Short and sassy! (Who Made Who - AC/DC)

Member Name: cyberstoat

Product:	Who Made Who - AC/DC
Date:	13/01/01 (115 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A good intorudction to the band.

Disadvantages: Too short

Despite several decades of rockin' success, AC/DC have never released anything that can really be called a creditable 'best of' album, preferring to churn out new work at a continuing high standard. 'Who Made Who' is probably the closest you can get to a decent compilation, and it is sadly short. The album itself is the soundtrack to the film version of Stephen King's 'Maximum Overdrive' and while the movie itself was nothing special, the music is pretty good. It contains only a couple of new tracks: the title and two musical numbers.

Here are the tracks in order:

Who Made Who: A nifty little number which consists mainly of a progressive bassline with the sudden injection of Angus Young's rather frenetic rippling accompaniment. It's a toe tapping, head nodding little number, which isn't too long. But it's got balls behind it, and the song is AC/DC at their catchiest.

You Shook Me All Night Long: A re-release from 'Back In Black' which is still one of the best albums ever recorded in musical history. This was undoubtedly added for the 'single' value, but it's a good song all the same, and stands another looking. A sexually overcharged effort from a band who have been known to dip their toes into the water of lustful metaphor...

D.T.: The first of the musical numbers. It's a simple little chord progression, softly handled to a climax, then very gently reintroduced before going mental on the fade out. Not bad, actually. Has a certain techno-goth feel to it.

Sink The Pink: If 'You Shook Me All Night Long' is a toe in lustful waters, then 'Sink The Pink' is a full immersion in blatantism. It makes no apologies for its lyrical content, but musically it is pretty fine, with a fast, raw feel to it and some nice ringing treble from Angus.

Ride On: A rare example of AC/DC in full laid-back mode. Chilled out isn't the w
ord, as you can feel the dust in the air and the depression hanging heavy in what has to be called a true blue wasted life song. A work of brilliance.

Hells Bells: 'Back In Black' revisited again. This is a rather odd song, not because of the usual 'Satan's Going To Roast You Alive' content which is pretty average fare for heavy metal bands, but because of the musical arrangement. It starts with a deep resonant tolling of a church bell, followed by the introduction of a guitar following a minor/suspended 4th arpeggio. Nothing unusual there, but when the drums start to add to the crescendo to come, it becomes apparent that the bell is tolling on the offbeat. A most unusual effect, as it seeks to actively avoid matching the beat of the human heart, which most songs do to satisfy certain subliminal urges. This one doesn't, so it seems slightly unsettling. If you ever listened to it and wondered why it doesn't seem quite right, that's why. It kicks ass though,all the same.

Shake Your Foundations: Back into headbanging territory here for the gang, a straight ahead rock'n'roller which is best described by the title itself. It will shake them, and leave you utterly satisfied.

Chase The Ace: The second musical offering is a little more advenurous than 'D.T.' as it is a siple repeated chord progression that goes into a full Angus Yound on acid solo. Very complex and unaccompanied.

For Those About To Rock: To any fan, this should need no introduction. It's the great classic show opener. Cannons blowing off (and they don't actually have 21 gunshots, but I don't mind) and a mix of fast and slow song sections. Angus wails that SG of his until it bleeds. A great song from a great band.

'Who Made Who' is probably a very good place to start if you know nothing about the band. If you don't have it, you probably need it only for the sake of completeness.
The downside? Way to short.

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