Ac/Dc
High Voltage

THE REVIEW

Hard Rock is the subgenre of rock that is most influenced by Rhythm and Blues. At the end of the 60s, Deep Purple created this genre by taking Rhythm and Blues and arranging it with the still primitive Progressive. Already towards the end of the second half of the seventies, this type of music was experiencing a period of stagnation due to other trends that were burying it under useless flourishes. But it was precisely in 1974 in Australia and in 1976 in the rest of the world that AC/DC, through High Voltage unwittingly refounded Hard Rock for the second time, they did this by eliminating the Progressive, increasing the Blues matrix, and incorporating the genuine, instinctive, sincere Rock'n'Roll of the origins. Just consider that in their career, AC/DC made many covers in honor of Chuck Berry, considered one of the fathers of Rock. Hard Rock was refounded for the third time in 1989 by Guns 'n' Roses.

High Voltage opens with an epic track for the band "It's a Long Way to the Top", introduced by Angus's guitar riffs and the voice of that blues animal Scott, which, as a feature of the track, engages in long bagpipe solos. The lyrics talk about the difficulty of reaching the rock and roll Olympus and it is autobiographical. "Rock and Roll Singer" is a fast-paced and adrenaline-driven track and it too will become a staple for future concerts. "The Jack" is an extraordinary blues track and is accompanied by Scott's narrative, which talks about a card game and the various adventures related to it... Notably, George Young was on bass in these last two tracks. "Live Wire" flows by amid the Youngs' guitars and was, during the Bon Scott period, the opening track for concerts.
"T.N.T" is the masterpiece of the album, just listen to the chorus "Cause I'm TNT. I'm Dynamite/TNT and I'll win the fight/TNT I'm a power load/TNT watch me explode", splendidly interpreted by Scott's hoarse, otherworldly, and devilish voice, and Malcolm's voice, which might not be technically perfect but is appreciable. This song can summarize, thanks to its hard riffs, the chorus, and the extraordinary finale in which the bass and guitar of the Youngs alternate slowly at first and then whirl explosively with Kerrante's drums, the philosophy, if it can be called that, of AC/DC. "Can I Sit Next to You Girl" is an engaging track and above all very Rock and Roll. The next track, "Little Lover", is slower and more sensual, characterized by the interplay between the voice and the scales of Malcolm Young's rhythm guitar. "She Got Balls" was the song from the album "dedicated" by Scott to his wife, who shortly after requested a divorce due to the not very flattering content. The track is defined by many as "Hendrixian". Finally, the album closes with the title track "High Voltage", fast, angry, catchy (a bit like all AC/DC songs), and it is the shortest track on the album.