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AC/DC - Iron Man 2

AC/DC would feature in the PMRC’s infamous "Filthy Fifteen", a list of songs deemed so despicable, so corrupt and depraved that they should be banned outright from commercial circulation.

Sixteen years later, a lot has changed for Tipper Gore. The PMRC no longer exists, and her days as a highly visible pro-censorship advocate are pretty much behind her. Presumably, she’s been keeping busy with her husband’s crusade to save the environment.

You couldn't say the same for AC/DC. Angus Young still rocks out in a school uniform, and Brian Johnson's laddish interview banter hasn’t changed a bit in a decade and a half. But where you’ll really find consistency personified is in their music: it's hardly changed at all. Has there ever been a more single-minded, stubborn pursuit of the classic hard rock sound? Impervious to grunge, nu metal and all the trendy scenes that came after, AC/DC has never stopped ramming its head into the same wall.

While it’s untenable to suggest that Millennial culture has had any influence whatsoever on AC/DC, the converse is solid fact. Which brings us to Iron Man 2, sequel to a beloved comic franchise-turned-silver screen hit, featuring Robert Downey Junior as the guy in the red suit. With all the punching and explosions that needed to be scored for this movie, there was really only one sensible course: bring in the entire back catalogue of the world’s most relentlessly raucous live band.

You'll find "Highway To Hell", "Thunderstruck", "Let There Be Rock", "T.N.T." and "Back In Black" on Iron Man 2: the punchiest songs they've recorded, with a few exceptions. No "Stiff Upper Lip", no "Safe in New York City" will mean obsessive collectors will shell out their cash again when the next Greatest Hits release comes around.

AC/DC fans will know if they like this, if they need it up on their shelf, just by studying the tracklist. Everyone else should know that this group's bloody-minded dedication to distilled rock and roll perfection is a rarity to be treasured and listened to with rowdy friends. Who knows, maybe even Tipper Gore? Things change, after all. Well, most things.



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