AC/DC's Angus Young and Brian Johnson talk new album Power Up

AC/DC's Angus Young and Brian Johnson talk about their new album, Power Up. Brian also discusses the revolutionary hearing-aid technology that he's using, which has allowed him to reunite with the band.

Video Transcript

LINDSEY PARKER: I'm so excited that you guys have a new album coming out because, you know, to be honest, I wasn't sure if I would see this day. Brian, I'm curious to hear about your return because you said in an interview you said you'd had a pretty good run. And you kind of implied that maybe you would not be returning to sing, you know, returning to AC/DC.

BRIAN JOHNSON: Well, you know, I've had a pretty good run. I'm-- you know, it was the very fact that I had to stop was a terrible thing. I thought I was a very lucky man because I had such a good time. You know, it wasn't anything terminal, and there was a lot of people in the world who are having a much harder time than me. So I couldn't feel sorry for myself for long.

And then, thankfully, technology comes along. It's a wonderful world. You know, technology-- it moves faster and faster. And this fabulous man had an idea, and he-- he wanted to share it with me. We worked for about 2 and 1/2 years on this thing.

We got together in Holland. And Angus very kindly said-- he said, let's rehearse while we're here shooting the video. We got together. And as I said, and when Angus said, well, let's go, you know. And I said, right, full field conditions, you know, and a full-- full lineup and, you know, whack it out.

Because if it doesn't work, I don't want to waste any time. And, well, it did work. And it was smashing, and we had such a wonderful time doing it, you know. And we had it cracking. As Angus said, well, it's going to work here. This is good.

LINDSEY PARKER: I know that, Brian, you're not at liberty to really discuss in detail the technology that you worked on in Holland. But is it something that you could say is something that might revolutionize in the future people with hearing loss? Musicians with hearing loss? Is this something that we can look forward to in the future that's going to like, change things?

BRIAN JOHNSON: Absolutely, me darling. There's a lot of people out there that suffered and they're-- and this thing, as I said, I won't kind of talk too much about it because it is pretty secret. I mean, you know, this-- it's a non-disclosure thing. But it will be out.

LINDSEY PARKER: Awesome.

BRIAN JOHNSON: I got it first.

[LAUGHS]

LINDSEY PARKER: Obviously, you're a very resilient band. Over the years, since 1980, AC/DC has been through a lot-- a lot of things in the last four or five years. And I'm curious was there ever any consideration of just stopping, ending the band? You know, maybe not necessarily Axl Rose-- he did sit-in for a while-- but like, finding another permanent singer?

ANGUS YOUNG: Well, the only reason why we had someone help us out-- it came out of the blue. He offered to do that. It was not a case of looking for, you know, something else. It was a case of, you know-- you know, you're wanting to know the, you know, and Brian had been, you know, working even before we got together for the album. He'd been working out with these people, and he was getting a lot of great results.

He kept us updated, you know. Now he's hearing all the time, you know. Brian was really happy with the, you know, the technology, you know. And he was testing it in different environments. So I knew that when-- even when he came-- when we got to, you know, when we said we're going to get together in a new studio and everything, I knew straight away, you know. If he was saying that, he was ready.

And it was really good for even Cliff, you know. You know, because Cliff had-- you know, I'd asked Cliff at the end of the tour then. If I'm going to do anything, you want me to give you a yell? And Cliff said, yeah, yeah, of course.

That was really good. Cliff came on board. And Phil was really good at my brother's funeral. I was really glad he had come, and he looked really great. He was in great shape, and he'd been sorting out of his problems he'd had.

You know, he'd been working with therapy people, and he was really good. He was best I saw him in health. So I kept in contact with Phil, and-- and it was good. Because he was raring. He said, I'll be there with bells on, you know, in the studio.

And with Stevie, my nephew, he said, yep, I'm-- I'm there. You name the date, I'm there. That's how it all came to be, and everyone was, you know, happy to be, you now. It's the unit. It's what we-- you know. And it's what the world has seen since 1980. I mean, my brother's not there. That would be the-- you know.

LINDSEY PARKER: The "Power Up" record-- it almost exactly coincides with the 40th anniversary of what was a kind of another comeback in AC/DC's career, the "Back in Black" album, which is like, you know, a complete against all odds story.

ANGUS YOUNG: In one way, yeah, you could say that. Because, you know, out of a tragedy, you know, Brian shone through. Brian came in to, you know, do the role of front man doing "Back in Black." But at the time, we didn't even know, you know, we were going into the unknown then.

So-- but, you know, we gave-- we knew we had a great album. We knew we had great songs, and we knew we had a, you know, a unique character in Brian's singing. You can only but hope and strike a chord with, you know, with the public. And with this album, it's-- you know, it has similarities.

You know, I rely on my brother, who is the founding member, you know, Malcolm. And he-- it is his idea in the beginning, this style of music to play. And he was guiding us all the way through from the beginning. My brother's not there, but he's there in spirit.

His gift to the world on this album is what he always did best was, you know, doing the songs. He had a unique way of coming up with guitar riffs, coming up with song ideas, great chorus ideas. He was just a unique person. He'll never be replaced.

LINDSEY PARKER: Has anyone approached you to do the AC/DC biopic yet? Like, the "Bohemian Rhapsody" but AC/DC? Because I need to see that movie. I need to see you guys at the Oscars.

ANGUS YOUNG: We would probably have to steal one of the Oscars I think.

[LAUGHS]

LINDSEY PARKER: No.

ANGUS YOUNG: You get a lot of people who come after you and ask if you-- if you want to do something like that. I don't know. Sometimes I look at them, and they kind of get a bit cliche. There's always sort of a similar thing.

BRIAN JOHNSON: Yeah.

ANGUS YOUNG: But who knows if one day somebody can do something and do it justice.

LINDSEY PARKER: Who had played you guys?

ANGUS YOUNG: Who would play us? Oh, I don't know. For me, he'd need to be very handsome, you know.

[LAUGHTER]

Somebody like Brad-- Brad Pitt would do or somebody--

LINDSEY PARKER: Perfect. There you go.

ANGUS YOUNG: Somebody, you know, with a bit of spring in their step and happen to have good looking knees.

LINDSEY PARKER: What about you, Brian? Who would play-- who would play you?

BRIAN JOHNSON: George Clooney probably.

[LAUGHTER]

No, but if they ever did that about us, me darling, it would probably be, you know, a Netflix epic season if it could-- to try to nearly 50 years of a band through the different, you know, the adventures, the tragedies, the hits, the-- whatever. It would take forever.

LINDSEY PARKER: It's kind of a maybe a not easy question to answer in one sentence. But like, what's the secret to your resilience?

ANGUS YOUNG: It's just from the beginning, you know, we had the song called "Long Way to the Top If You Want to Rock and Roll." And that is a good story.