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Rating: Once you get past the initial prejudice that every AC/DC album without Bon Scott (r.i.p) should be considered rubbish, we can start discussing this one. I will only refer to the band with Johnson as the vocalist, as there is no comparison with the previous singer. Having made the necessary clarification, let's move on.
Having absorbed, listened to, danced to, and moshed to it for half my life, I can unequivocally say that it is one of the best of the "second period." Contrary to many who consider it a mediocre album: I don't think it's that way. Probably the motto "don't change a winning team" applies, given the quality of their previous works, of which I'll briefly mention only "For Those About to Rock" and "Back in Black." Vitriolic rock'n roll, with various hard rock nuances, that never spill over into sappy ballads like Scorpions (and no offense to their fans, please). This is indeed hyper-adrenaline music, maximalist, very "catchy," for the enjoyment of "metalheads" (not all, not all...). And one cannot help but appreciate the technical abilities of the two crazy brothers on guitars, capable of delivering somewhat predictable solos and fairly ordinary rhythms, yet highly enjoyable and fitting. Wright/Williams on drums/bass are somewhat subdued: they keep the beat, not much more. But, in the end, that's just fine.
This album features the presence of the classic "That's the way I wanna rock'n roll" (...just say it!), "Meanstreak" and "Two's Up" (my favorite), but it also stands out for its excellent overall production. The compositional vein is indeed static but quite original, and Brian Johnson seems very inspired. The tracks sometimes wear out, but there is a certain variability, though still limited to the usual blues progressions, the usual pentatonics, and whatever else has already been heard. But they, like Manowar for metal, have made repetition a school, a creed to be followed religiously, at the risk of being labeled "infidels." And so, "experimentation," or more crudely "variability," is automatically abolished. The school is that of the blues, no need to repeat it, with heavy influences of themselves(!), repeated without shame until the last note. How wonderful(!). Indeed, here too, AC/DC are self-celebratory but accessible to everyone, proud "opponents of musical intellectualism," of progressive, of sophistication, and of mind games: they become charmingly unbearable, heavy, raw, making them THE quintessential hard-rock band. But forget the genre: "Blow up your video" should be enjoyed with the right mindset, ready to get excited like crazy, to simply enjoy the guitar riffs of the Young brothers, to sing the lyrics without thinking too much, and to "shake it," for example, with "Nick of time," or the furious "This means war," whose title couldn't be more fitting. There is little left to say about the album in question: the fierce Jerry Lee Lewis-like attitude brought to 1988, the use of reverb in the guitars and the vocals of the first track (as proof of a modest attempt to do "something new"), a few tracks that start well and end in boredom, a presence of overall pleasant "mid-tempo," perhaps mundane solos (but Young & Young guarantee them), and a rhythm based on chord sequences that even a completely drunk guitarist could play (and it's no coincidence!).
Enjoy... "Getting ready to rockGetting ready to roll..."
Angus Young - Guitar
Malcolm Young - Guitar
Simon Wright - Drums
Cliff Williams - Bass
Brian Johnson - Vocals
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Heatseeker (03:50)
Gettin' ready to rock, gettin' ready to roll
Gonna turn up the heat, gonna fire up the coal
I gotta that motor turnin'
I gotta keep that engine clean
I gotta keep those tyres burnin'
I've got the best you've ever seen
Cos I'm a heatseeker, chargin' up the sky
Heatseeker, and I, don't need no life preserver
Don't need no one to hose me down
To hose me down
Getting ready to break, get ready to go
Get your shoes off an' shake, get your head down and blow
Ya gotta keep that woman firin'
You gotta keep that circuit clean
You gotta make her sound the siren
You gotta hear that lady scream
Cos I'm a heatseeker, burnin' up the town
Heatseeker, I don't, I don't need no life preserver
Don't need no one to hose me down
To hose me down, here it comes
Heatseeker
Wanna see you get up, see the whites of your eyes
I'm a heatseeker
I'm gonna measure you, gonna try you for size
I'm a heatseeker
Ya gotta keep that motor turnin'
Ya gotta keep that engine clean
Ya gotta keep those tyres burnin'
I got the best you've ever seen
I'm a heatseeker
I don't need no life preserver
Don't need no one to hose me down
I'm a heatseeker, I'm a heatseeker, heatseeker
Out on the street feel the heat
03 Meanstreak (04:09)
I've been to the left, I've
been to the right
I've found myself in
Abudhabi, just a mirage in
the night
Been to the high, I've been
to the low
And I've been to lots of
places that I didn't wanna
go
But I ain't see nothing to
get me off my ass
And laughed at all the
jokers wanting make me walk
on glass
I could walk 'fore I could
crawl
And I was meaner than a bad
dog with his back against
the wall
Animal, animal
Cannibal, cannibal
See 'em fall, see 'em fall
I'm the guy that they call -
Meanstreak, I gotta
meanstreak
Meanstreak, they call me
meanstreak
I just don't know who I
wanna be
The count of Monte Cristo or
the sheik of Arabia
I've eaten rich, and I've
eaten free
I'm the perfect culture
vulture in the face of
poverty
And I ain't met no one who
told me I got class
They say never feed the
animal, the boys got too
much flash
I'm a guy they just can't
teach
And I always kick the castle
that's been built up on the
beach
Animal, animal
Cannibal, cannibal
See 'em fall, see 'em fall
I'm the guy that they call -
What's your name?
