POWER UP

I have received the cd in good order and am very happy to have it on this format.

This album hit me at age 55, like Back in Black hit me at age 15. When I 1st heard it I thought it was very, very good. When I heard it a 2nd time I thought it was Great! When I heard it for a 3rd time I thought it was a Masterpiece! The difference with albums like this and the run of the mill stuff, is that you immediately like a few of the catchy song, but the other songs never catch on; but on a great album such as this they all quickly grow on you and become favorites in their own way. For me, I immediately liked Realize, Shot In the Dark, Kick You When You're Down, Demon Fire, Wild Reputation and Money Shot. I liked all of the tracks but thought Rejection, and No Man's Land and Through the Mist of Time were the weakest tracks but now they are my current favorites. And I have to say Through the Mist of Time is monumental and it is hard for me to not shed a tear or two thinking about Malcolm Young and all this band has been through and what they stand for! I am not an audio technician but to my ears the sound on this album is phenomenal. Brians voice is the best it has ever sounded, at least since Back in Black, and love the songs where he goes lower range, and Cliff, Phil, Stevie and of course Angus' playing is extraordinary and super tight. The really crazy thing about this album is that all the songs come across equally well on everything from my cell phone speakers, to the laptop speakers, to my car speakers, to my booming 9 x 190 watt home sound system. The sound is in a word "explosive", which it very well should be with an AC/DC album of this caliber! I have the album on CD, deluxe CD, yellow vinyl, black vinyl and loaded on every piece of digital audio equipment I own. 2020 just got a lot better. Thank you AC/DC for making another masterpiece!!!!

AC/DC has had a rough couple of years after the release of Rock or Bust. Brian's hearing loss, Phil's legal trouble and Cliff's departure it wasn't looking good for the group. Then the unthinkable happened with the loss of Malcolm. I thought that was it for the group. Then in 2020 the unthinkable happened; the remaining group came back to create a modern day Back in Black. This album is a wonderful tribute to Malcolm. This isn't just a good album, this is a masterpiece! Every song is catchy and has you humming or singing along. Stand outs for me are Realize, Rejection, Shot in the Dark, Kick You When You're Down, Demon Fire, Wild Reputation, Systems Down, Money Shot and Code Red. The other three tunes (Through the Mists of Time, Witch's Spell, No Man's Land) are all still really solid songs! For me this is their best album since Razors Edge. Old fans and new will find something they like on this album.

Back in the day, before I was even in my teens, I owned Highway to Hell, Back in Black, and For Those About to Rock on vinyl. Needless to say, I was a huge AC/DC fan. They lost the mojo, IMO, with a string of less than stellar albums. Then, Razor’s Edge came out in 1990 and they were BACK! Or so I thought. Again, another string of less than stellar albums. None bad, but none great, either. So, when I heard Powerup was coming out, I was glad to hear it, but wasn’t expecting much. Let me just say, this album has FAR EXCEEDED my expectations. Like, by a mile. I haven’t been able to stop listening to this since I got it. Not a bad song on here and quite a few great ones. I find myself with a different song stuck in my head every day. I’d have to say my very favorite song is Rejection, but again, they’re all outstanding. So glad they made another album and, if this is their last, they went out strong. Highly recommended.

If you are a fan of classic rock or 70-'s80's hard rock in general, you probably bought this album as soon as it was released, as I did. I didn't expect Back in Black 2.0, and reviews suggesting it is just that are ridiculous. That being said, 'Power Up' is a solid piece of meat & potatoes rock and roll, with a few gems along the way. Brian's voice sounds fine, if older. The boys sound good musically, but the tragic absence of Malcom is noticeable. He was the leader of the band and brought that certain 'punch'.The majority of the album is what you'd expect from AC/DC; heavy guitar riffs with a shouted Johnson chorus which is then immediately repeated by the band. Several of the songs have an all-too-familiar melody, but who really cares at this point? Its 2020 and AD/DC is still making new music; that's a gift to mankind in itself.There are a few standout tracks; most notably 'Through the Mists of Time' ,(in memory of Malcom), is not only a great song, but lyrically, it's probably the best song AC/DC has ever written. Moving, deep, funny, and thoughtful, 'Mists' is an absolute must-listen. The first single released, 'Shot in the Dark' is a classic formulaic AC/DC song with innuendo and crashing riffs. Its a lot of fun and is the anchor of 'Power Up'. I enjoyed 'Witch's Spell' a great deal for no other reason than its catchy and was released around Halloween. It has that chiming rhythm guitar-entry that AC/DC has done so well for so long. 'Kick You When You're Down' is a uniquely stripped-down AC/DC sound that works, oddly enough. 'No Man's Land' is well-written, has a touch of blues, and a surprisingly unique melody for 2020 AC/DC. I like it the more I listen to it.There are a few boners, of course. 'Demon Fire', to me, is almost unlistenable. The spoken word portions are just weird, and the song itself is forgettable. Ditto with 'Rejection' and 'Wild Reputation' which are just filler. ('Wild Reputation' is repetitive, even by AC/DC standards). 'Money Shot' and 'Code Red' are average AC/DC songs, not great and not terrible.Overall, this was the album I was most looking forward to in 2020, and it didn't disappoint. It's AC/DC. It rocks hard. They are still kicking almost 50 years in, and music is a better world because of it.