AC/DC - "New Album Out...Fine And Fit"
by Tim Henderson

Guitarist Angus Young reassures the masses that AC/DC are in it for the long haul. And sure as the coming of spring, 'DC deliver the goods as expected, no holds-barred, riffs aplenty, soaked in tales of liquor and lick-her. Seventeen albums into their career, the mastery behind an AC/DC record is down to a fine science, wee mascot Angus and brother Malcolm constructing the sturdy foundation with the simplest of tools, all gauged by a toe-tap.

And the world gets a rare glance every three or four years at the inner-workings of this five piece, completed by raspy frontman Brian Johnson and the ol' standby rhythm section, bassist Cliff Williams and drummer Phil Rudd.

The last time AC/DC landed with a studio record was way back in '95 with Ballbreaker, although the Bonfire boxset struck a chord in 1997, which was Angus' last press challenge. While most major world cities may get the chance to view 'DC live every five years or so, the downtime isn't spent counting the immense fortune the band has accrued since their incarnation in 1973. "Actually by the time we got off the road, we more or less started writing. We came off the road at the end of '96 actually. During the first year you start writing and then we had the box set Bonfire, and that took a bit of time, researching it and getting tapes from all over the world. But after that it was back to the grindstone, doing more ideas and getting ready. Once we had those done and we felt happy with all the material, it was a case of just getting in the studio and getting them down on tape."

And most of the process took place in BW&BK's home country, Vancouver, B.C. to be exact, at Warehouse Studio (with producer/brother George Young, engineered and mixed by Mike Fraser), with the mastering process done at Sterling Sound in New York City.

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