Album Rating: 3.0

@Sab they self-stole half of Power Up tbh lol



@Titan I liked Black Ice at first, but nowadays I find it overlong and absolutely stuffed with filler. Half that album didn't need to exist. The lineup could perfectly well have been:



1. Rock'n'Roll Train

2. Big Jack

3. War Machine

4. Smash 'n' Grab

5. Spoilin' For a Fight

6. Decibel

7. Money Made

8. Rockin' All The Way



And just scrap the rest.

Album Rating: 3.5

That track listing would suck bro, we're far off lol....you dont even have stormy may day in there wtf

Album Rating: 3.0

That's cause I freaking hate that song lol

Album Rating: 3.5

One of the best riffs on the album

Album Rating: 3.0

Finished the discog run.

Stiff Upper Lip: Sonics and song-wise it sounds like a companion to Ballbreaker: dark, dry, bluesy. There's more filler though (I would've nixed Can't Stand Still and Can't Stop Rock 'N' Roll). Too many songs ride a single riff throughout the entirety of the track, not even changing for the chorus. Safe in New York City would be a highlight but for the fact that it drives both the main riff and chorus into the ground. Two deep-cut highlights are Satellite Blues and Damned.

Black Ice: Sorry, Titan, this is a candidate for my least favorite AC/DC album. I will give it credit for its diversity, but I agree with RTR that's it's egregiously bloated, though I would only cut 5 tracks: Skies on Fire, Smash 'N' Grab, Wheels, She Likes Rock 'N' Roll, and Rock 'N' Roll Dream. There are some good (and interesting) tracks scattered about. Stormy may Day does make me wish they'd try more straight-up blues. War Machine is a highlight, and I'd argue Anything Goes is one of their best "melodic/commercial" songs.

Rock Or Bust: I guess I'll be alone in loving this one. To me, RoB took what Black Ice did well and just cut all the fat. The last three tracks are duds, but I like-to-love everything up to track 8. Miss Adventure has one of my favorite riffs, Dogs of War is heavy as hell, Hard Times grooves like a mofo, and the t/t, Play Ball, and Rock the Blues Away are some of their catchiest songs.

Power Up: I'm liking this more with each listen. What stands out most is the energy and fun. It sounds like a return to their mid/late 80s material, but much better produced. There's definitely some filler towards the end: the stretch from Wild Reputation to Money Shot, though I'd probably only cut Wild Reputation and No Man's Land. Realize, Shot in the Dark, Kick you When You Down, and Demon's Fire are all solid highlights.

One thing in general I noticed about the O'Brien trilogy is how he opens each album with what sounds like a nod to their 80s material production wise, especially with the reverb on the guitars, but then the rest of the albums tend to be dryer. I think O'Brien strikes a good balance between dry-as-a-bone, claustrophobic AC/DC of Flick and the reverbed mess that was Fly. He's not as pristine as Mutt, but he makes the band sound funner.

Album Rating: 3.5

Black Ice: Sorry, Titan, this is a candidate for my least favorite AC/DC album. I will give it credit for its diversity, but I agree with RTR that's it's egregiously bloated, though I would only cut 5 tracks: Skies on Fire, Smash 'N' Grab, Wheels, She Likes Rock 'N' Roll, and Rock 'N' Roll Dream. There are some good (and interesting) tracks scattered about. Stormy may Day does make me wish they'd try more straight-up blues. War Machine is a highlight, and I'd argue Anything Goes is one of their best "melodic/commercial" songs.





Ughhhh. I do agree that it's bloated. I would also agree that it would be best if they cut the songs you mentioned, but I'd keep Skies On Fire. The first 6 songs are all gems in my opinion, along with Money Made and the title track.

Album Rating: 3.0

I'd keep Smash 'n' Grab and cut Stormy May Day.

Album Rating: 3.5

I hope you're F'ing with me

SUL has some great cuts like the super bouncy Hold Me Back and the ear-candy chorus riff in Meltdown. The title track too is a very solid opener and skimming through the songs there's also Come and Get It which has a quirky chorus and a great solo section where the song fully takes off. I also have to defend Can't Stand Still, the guitarwork justifies the title there. It's an album I should revisit.

Sonically Black Ice is the AC/DC that bothers me the most as it's their loudness war peak, but it has its worth. I'm another fan of Anything Goes for example (just like I really dig both Moneytalks and now Mists of Time) and, to Titan's joy, Stormy May Day. The bass in Skies of Fire is another moment I remember. The song I listened the most however is Spoilin' for a Fight, always dug the interplay between vocal hook and guitar. I can also appreciate War Machine's structure given its barely 3 minutes long but doesn't rush to the vocals until one third in.

