Show Review- ACDC at Wrigley Field

On Tuesday, September 15^th 2015, ACDC played a sold out show at Wrigley Field in Chicago Illinois. To me, this was a show that was long overdue. In 2009, I was a sophomore in high school and ACDC came through with perhaps their biggest tour ever…and I missed it. I had no money at the time and it was a week night. Now flash forward six years later and they have a new album and they were coming back to Chicago. It was a week night but I wasn’t taking any chances and it was unfortunate that Malcolm and Phil were not there but I was still hopeful.

Wrigley Field as a venue was a place you either loved or hated there is no in between. I really like the field as a whole being one of if not the oldest ball field in America with its shades of America way back when. I have heard that the sound was garbage but its ACDC they are a loud band I didn’t think I had to worry. Opening act Vintage Trouble really were great with their style of Mississippi styled 50s funk rock. Their singer had a very strong James Brown feel and he really got down with the crowd even crowd surfing toward the end of their set. As the sun came down, a helicopter ominously flew above head and the camera posts were all set. The news was that Wrigley was being shot for the DVD of the tour which got me super excited. As the intro on stage began you could feel the anticipation of the crowd. Then as the meteor hit the ground and the stage exploded the band came out in fine form opening with the strong “Rock Or Bust”. The stage production for this tour was more toward the lighting than the sheer scope of the stage although the rustic shed look was pretty killer.

As for our band, Stevie Young carried himself greatly all the way to his foot tapping like a metronome. He swung a bit looser than Mal but still had that precise picking that his uncle had. He even brought out Malcolm’s signature beatup gretsch as well. Chris Slade was amazing and the guy is almost 70 years old, yet he plays like a 20 year old drummer with extreme ADD and he still is my favorite drummer ACDC ever had. Cliff is still a rock solid bass player and his backups mesh with Stevies pretty well
even though Stevies voice is a bit lower than Mals. Brian Johnson still has that voice and I really cannot believe how he can still carry himself. Angus who is now the ringleader still packs a punch live. He wore his red school boy uniform and although he didn’t do his strip this tour, he still had some shining moments like in Sin City when he literally tried to choke his SG with his tie or his badass no holds barred solo in Let There Be Rock. I was afraid with Wrigley in such a public place that they would have to que down the fireworks and not be able to sound as loud as normal. Well they really let loose and their finally was huge as well. Also, a fun little fact was that Angus brought out his black SG with the white pickguard that he recorded back in black with for the last two songs. So after the smoke cleared I realized that ACDC, although at this point they have nothing to prove, can still dish out the greatest show you will ever see. Seriously if anyone is reading this review, go see ACDC, you will not be disappointed.

Album Review- Motorhead: Bad Magic

Bad Magic is the 22^nd studio album by British Hard Rock/ Heavy Metal band Motorhead and was released on August 28^th, 2015. Now I am no stranger to Motorhead and in fact, they are one of my favorite bands of all time. Lemmy is the main reason I play bass guitar today and ive always looked at him as one of the most badass musical figures ever. Unfortunately lately his health has been showing some negative signs and it has made fans like me worried that this might be his last outing. However, does this album lack the power of every other album? Let’s find out!

Opening with “Victory Or Die” This album has a better and more balls out opening than “Aftershock” did and the production feels more balanced either. This track and “Thunder And Lightning” show that Motorhead has literally lost none of its lethal speed and easily could fit around on the Inferno album. Lemmys voice overall has very little change to it. It has more of a groggy feel but its still great and projects greatly. Songs like “Fire Storm Hotel” and “The Devil” have feels from the Orgasmatron record as well. “Shoot Out All Of Your Lights” has some fantastic drum work from Mikkey Dee as well and shows that he as well has lost none of his chops. Phil Campbell still plays as good as when he joined in ’84. Lemmys lyrics I think really shine on this record as they do on every other one. Tracks like “Electricity” shows this as being simple but still pretty catchy. "Till The End" really is the most calm track here and it kicks ass and has a really atmospheric feel to it especially in Lemmys voice. Perhaps the most interesting piece from this record is the cover of “Sympathy For The Devil”. I really really like this cover and like all the covers Motorhead have done, they really make it their own. Lemmys voice really fits these lyrics more than Mic Jagger ever did as well (when I hear Lemmy snarl “Please to meet you, hope you guess my name” It still gets me.).

Overall, I give this record a solid 8.5 out of 10. It’s Motorhead doing what they do best and I even think this record focuses more on more punk and speed elements than blues even though their blues roots still show. So many good tracks that try some new rhythm styles and leaves you satisfied. Overall, if you know Motorhead, you’ll like this record.