Wolfgang Van Halen: 'AC/DC's Malcolm Young was the best rhythm guitarist to have ever lived'

Wolfgang Van Halen has hailed late-great AC/DC legend Malcolm Young as ‘the best rhythm guitarist to have ever lived.’

Speaking to Planet Rock backstage at Download Festival ahead of Mammoth WVH’s Apex Stage performance on Thursday, Wolfgang Van Halen was asked by Wyatt if there were any other bands he’d like to hit the road with having recently played stadium shows with Metallica.

“If there were two, it would be AC/DC and Foo Fighters,” Wolfgang replied. “The Foos are definitely one of the bigger influences when it comes to Mammoth, for sure.”

Waxing lyrical about AC/DC, he continued: “I only ever saw them once. It was the Black Ice Tour and I got to meet them because my dad (Eddie Van Halen) was friends with them at the time.

“It was just really insane to be able to meet just all of them. Malcolm Young is one of my… he was the best rhythm guitarist to have ever lived. Ever! So being able to meet him super quick was so crazy.

“Just to be in a room with AC/DC was insane. Brian Johnson rolled a cigarette all on his own while we were talking with one hand, which was really crazy.

“I got to meet Brian again at the Taylor Hawkins Tribute (Concert) at Wembley (in September 2023) and he remembered me. It was crazy. He was such a sweetheart. They're just wonderful.”

Commenting on a potential AC/DC tour following their appearance at Power Trip festival in October, Wolfgang said: “Just one more time!”

Addressing the camera, he added: “Hey AC/DC do you guys need an opener? I don't know if you'd be into it but, hey, we'd be happy to. Just give us like two minutes. We'll play half a song!”

Wolfgang also lavished his current touring buddies Metallica with praise, saying: “We’ve hung out with the guys in Metallica a couple times and they're just so wonderful. They're so kind.

“You think just being the Metal Gods they are, they're just (going to be) like folded arms, black T shirt. But no, they're just the sweetest people that you could ever meet. They're so kind and the whole crew is so wonderful. So, it's a huge honour to even be a part of it.”

Mammoth WVH’s second studio album, ‘Mammoth II’, is released on Friday 4th August 2023.

Thursday at Download Festival 2023 in photos:

Listen to Planet Rock on DAB nationwide, on our Rayo app, online or via your smart speaker (“Play Planet Rock”).

• mammoth wvh