AC/DC brought the POWER UP Tour to BC Place on Thursday night, filling the Vancouver stadium with the sound, energy and larger-than-life presence that has followed the band for decades.
The night got underway with “If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It),” and there was little buildup needed. The opening riff hit, the stage came alive and AC/DC was immediately in full swing.
Angus Young was all over the stage from the beginning. In his signature schoolboy uniform with his Gibson SG in hand, he moved from the front of the stage to the back and across its different sections, rarely staying in one place for long.
Brian Johnson matched that energy in his own way. He moved between the front, left and right sides of the stage, making a point of playing to different sections of BC Place rather than focusing only on the crowd directly in front of him.
That movement helped make such a massive stadium feel more connected to what was happening on stage. Whether fans were looking straight down the middle or watching from either side, the band was constantly moving into their part of the stadium.
Back in Black
AC/DC followed the opener with “Back in Black,” bringing out one of the band’s most recognizable songs only minutes into the show.
As soon as the opening guitar riff rang through BC Place, the response was immediate. Thousands of voices joined Brian Johnson as the song filled the stadium, while Angus continued working his way around the stage.
There are certain songs that simply sound different when they’re played live in front of a stadium crowd, and “Back in Black” is one of them. The combination of that familiar riff, the size of BC Place and a crowd that already knew every word made it an early highlight.
The band followed with “Demon Fire,” shifting from one of its biggest classics to a track from 2020’s Power Up. The song kept the pace moving and rounded out the opening three-song stretch with the same energy the band had walked on
Built for a Stadium
Everything about the POWER UP Tour felt designed for a venue of this size.
The massive stage gave Angus plenty of room to move, while the screens and lighting helped carry the performance to the farthest sections of BC Place. Even with tens of thousands of people surrounding the stage, AC/DC’s presence never felt lost inside the stadium.
A big part of that came down to the band itself.
Angus was constantly in motion, moving with the guitar rather than simply standing and playing. Brian was doing the same across the different sides of the stage, regularly turning his attention toward another section of the crowd.
The result was a performance that felt active from every angle.
There wasn’t much standing around between moments. The songs moved quickly, the band kept moving and the crowd responded every time another familiar riff came through the speakers.
More Than Five Decades of AC/DC
Part of what makes an AC/DC stadium show unique is just how recognizable everything is.
The schoolboy uniform. Brian Johnson’s cap. The Gibson SG. And, of course, the riffs.
Those things have become part of the band’s identity over more than five decades, but seeing them come together on a stage in front of a Vancouver crowd is different from seeing them in old concert footage or hearing the records.
The opening stretch also showed how easily newer AC/DC material can sit beside the classics. Going from “If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It)” to “Back in Black” and then “Demon Fire” brought together different eras of the band without slowing down the set.
For a band with a catalogue stretching back decades, AC/DC still knows exactly what people come to see: loud guitars, massive songs and a performance with enough energy to reach the back of a stadium.
Behind Vancouver was on hand for the opening three songs of AC/DC’s Vancouver stop.
Upcoming AC/DC Power Up Tour Dates
- August 27 – Atlanta, GA @ Mercedes-Benz Stadium
- August 30 – Houston, TX @ NRG Stadium
- September 3 – Notre Dame, IN @ Notre Dame Stadium
- September 6 – St. Louis, MO @ The Dome at America’s Center
- September 10 – Montreal, QC @ Olympic Stadium
- September 13 – Toronto, ON @ Rogers Centre
- September 17 – Winnipeg, MB @ Princess Auto Stadium
- September 22 – Cleveland, OH @ Huntington Bank Field
- September 25 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Acrisure Stadium
- September 29 – Philadelphia, PA @ Lincoln Financial Field
Check out our photos from the POWER UP Tour at BC Place below.
