AC/DC’s “POWER UP” Reminds Us Why The Band Is Still A Staple In The World Of Rock

Posted On November 13, 2020

Samantha Colleran, November 2020

AC/DC is back after six years to save the hellish year of 2020 with a brand new album! POWER UP brings all of the old AC/DC rock and roll vibes that fans have come to love over the years with a slightly more refined sound. Stevie Young, the son of the late Malcom Young, stepped into the role and proves his place in the band. With all album releases for artists I love, I stayed up to listen to the album as soon as it dropped at midnight. Instead of giving my full initial thoughts of every single track, I wrote up a more cohesive review. So, ladies, gentlemen, and all those in between, here’s POWER UP!

Opening track “Realize” feels more drum driven, something I wasn’t expecting from AC/DC, but it was a pleasant surprise. It certainly powers up (pun absolutely intended) this new era of AC/DC in a strong way. I love the stereo guitar in “Rejection”, and the chorus of this song in particular feels like it’ll be a key moment in future live shows. Lead single “Shot In The Dark” is still solid and blends perfectly with the rest of the tracklist, I also love the little guitar intro in the beginning; it makes it more unique sounding and a standout among the tracks. 

“Through The Mists Of Time” immediately feels different than the rest of the tracks, it’s a slower buildup and doesn’t fully kick in until the chorus, but it’s definitely among my favorites upon my first listen. We have the catchy riffs and a chorus that’s so hard to keep yourself from singing along with on track 6 titled “Kick You When You’re Down”. “Witch’s Spell” feels more reminiscent of an older AC/DC sound than the other tracks (I mean, they all sound similar but the first couple of seconds of this one feels all too familiar), and it’s already a new addition to my Halloween playlist! 

“Demon Fire” starts off with a deep voice introducing the song, and I’m actually obsessed with this one. The drums drive the track and the guitar riff is so different than anything AC/DC has ever done. We go back to the typical AC/DC vibe on “Wild Reputation”, easy to remember chorus and an iconic guitar breakdown mid song. “No Man’s Land” is as slow as an AC/DC song can get, the tempo feels more relaxed than most of the songs on this album and in their discography, but it’s still catchy nonetheless. “Systems Down” rocks hard, and I love the backing vocals in the chorus of this song in particular. 

“Money Shot” has a pretty sick stereo of the instruments in the beginning of the song, I highly recommend listening to this one with headphones! The drums are simple but they keep the track going at a pretty steady pace, and the guitar solo in this song is probably my favorite from the entire album. “Code Red” is slow and cool, it feels like it should be played in a movie when the bad guys walk in. It’s a high note to end the album on, and you’ll finish your listening session feeling empowered. 

Sam’s Song Selection

1. “Demon Fire”: There’s something about this track that stood out to me immediately, I can’t put my finger on it but the instrumentals are impeccable and the chorus is strong. 

2. “Through The Mists Of Time”: I love the buildup to the chorus, the lyrics are catchy and I found myself singing along rather quickly. 

3. “Code Red”: I love how cool this song sounds. There’s not much else to say apart from I love how badass it sounds. 

Overall, this album certainly did not disappoint. It’s 41 minutes of familiar sounding rock and roll music. It’s amazing to see all of these older bands still kicking it, and I can see some really excellent moments happening with these new songs on tour, if we ever get back to that point in the future. It was also a great album to honor Malcolm and his legacy with the band. Let me know your favorite POWER UP track in the comments below! Keep on rockin’ AC/DC, congratulations on a fantastic release!