AC/DC announce new drummer for Power Trip festival
Phil Rudd won't be making the trip
Last updated 10th Sep 2023
AC/DC have recruited a new drummer for their performance at Power Trip festival in California next month.
Back in March it was announced that AC/DC will perform their first live show in more than seven years at Power Trip on Saturday 7th October. They will share the bill on the night with Judas Priest.
Exactly four weeks before the eagerly-awaited performance, AC/DC took to their social media channels today to share a 34-second snippet of audio from rehearsals.
Alongside the performance of ‘If You Want Blood (You've Got It)’, AC/DC wrote: “PWR UP for Power Trip! Listen to the rehearsal of the boys powering up with Cliff Williams, who's coming out of retirement for the festival and Matt Laug on drums.”
Bassist Cliff Williams and drummer Phil Rudd both appeared on AC/DC’s 2020 album ‘Power Up’, however Rudd won’t be making the trip over to California.
No explanation has been provided about Phil Rudd’s absence at Power Trip, however some fans are speculating that it could be due to visa issues.
Rudd was previously replaced by Chris Slade for AC/DC’s Rock or Bust World Tour because of his legal problems that stemmed from a police raid on his home in November 2014.
Pleading guilty to threatening to kill and possession of methamphetamine and cannabis, Rudd was sentenced to eight months’ home detention in July 2015 and ordered to pay NZ$120,000 (£70,000) in reparation.
55-year-old Matt Laug performed on Alanis Morissette’s blockbuster 1995 album ‘Jagged Little Pill’ and he has also played with Alice Cooper, Slash's Snakepit and Italian singer Vasco Rossi.
In 2005, Matt Laug joined Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Fleetwood Mac fame in his side project The Dirty Knobs.
Laug is an outspoken AC/DC aficionado and regularly references the legendary band on his social media channels.
Alongside AC/DC and Judas Priest, Power Trip also boasts performances from Iron Maiden, Guns N’ Roses, Metallica and Tool.
Ozzy Osbourne was originally scheduled to play the same day as AC/DC, however he pulled out due to his ongoing health issues.
The 50 greatest rock song intros of all time, including FIVE AC/DC classics:
50) The Rolling Stones – ‘Gimme Shelter’ (1969)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
49) Budgie – ‘Breadfan’ (1973)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
48) The Cult – ‘She Sells Sanctuary’ (1985)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
47) Metallica – ‘Master of Puppets’ (1986)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
46) Deep Purple – ‘Highway Star’ (1972)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
45) Deep Purple – ‘Burn’ (1974)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
44) Rush – ‘2112’ (1976)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
43) Eagles – ‘Hotel California’ (1976)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
42) Pink Floyd – ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond Parts I–V’ (1975)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
41) Sex Pistols – ‘Pretty Vacant’ (1977)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
40) Judas Priest – ‘Painkiller’ (1990)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
39) Status Quo – ‘Caroline’ (1973)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
38) Status Quo – ‘Whatever You Want’ (1979)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
37) Pink Floyd – ‘Time’ (1973)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
36) Motörhead – ‘Ace of Spades’ (1980)
35) Black Sabbath – ‘War Pigs’ (1970)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
34) Guns N’ Roses – ‘Paradise City’ (1987)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
33) Dire Straits – ‘Money for Nothing’ (1985)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
32) Led Zeppelin – ‘Kashmir’ (1975)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
31) Lynyrd Skynyrd – ‘Free Bird’ (1974)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
30) T. Rex – ‘20th Century Boy’ (1973)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
29) Nirvana – ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ (1991)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
28) The Who – ‘Baba O'Riley’ (1971)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
27) Motörhead – ‘Overkill’ (1979)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
26) Derek and the Dominos – ‘Layla’ (1970)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
25) Led Zeppelin – ‘When the Levee Breaks’ (1971)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
24) AC/DC – ‘Highway to Hell’ (1979)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
23) Rainbow – ‘Tarot Woman’ (1976)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
22) UFO – ‘Doctor Doctor’ (1974)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
21) Iron Maiden – ‘Phantom of the Opera’ (1980)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
20) Meat Loaf - ‘Bat Out of Hell’ (1977)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of all Time
19) Iron Maiden – ‘The Trooper’ (1983)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
18) Metallica - ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ (1984)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
17) Deep Purple – ‘Speed King’ (1970)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
16) Black Sabbath – ‘Paranoid’ (1970)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
15) Guns N’ Roses - ‘Welcome To The Jungle’ (1987)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
14) Van Halen – ‘Hot for Teacher’ (1984)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
13) AC/DC – ‘Whole Lotta Rosie’ (1977)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
12) Iron Maiden – ‘The Number of the Beast’ (1982)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
11) Led Zeppelin ‘Whole Lotta Love’ (1969)
The Greatest Rock Song Intros of All Time
10) Led Zeppelin – ‘Rock and Roll’ (1971)
Technically, this intro should be part credited to Little Richard; John Bonham was playing the drum beat from the intro to 'Keep A-Knockin' during Zep's sessions in Headley Grange for their fourth album when Jimmy Page joined in. The tapes happened to be rolling and 15 minutes later the basis of the song was finished!