Meanstreak
05 Kissin' Dynamite (03:59)
Here she come, here she come
Eating up the thrill
Sugar cane, sugar cane
Dressin' up to kill
Like a fireball in the
shadow
Like a storm that's gonna
show
Like an overwhelmed volcano
Getting set to blow, set to
blow
She got a nasty reputation
She got a healthy apetite
When she needs some
detonation
She sets the fuse alight,
the fuse alight
Feel like kissin' dynamite
Let it rain, let it rain
Let me feel it pour
Let it slide, let it slide
Let me feel the core
Like the thunder in the
mountains
Like the lightning in the
sky
Like the eye of a tornado
She watch it all go by, all
go by
Then she kills for
recreation
And she plays her games at
night
She want to work on her
vocation
She set the world alight,
set world alight
Feel like kissin' dynamite
Dynamite, here it come
Dynamite, gonna blow
Dynamite, just wanna warn
you
Dynamite, the volcano
Dynamite, she got no
imagination or (??????)
Dynamite, that's the way you
want, that's the way he'll
go
Dynamite
Feel like kissin' dynamite
06 Nick of Time (04:18)
Wrong track, wrong line
First train to run on time
Bad blood, bad news
Long rope, got nothing to
lose
Mad bull seeing red
Coming at me, happy when I'm
dead
Jump a fence, get away
Ain't got a liking for the
games he plays
What you gonna do?
Everybody trying to find you
guilty
Make you wanna tow the line
Saved by, saved in the nick
of time
I was saved in the nick of
time
Slow plane, hard rain
Cold sweat and I feel the
strain
Look down, no ground
Black sky, just the engine
sound
Bail out, goodbye
Take my chances, I don't
wanna die
Count ten, just pray
The nick of time can save me
any day
What you gonna do?
Everybody love a hero, honey
Living on a danger line
Saved by, saved in the nick
of time
I was saved in the nick of
time
Lose sleep, get grief
Some day get no relief
Quick punch, closed eye
You didn't knew it and you
wonder why
Lynch mob on your tail
Think they were searching
for the holy grail
Leave town, get away
I didn't figure on them
anyway
No I didn't today
Everybody trying to find you
guilty
Make you wanna tow the line
Saved by, saved in the nick
of time
I was saved in the nick of
time
08 Ruff Stuff (04:30)
I like 'em big and I like
'em small
And if I had to take the
oath I would take them all
Give me that ruff stuff
(It's what I want)
She's a saint, she's a
sinner
She's a rave, rave, rave
She's a woman, she's a
winner
In every way, way, way
She don't want love
Nor cabaret that's out
She like to play around
That suits me fine
I like it better when she
read my mind
You know, don't want a woman
with a ball and chain
Don't want to play that game
[CHORUS]
Just give me that ruff stuff
I want ruff stuff
Baby give me ruff stuff
You don't want ruff stuff?
Don't want your face around
here
Make you shake, make you
shiver
Make you pray, pray, pray
Gonna make you quake, make
you quiver
And turn you grey, grey,
grey
I don't need brakes
They slow me down too much
They keep me out of touch
They lock me in
I like it better when I pull
the pin
You know, don't want a woman
with a ball and chain
Don't want to play that game
[CHORUS]
I like them big and I like
them small
And if they asked me to take
the oath,
I would have to take them
all
Give me that ruff stuff
Don't want your face round
here
I don't want your face round
my backyard any more
09 Two's Up (05:21)
(Three is company)
Last stand
Down to my last dime
Haven't got the sense to
leave
The dealers cutting fine
Last draw
Back against the wall
Depending where the money is
Is where I'm gonna fall
Ace high
Hide your poker eyes
I didn't want to laugh too
much
When I picked up the prize
Lady Luck
Standing at my side
I'll leave with more than I
brought in
And I get her in my life
Get her in my life
[CHORUS]
I go, you go, she go, we go
Two's up, it's a two's up
Give me head, give me tails
Give me doubled up and
coming doubled over on the
rails
Give me two's up, it's what
I want
High up
When you're looking down
Then you see two animals
Just fooling you around
Stray dogs
Gonna take them in
I don't know what your names
are
But you're gonna break them
in
All day
It's difficult to say
Who is doing what to whom
Who's out of the play
I love
The way you slide and slip
Love the way you girls work
out
And make the partnership
Make that partnership
(Gotta give me double or
quits)
Two's up, two's up
Like your partnership
Like the way you slip
There ain't nothing like a
two's up
That's the way it is, two's
up
It's what I want to hear
Give me head, give me tails
Give me doubled up and
coming over on the rails
10 This Means War (04:23)
(You get your head down,
will you)
I want you
I want you to
I want you to march
Eyes go right, shoulder arms
Left wheel turn, show your
charms
Change your clothes, cut
your hair
Ain't no joke, ain't no
place for kids
When the flags are high,
hear the battle cry
Treaty gone, see the bandits
fly
Dig the trench, watch that
blast
Shell shock come, coming
fast
Name and rank on parade
Might get laid by a hand
grenade
Do you know what it means?
This - means - war
This means war, this means
war
I said this means war, this
means war
This means war
(Run for cover, hit the
deck, call for your mother)
I need you to fire
Cock your gun, wet your
sights
Get the bull dead to rights
Volunteers, one pace back
On the beach ain't no place
for kids
When the flack is high on a
bomber run
You don't talk back to an
ack-ack gun
Fire range, and you're in
the blitz
Keep your head or you're
blown to bits
Name and rank on parade
Might get laid by a hand
grenade
Do you know what it means?
This - means - war
Who's going there, is it a
friend or foe?
Propaganda time on the radio
Top brass shout as they
clown around
Peace talks die in Geneva
town
Do you know what it means?
This - means - war
This means war, this means
war
I said this means war, this
means war
This means war
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