In 1978, AC/DC released its first live album. Titled If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It), the record cover was a gory photo of lead guitarist Angus Young impaled on his guitar with the band’s first singer, Bon Scott, leering over his shoulder.
The image perfectly described the performance captured on the vinyl.
It was raw, raunchy, rock ‘n’ roll by a rowdy band that built its reputation on Australia’s hardscrabble live music bar circuit.
It’s fitting that the band is opening dates on the latest leg of its seemingly never-ending PWR/UP Tour with the title track from that 48-year-old recording. The group pretty much established the sonic template for its concerts all those years ago, and still features four of its 10 tracks in its 2026 set.
Following Scott’s untimely passing at age 33 in 1980, the group struck pay dirt that same year with Back In Black. Featuring new singer Brian Johnson, Back In Black is the best selling hard rock record of all time. That album’s title track was the second song of the night, and four of its tracks are locked in the 21 song show.
In 2026, the band could easily call a new live album If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It. Cynics could come up with a slightly less complimentary title and suggest If You’ve Got Cash, We’ll Take It.
It is true that last night’s packed performance at B.C. Place was nearly identical to the tour’s 2025 Vancouver date. But a number of factors came into play that make the case that all those adoring fans sporting those flashing red devil horns and the other merchandise flying off the racks got what they wanted and what they paid for.
The only awful moment of the show was a disjointed and off-kilter take on Thunderstruck. Sometimes, you should just start over.
For those about to rock who needed reminding of who was playing, the giant AC/DC logo was helpful. Photo: Stuart Derdeyn
There are so few classic rock acts remaining that can pack B.C. Place and the architects of the Bad Boy Boogie deserve to be one of them. The sonic legacy the band has built over the past half century is one that depends on delivering the nuts and bolts of its blues-based, high-voltage songs with a looseness that hides the lockstep precision going on right underneath the noise by a relentless rhythm section comprised of Angus’ nephew Stevie Young on rhythm guitar and touring drummer Matt Laug and bassist Chris Chaney.
Young is a natural replacement for his late uncle, and band co-founder Malcolm Young. Laug and Chaney, who were a tad too spot-on earlier in the tour have started to find the hard-pumping groove that is essential in delivering classics from Highway to Hell to High Voltage and the pounding Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap. They are very much in the pocket now, particularly Chaney.
Lead guitarist Young is still able to duckwalk down the giant stage promenade like someone half his age. Giving off perpetual precociousness in his green velvet schoolboy suit, the 71-year-old rips off searing solos all over the place. While his signature riffs add so much to songs such as You Shook Me All Night Long and T.N.T., the extremely lengthy instrumental interlude in Let There Be Rock could easily be cut in half and leave room for another entire song.
At least he doesn’t moon the crowd anymore, since, well, yeah.
Which brings us to singer Johnson, who has had the enviable task of singing the songs Scott made famous as well as putting his signature howling shriek on later fan favourites such as Shot In The Dark and Stiff Upper Lip. Due to hearing loss, he was replaced on the band’s previous tour by Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose before some custom ear equipment made it possible to perform again.
Fortunately, he sounds better than Rose does these days. And more in form than the tour’s earlier date here.
Smiling and seeming to have a great time all the time, he hit his cues and — for the most part — projected the material over the instrumental din. There were definitely moments when he was having a hard time being heard, but his performances on the great PWR/UP single Demon Fire, vintage creeper Sin City and Have A Drink on Me all rung out loud and clear.
Perhaps the standout performance of the entire evening was the inclusion of 1976’s Jailbreak. A longtime fan fave, the song has not been in the band’s sets for a long time. Like some long-lost relative of the Addams Family’s Uncle Fester, Johnson tore into the tune like he owned it.
“Yeah, that’s nothing and it’s everything, that’s rock ‘n’ roll,” he commented. “And you know that’s Canadian rock ‘n’ roll, since we’ve done four albums here. And, you know why? Because we like it here, and you are the juice.”
By the time the final cannon salvo echoed over the arena during the concert closer For Those About to Rock (We Salute You), the crowd exited smiling and, in many cases, well-juiced. Outside the arena exit gates, rows of teens were waiting to drive their parents home.
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