Angus Young: “Malcolm could solo even better than me”

Brothers Malcolm Young and Angus Young of AC/DC perform on stage at Melbourne Park on February 11th 2001 in Melbourne, Australia.
(Image credit: Martin Philbey/Redferns)

We are just days away from hearing AC/DC’s new album, Power Up, which arrives on Friday (November 13), and befittingly, Angus Young graces the cover of the latest issue of Guitar World, which is on-sale now.

During the in-depth cover interview, Angus looks back at the guitar relationship between himself and his departed brother, Malcolm – and how Mal’s reputation as a rhythm king often outshone his lead abilities.

“I remember a [Guitar World] cover me and my brother did together going way back [November 1995],” Angus told GW.

“That was nice, because there was always a tendency for people to only look at solo guitarists, while Malcolm was an out-and-out rhythm player. A lot of people forget that there's some great rhythm players out there. And the two of us were doing it together.

“But what a lot of people never knew was that Malcolm could do a solo probably even better than me. He’d come up with some great licks. Whenever I heard his things, I’d always say, ‘How's he doing that?’”

Angus and Malcolm Young on the cover of Guitar World's November 1995 issue (Image credit: Future)

It was recently revealed that Malcolm co-wrote every track on Power Up, although his actual playing doesn’t feature on the record.

Guitar World’s full cover story sees Angus go into detail on the writing and recording of the album, his guitar philosophy, and how Mal’s spirit lives on in the new songs.

You can order a copy from Magazines Direct, while subscribers receive an exclusive cover.

AC/DC on the cover of Guitar World

Guitar World's Holiday 2020 newsstand cover (left) and subscriber cover (right) (Image credit: Future)
Michael Astley-Brown
Editor-in-Chief, GuitarWorld.com

Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and over a decade's experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Ed O'Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.