AC/DC Turns Philadelphia Into a Cathedral of Rock

By Todd Johnson

PHILADELPHIA — There are bands that arrive in town hoping to prove something. AC/DC arrived in Philadelphia knowing exactly what it had come to do. Turn it up.

From the first guitar chord to the final explosion of cannons, AC/DC’s Philadelphia concert was a glorious exercise in excess — loud, unapologetic and wonderfully uncomplicated. At Lincoln Financial Field, the Australian rock institution turned a September night into a celebration of electric guitars, pounding drums and songs that have been rattling car radios and arena rafters for generations. And Philadelphia, predictably, ate it up.

The evening belonged to Angus Young. In his schoolboy uniform and trademark sneakers, the guitarist remains one of rock’s great physical performers. He doesn’t merely play the guitar; he attacks it. He stomped, duck-walked and spun his way through the set, repeatedly reminding the crowd that a great rock show doesn’t require elaborate choreography when you’ve got a great riff and the confidence to let it rip.

Brian Johnson, meanwhile, brought the familiar rasp to a catalog built for shouting along. His voice isn’t untouched by time, but that hardly mattered once tens of thousands of Philadelphians joined him on the choruses.

“Back in Black” produced one of the night’s biggest eruptions. “Thunderstruck” was even louder. And when the giant bell appeared for “Hells Bells,” the stadium seemed to become one enormous jukebox.

The production was big without being needlessly complicated. Fire, lights, video screens and enough pyrotechnics to satisfy the most demanding arena-rock traditionalist provided the spectacle, but the music remained at the center of everything.

That was especially true during “Let There Be Rock,” when Young took an extended solo and turned the song into a full-scale guitar sermon. He stretched the performance out, wandered across the stage and played with the kind of reckless joy that has defined AC/DC for more than five decades.

The setlist was a tour through the band’s greatest hits, with newer material such as “Demon Fire” and “Shot in the Dark” comfortably sharing the stage with “Highway to Hell,” “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap,” “High Voltage” and “You Shook Me All Night Long.”

And then came the encore.

“T.N.T.” had the entire stadium shouting along, but AC/DC saved its most theatrical moment for last. “For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)” arrived with the band’s famous cannons, followed by fireworks that briefly turned the South Philadelphia sky into a rock ‘n’ roll Fourth of July.

It was excessive. It was loud. It was completely AC/DC. And Philadelphia loved every decibel.

In an era when concerts can sometimes feel overproduced and carefully packaged, there was something refreshing about AC/DC’s stubborn simplicity. The band doesn’t need a complicated message. It doesn’t need a new sound. It has spent a lifetime perfecting the three-minute rock song and the two-hour stadium spectacle.

On this night, that was more than enough.

AC/DC didn’t come to Philadelphia to make a statement. They came to make noise.

Mission accomplished.