First of all, I listen to the post-BIB AC/DC. With that said, this album is the perfect comeback. After the tragic death of the original lead singer, people have either made or broken their love for AC/DC. I personally love Brian Johnson. He is the perfect lead singer for this unbelievable band. I only own Fly on the Wall while this review is being written, but I guarentee that I will eventually own Back in Black, along with Highway to Hell.

Favorite tracks:
Hells Bells
You Shook Me All Night Long
Back in Black
Shake a Leg

AC/DC is one of the most legendary bands ever formed, no matter what people may say. So in the end, this album is the perfect way to say welcome back, AC/DC.

When I'm writing a song, I'm trying to capture a single image or emotion and transfer that to the listener. Because I have a limit of only a few minutes and a few words, that concept must be simple. Another rule is that I usually don't want to describe the idea directly; I want to talk around it, to allude to it. The audience has to be able to make some contribution to the act of creation, and using too-literal lyrics defies that. You don't sing, "I had sex with her and I really enjoyed it"; you sing, "The walls were shakin', the earth was quakin', my mind was achin', and we were makin' it, and you...shook me all night long"!

I don't really think about it in such detail. I just rely on an instinct of what will work and what won't. The boys in AC/DC are quite aware of what they are aiming for, and their instincts in this regard are sensational.

On this album, AC/DC has captured and perfectly transmitted the idea of MASCULINITY. It's a man's record full of men's images and urges. Rock 'n' roll is basically a man howling about his desires, and he often desires women, liquor, and guitars that sound like sheets of metal being destroyed by power tools. It's a very simple thing, really.

Normally, live music loses its edge in the recording process, becoming more bland. To combat this, producers try to enrich the sound with effects like reverberation (echoes that create a sense of space), chorus (modulating the pitch to make the instrument or voice sound thicker) and equalization (boosting or cutting certain high or low frequencies). The equipment used to do this changes from year to year, and therefore the more effects are used, the more the recording sounds 'dated.' Reverb machines from the early 70's had a very different sound from those used in the 80's, or 90's, for example.

Back In Black has very simple production, with almost no discernible effects. But it isn't bland. It's savage in the intensity of its tone. How did they do that? (Gibson now produces a model of guitar pickup named after Angus Young. I'll be buying a pair.)

Angus and Malcolm Young have created a lot of the catchiest guitar phrases in the entire body of rock music. Their masterpiece is the collection of gut-wrenching licks on the title song here. These will achieve timelessness because the average guitar player can learn to reproduce them--but never with the Angus touch.

You already know if you want this album. You've heard 'Hell's Bells' and 'Shoot to Thrill' and 'Back in Black' and 'You Shook Me All Night Long' and 'Rock and Roll Ain't Noise Pollution' on the radio. If you want the album with those songs on it, and 5 other songs that sound pretty much like those ones, here it is. I dunno just how many AC/DC albums I need, but they are a lotta fun and this one is definitely worth the cash. It's hurt by opening too strong; 'Hell's Bells' is the best song on the album, easily, and probably my favorite AC/DC song, with the possible exception of 'TNT'. 'Hell's Bells' is one of the more different tracks here, with some great atmospheric guitarwork and Johnson's best vox. In general the singles are the best songs, with 'Back in Black' having the best riffs and 'Shoot to Thrill' the best chorus, but everything here works with a good enough chorus and at least one great stomping riff. AC/DC may not be the most sophisticated band out there, but they have no pretentions and know how to have fun, which is worth quite a lot considering what popular music is frequently like nowadays.