By Yuri Woodfall – Western Lead Photojournalist, Sound Check Entertainment
There are concerts that try to surprise you, and then there are concerts where you know exactly what you came for.
AC/DC falls firmly into the latter category.
On Sunday night, August 9, the Australian rock legends rolled into Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium on their Power Up Tour, delivering a massive dose of nostalgia, enormous guitar riffs and some of the most recognizable rock songs ever written.
Before AC/DC took over Commonwealth Stadium, The Pretty Reckless opened the evening with a great set of their own.
Fronted by Taylor Momsen, the band proved to be a fitting choice to warm up a stadium full of rock fans. For anyone who grew up watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Momsen might also be familiar for a very different reason: she played Cindy Lou Who in the 2000 film alongside Jim Carrey. More than two decades later, there wasn’t much Whoville left as Momsen commanded the stage at Commonwealth Stadium.
The Pretty Reckless opened with “Death by Rock and Roll” before moving into “Since You’re Gone” and “Follow Me Down.”
Their 10-song set pulled from across the band’s catalogue while also making room for newer material, including “For I Am Death” and “About You.” Songs like “Witches Burn” kept things heavy, while “Make Me Wanna Die,” “Heaven Knows” and “Going to Hell” gave the crowd plenty of familiar material as their set moved toward its conclusion.
Opening for AC/DC is no small assignment, especially in a stadium setting, but The Pretty Reckless more than held their own. Momsen commanded the massive stage with confidence, and the band delivered a strong performance that made them feel like considerably more than simply the act everyone was waiting through before the headliner.
It was a great way to start the night.
Then it was time for AC/DC.
This wasn’t a night about reinvention. AC/DC didn’t need to reinvent anything. This was about hearing those songs the way they were meant to be heard: loud, live and surrounded by a stadium full of people who knew every word.
And at the centre of everything was Angus Young.
From the moment AC/DC launched into “If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It),” Young was unmistakably himself. Schoolboy uniform, Gibson SG and seemingly endless energy intact, he remained the visual and musical heartbeat of the band.
At 71 years old, Young still commands a stadium in a way few guitarists can. The duckwalks, facial expressions and frantic movement are all part of the AC/DC experience, but underneath the showmanship remains the reason he’s been able to do this for more than five decades: the guy can still absolutely play.
“Back in Black” arrived almost immediately, followed by the newer “Demon Fire” and the Bon Scott-era “Shot Down in Flames.”
Then came that opening guitar figure.
“Thunderstruck.”
Commonwealth Stadium erupted.
It was one of several moments where the concert stopped feeling like simply watching a legendary band and became a massive communal singalong.
From there, AC/DC jumped freely through its enormous catalogue. “Have a Drink on Me” gave way to the tolling bell that announced “Hells Bells,” while “Shot in the Dark” represented the band’s more recent Power Up material alongside classics spanning several decades.
By the time “Highway to Hell” arrived, there wasn’t much convincing left to do.
AC/DC has accumulated so many instantly recognizable songs that its setlist almost feels unfair. “Shoot to Thrill,” “Sin City,” “Jailbreak,” “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap,” “High Voltage” and “Riff Raff” kept the riffs coming before “You Shook Me All Night Long” provided another enormous stadium singalong.
There isn’t much subtlety involved, but there isn’t supposed to be.
Brian Johnson was equally impressive.
Johnson’s unmistakable rasp remains one of rock’s most distinctive voices, and on Sunday he delivered. Standing alongside Young, he looked and sounded like a man genuinely enjoying another opportunity to front one of the biggest rock bands on the planet.
There was also something particularly fitting about seeing Johnson command an Edmonton stage again.
On July 13, 1980, Edmonton’s Northlands Coliseum hosted Johnson’s first North American concert as AC/DC’s frontman, kicking off the North American leg of the Back in Black tour. More than 46 years later, Johnson was back in Edmonton, still standing beside Angus Young and still belting out the songs that would help define his career with the band.
That history made songs like “Hells Bells,” “Back in Black” and “You Shook Me All Night Long” hit just a little differently. Edmonton was there near the very beginning of the Brian Johnson era, and more than four decades later, the city was there to see him do it again.
That combination of Johnson and Young ultimately carried the night.
AC/DC’s current touring lineup also features rhythm guitarist Stevie Young, bassist Chris Chaney and drummer Matt Laug, but the spotlight inevitably kept finding its way back to the two men at the front.
As the main set approached its conclusion, “Whole Lotta Rosie” brought out another piece of classic AC/DC spectacle before “Let There Be Rock” handed the stadium over almost entirely to Angus Young.
And Angus went to work.
The song stretched into an extended guitar showcase that became one of the night’s defining moments. Young tore through a lengthy solo while commanding the massive stage, providing a pretty convincing reminder that AC/DC isn’t surviving purely on the reputation of its catalogue.
Angus Young can still put on one hell of a show.
After a brief departure, the band returned with “T.N.T.” before closing the night with “For Those About to Rock (We Salute You).”
It was exactly the kind of ending an AC/DC stadium show demanded.
Sunday’s concert wasn’t about discovering something new. It was about tens of thousands of people getting the chance to experience songs that have been part of rock culture for generations.
That’s really the best way to describe the entire night: a solid, unapologetically nostalgic rock show.
AC/DC knows exactly what people want from an AC/DC concert, and after more than 50 years, there is little reason to mess with the formula. Give Angus Young a guitar, put Brian Johnson behind a microphone, turn everything up and unleash one monster riff after another.
For a few hours at Commonwealth Stadium, that formula worked just fine.
And Angus Young and Brian Johnson proved they’re still pretty damn good at it.
