and why should that change now? They owe me NOTHING in that regard, and I certainly don’t need a “press statement” from Angus to tell me how great Brian is, nor how much he likes him. Just having him in the band for what, 36 years tells me all I need to know.
for me after watching the posted videos and reading the article – I thought it went a little over the top praising axl’s vocal ability lol! I suppose it’s as good as can be expected – axl was still in “the chair” so he couldn’t move around , I have to say he wasn’t awful but he wasn’t great either- it sounded to me more like ac/dc karaoke, than ac/dc the band- I would not pay money to see this version of ac/dc- but a lot of their fans will want to see them with axl – so I hope the rest of the tour does well for everyone. and I have to give it up for axl – it takes brass balls to step into that situation, I really respect him for bailing them out, being a professional, and giving it his all.
AC/DC sounds great, as always! But AXL? Not bad, not Brian Johnson, of course, but not bad. Just so weird seeing him up there with AC/DC, as it would be seeing Brian up there with GN’R. Instead of going with the “big name,” I still would rather they went with Joel O’Keeffe from AIRBOURNE! Who sounds like a combination of Bon, and Brian! 😉
Thank God he doesn’t sound like Brian Johnson now a days! I adore Brian as a frontman and a human being, but he’s just not good anymore. It’s shocking how fast it happened. He was fantastic at Wrigley last year, and not good at all at the United Center earlier this year. It’s a real shame. It would’ve been nice if more info was given regarding the entire situation, but Axl Rose absolutely killed it the entire show! He sounds like a combo of Bon and 1980 Johnson. They played more songs than they did with Brian, as well as different songs that haven’t been played in years…and it sounds like more are coming after hearing some of the rehearsal stuff out there. I will certainly be making a road trip to either Detroit or Cleveland when those dates are made up.
Axl absolutely killed it. Haters are going to hate no matter what.
Yeah, just ask Sammy Hagar about that.
I don’t plan on asking him anything, thanks
Haters are so shy, right, Jason?
Not sure what shyness has to do with anything? I loathe Hagar…why would I take a second out of my day to ask him anything?
I am not happy about how the Brian situation was handled. The guy has been with you for 36 years. But after watching Axl , I have to admit I am intrigued. But I think the real intrigue will be what happens when they complete these remaining dates.
Do they continue? Can they somehow revive Brian and go out somewhat redeemed? Do they do something with Axl? Can you imagine?
I will admit to being pissed that they didn’t play Riff Raff in Houston.