RoB works with its easy 35 minutes but I never really jammed it after 2014. Wait what 2014??? oof

"There's definitely some filler towards the end: the stretch from Wild Reputation to Money Shot"
Agreed, but I wouldn't cut No Man's Land as at least it adds to the variety.

The biggest thing I'm learning with this discography overview is that AC/DC drummers hate the ride cymbal, apparently. Is there even one song with a ride groove? I can't unhear this anymore

Album Rating: 3.0

^ Love the riffage in Meltdown. Such a cool, swaggering groove. Chorus (vocally) kinda sucks though. T/T is one of their best of their modern era. Can't Stand Still is one of the songs that just drives (basically) the same riff/idea into the ground. I like the riff itself, but they needed more variety/change for the chorus. Come and Get It's pretty meh, IMO, though I do like the quirky vocals.

Black Ice is indeed their worst in terms of compression, but I'd still take it over Fly or Flick in terms of production. I actually enjoy it when AC/DC goes more pop. They do it so rarely that it's usually a nice change of pace. Spoilin's a great track, but Skies of Fire does nothing for me.

AC/DC with Rudd has the most understated drumming ever, and even when they changed to Simon Wright, who was a bit flashier (and Slade for TRE), it was still that way compared to most any other rock band. I mean, forget ride grooves, early AC/DC had almost zero fills and even crashes were rare. One benefit of that style is that every little change has more impact. That's one thing people miss about AC/DC in general. What they lack in complexity they make up for in subtlety. Can't tell you how many cover/bar bands I've heard play Highway to Hell wrong because they loose the groove of starting the riff on the 3-and upbeat.

Album Rating: 3.0

@sol totally agree that Stiff has one too many 'vocals over minimalistic snaking riff' type songs. It's like the group thought that's the only thing their 70s sound was about. That said, at least four out of the five I can remember that sound like that are great (t/t, Safe In NYC, Can't Stand Still, Hold Me Back.) My favourites on that album are the first four, then Can't Stand Still and Damned further along.



@Sab that's how I felt about the drumming in the first Bon Jovi album. I could never un-hear it after that, either.

Album Rating: 3.0

^ Not a big fan of Can't Stand Still or Hold Me Back, but I dig the others. Satellite Blues may be my favorite of SUL.

We've also all been spelling AC/DC wrong. Should be: AC⚡DC

I think Can't Stand Still has enough melody in its spiraling theme to be fit for repetition especially with how the rhythm guitar plays around it, I honestly like it a lot. Hold Me Back is less interesting but I like it for similar reasons, although this time the drums set the hook. I'm starting to think that I dig all the songs in SUL, like the gritty slow burn of House of Jazz.

Still even in that case I can't help but miss the energy of the Scott era, just compare All Screwed Up to a similar thing like 1:20 into Love Hungry Man. They suffer from the typical disease of "slowing down when you're past your prime" imo, like they aren't fully convinced of what they play so they try to sell it as a slow burner.

Early AC/DC may not have the most impressive of chops but they made up for it with energy and structures (and by rocking out as loud as they could haha). Riff Raff is my go-to "damn I miss this AC/DC" song.

Album Rating: 3.0

I used to like SUL a lot more than Ballbreaker, but now I think my opinions have reversed. I do think SUL is too repetitive, but it's got some great highlights. I agree about missing the energy of the Bon era, especially stuff that flat-out rips like Whole Lotta Rosie, Let There Be Rock, and Riff Raff. TBF though, those kinds of songs were always in the minority for AC⚡DC. They were always more mid-tempo, groove-oriented, but they would spice up albums with fast-paced bangers. That got me thinking... what IS their fastest song of the Brian era? First that came to mind is Heatseeker, but I doubt that's right. One thing for sure is that the AVERAGE pace of songs have come way down and they do far more "slow burn" grooves now than they did with Bon.

Album Rating: 3.0

@Sab you could say Riff Raff is always good for a laugh...



@Solrage their fastest Brian-era song is probably Fire Your Guns off The Razors Edge. Followed by, yeah, Heatseeker, and That's The Way I Wanna R'n'R off Blow Up Your Video, or Demon Fire from Power Up.

Album Rating: 3.0

Oooh, good call on Fire Your Guns. Just going off my memory it's probably even faster than LTBR and Riff Raff.

Album Rating: 3.0

Yeah, that song rips. One of the most underrated of their career, or at least that period of their career.

Yeah I was going to say Fire Your Guns too. Landslide is another contender but the drums kinda push the brakes compared to the former.

"you could say Riff Raff is always good for a laugh..."

Solid

Album Rating: 4.0

Well say what you want i think this is a great album and an AC/DC album good to see them back we salute you lads

Album Rating: 3.5

it hits the spot