9) Metallica – ‘Enter Sandman’ (1991)
One of the most famous riffs of all time, its genesis came from Kirk Hammett who was inspired by the menacing sound of Soundgarden's second LP. "It was about two or three o'clock in the morning," explained Hammett "I had just been listening to Louder Than Love… And I heard that album, I was inspired, I picked up my guitar, and out came that riff." Add the ominous "war drum" toms of Lars Ulrich, and the recipe was complete for a classic intro.
8) Rush – ‘The Spirit of Radio’ (1980)
The iconic opening riff on Rush's commercial smash 'The Spirit of Radio' showcases Alex Lifeson's guitar playing prowess. Commenting on the introductory guitar riff, Lifeson told Classic Rock in 2006: "I just wanted to give it something that gave it a sense of static – radio waves bouncing around, very electric. We had that sequence going underneath, and it was just really to try and get something that was sitting on top of it, that gave it that movement."
7) AC/DC – ‘Back in Black’ (1980)
Easily one of the most memorable intros in the history of popular music, 'Back in Black' opens with a gloriously simple yet brain-gnawingly infectious riff from Angus Young. A musical tribute to the late-great Bon Scott, new vocalist Brian Johnson was tasked with concocting the lyrics that would sit on the bedrock of the explosive riff. "I just wrote what came into my head, which at the time seemed like mumbo, jumbo," Johnson later remarked. "'Nine lives. Cats eyes. Abusing every one of them and running wild.' The boys got it though. They saw Bon's life in that lyric."
6) Black Sabbath – ‘Black Sabbath’ (1970)
The opening title track on Black Sabbath's self-titled debut studio album, 'Black Sabbath' is very music the sound of the birth of the heavy metal genre. The song opens with the sound of heavy rain and ominous thunder claps with the clanging of a church bell, before Tony Iommi's delightfully evil riffs confront the listener and Ozzy Osbourne cries, "what is this that stands before me? / Figure in black which points at me" – seemingly referencing the mysterious witch-like woman on the famous album sleeve. A truly seminal moment.
5) Rainbow – ‘Stargazer’ (1976)
Flaunting the late-great Cozy Powell's heroic musical prowess behind the drum kit, the eight-minute musical opus that is 'Stargazer' kicks off with a pummelling drum solo before Ritchie Blackmore's trademark riffs enter the fore. Powell's monumental and muscular rhythms perfectly tee up the epic track that captures all five members of Rainbow at the peak of their musical powers.
4) AC/DC – ‘Hells Bells’ (1980)
Echoing the ominous start of Black Sabbath's 'Black Sabbath' a year earlier, AC/DC's 'Back in Black' opener 'Hells Bells' begins with the slow, funereal tolling of a 900 kg bronze bell. Made by John Taylor & Co Bellfounders in Loughborough, the sound of the bell was recorded by assistant engineer Tony Platt using Ronnie Lane's mobile studio inside Taylor's Bell Foundry. It was recorded after AC/DC had finishing laying down 'Back in Black' in the Bahamas.
3) AC/DC – ‘Thunderstruck’ (1990)
The fifth and highest ranking AC/DC song intro on our list is their rip-roaring 1990 track 'Thunderstruck'. Angus Young reportedly created the searing opening guitar parts by playing with all the strings taped up, except the B. It was a studio trick he learned from his older brother and former AC/DC producer George Young.
2) Guns N’ Roses - ‘Sweet Child O' Mine’ (1987)
Guns N' Roses' monumental song 'Sweet Child O' Mine' opens with one of Slash's standout riffs. Dispelling the widespread belief that the riff was born from a practise exercise, Slash told Eddie Trunk in 2022: "I was sitting around the house where Guns used to live at one point, in '86 I guess it was, and I just came up with this riff. It was just me messing around and putting notes together like any riff you do. You're like, 'This is cool,' and then you put the third note and find a melody like that. So it was a real riff; it wasn't a warm-up exercise." He added: "Initially it was just a cool, neat little riff that I'd come up with. It was an interesting pattern and it was really melodic, but I don't think I would have presented it to the band and said, 'Hey, I've got this idea!' because I just happened to come up with it while we were all hanging around together. Izzy (Stradlin)was the first one to start playing behind it, and once that happened Axl started making up words, and it took off that way."
1) Deep Purple – ‘Smoke on the Water’ (1972)
Firmly entrenched in rock and roll folklore, the legendary and instantly recognisable opening riff on Deep Purple's 'Smoke on the Water' was played by Ritchie Blackmore on a Fender Stratocaster electric guitar. Years later, Blackmore noted that he took direct inspiration from Beethoven's Symphony No. 5, joking "I owe him a lot of money." 'Smoke on the Water' was also voted the Greatest Rock Riff of All Time by Planet Rock listeners in 2017.