RECAP: AC/DC BRINGS 'POWER UP TOUR' TO VANCOUVER

AC/DC returned to Vancouver on August 13, 2026, bringing the Power Up Tour back to a packed BC Place just over a year after the band last played the stadium. The show marked AC/DC’s 16th performance in the city, extending a local history that now stretches more than 48 years from their first Vancouver appearance at the Pacific Coliseum in July 1978. This time, Vancouver landed as the ninth stop of an 18 date run that began in Charlotte on July 11 and had already taken the band through Columbus, Madison, San Antonio, Denver, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Edmonton before reaching the West Coast.

Photos by Tage Stenner / Backspin HQ

AC/DC’s return had already spread beyond BC Place before doors even opened. The band took over the Commodore Ballroom with an official Power Up Tour pop up, filling the Vancouver landmark with memorabilia, archival videos, a Bon Scott statue cutout and a glowing PWR/UP Dive Bar installation. Exclusive merchandise included a limited edition Angus Young inspired box set, giving fans another destination in the city leading into the concert.

At BC Place, merchandise lines quickly formed throughout the stadium as fans searched through the latest tour collection. AC/DC Vancouver received its own city specific pieces, including a black shirt featuring Angus Young on the front and ‘Back in British Columbia’ across the back alongside an illustration of BC Place and the August 13 date. A matching poster took a different approach, using a stylized eagle in teal, red, black and white to give the Vancouver edition a distinctly West Coast identity.

Inside the stadium, flashing red horns could be spotted throughout the crowd before AC/DC took the stage. When the band arrived, Angus Young was immediately recognizable in a green velvet version of his signature schoolboy suit, joined by Brian Johnson and the current touring lineup of Stevie Young on rhythm guitar, Chris Chaney on bass and Matt Laug on drums.

The opening stretch moved quickly through ‘If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It)’, ‘Back in Black’, ‘Demon Fire’ and ‘Shot Down in Flames’, immediately reaching across different periods of AC/DC’s catalogue. It was during ‘Back in Black’ that Johnson directly acknowledged how recently the band had been here. Pointing toward fans in the pit, he told Vancouver, “I told you we’d be back,” referencing AC/DC’s April 2025 performance at the same stadium.

There is plenty of history behind that comment. AC/DC first played Vancouver during the Powerage Tour in 1978, returning two years later on the Back in Black Tour before making the city a regular part of subsequent touring cycles. Their Vancouver history includes three nights at the Pacific Coliseum during The Razors Edge Tour, consecutive shows at General Motors Place in 1996, two more Pacific Coliseum dates in 2001 and stadium appearances at BC Place in 1988, 2009, 2015, 2025 and now 2026.

The connection also extends beyond concerts. During the show, Johnson spoke about AC/DC’s recording history in Vancouver, mentioning that the band has recorded four albums in the city and telling fans how much they enjoy coming back. Vancouver became an important recording base for the band during the 2000s, adding another layer to a relationship that has now lasted across six decades.

As the set continued through ‘Thunderstruck’ and ‘Have a Drink on Me’, the scale of the production became more apparent. For ‘Hells Bells’, the familiar tolling intro was accompanied by a massive AC/DC branded bell descending from above the centre of the stage. It hung over the performance as Johnson worked the front of the stage, while Young continued moving between the main platform and the long runway extending into the crowd.

Young rarely stayed in one place for long. At 71, his familiar movements remain ingrained in an AC/DC performance, from his duckwalk across the stage to repeatedly making his way down the runway with his guitar. The green velvet schoolboy uniform may have changed the colour palette for the night, but there was no mistaking the figure moving across BC Place.

The band continued pulling from across its catalogue with ‘Shot in the Dark’, ‘Stiff Upper Lip’, ‘Highway to Hell’, ‘Shoot to Thrill’ and ‘Sin City’. The newer material sat beside songs that have been part of AC/DC shows for decades, allowing the current tour to acknowledge Power Up without structuring the entire night around one period of the band's career.

One of the more notable inclusions was ‘Jailbreak’. The 1970s track had spent a significant period outside AC/DC’s regular live rotation before returning on this leg of the tour, giving longtime fans something different within a set otherwise packed with many of the songs that have defined the band's live shows. ‘Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap’, ‘High Voltage’ and ‘Riff Raff’ continued that run into the band's earlier catalogue before ‘You Shook Me All Night Long’ and ‘Whole Lotta Rosie’ brought the set back toward some of its biggest songs.

More than five decades into AC/DC’s career, the band does not need to reinvent what an AC/DC concert looks or sounds like. The current lineup still revolves around the partnership of Young and Johnson at the front, with Stevie Young, Chaney and Laug forming the touring band behind them. Young remains the visual centre of the show, while Johnson's unmistakable rasp continues to carry songs that span several generations of fans.

That became especially clear as the main set reached ‘Let There Be Rock’. Rather than moving quickly toward the finish, the song opened into an extended instrumental section built around Young. His guitar solo stretched the performance out as he moved through the stage and runway, giving the final song of the main set considerably more room than most of what came before it.

After a short break, AC/DC returned with ‘T.N.T.’, setting up one final song. ‘For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)’ closed the night as BC Place filled with confetti. Even the smallest production detail carried the band's branding, with pieces printed with the AC/DC logo and others featuring the familiar bell. Fans reached into the air to grab them as they fell across the stadium, turning the final seconds of the concert into another souvenir from the band's return to Vancouver.

The Power Up Tour has already carried AC/DC through stadiums across the United States and Western Canada, but Vancouver arrived with considerably more history behind it than most. From the Pacific Coliseum in 1978 to two BC Place concerts just 16 months apart, the relationship between AC/DC and the city has survived different eras, venues, lineups and generations of fans.

The Vancouver show also marked the halfway point of this 18 date leg. AC/DC now takes a two week break before returning August 27 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. From there, the band heads through Houston, Notre Dame and St. Louis before returning to Canada for shows in Montreal, Toronto and Winnipeg. The run finishes September 29 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, closing another chapter of a tour that has kept AC/DC on stadium stages more than 50 years after the band first formed in Sydney.

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

AC/DC Vancouver Photo Gallery

FAQ: AC/DC Power Up Tour Vancouver Concert Recap

When did AC/DC perform at BC Place in Vancouver?

AC/DC performed at BC Place on August 13, 2026, marking their 16th Vancouver concert and second performance at BC Place in 16 months following their April 2025 stop.

Where was the official AC/DC Power Up pop-up store located in Vancouver?

The official tour takeover and PWR/UP Dive Bar installation was hosted at the legendary Commodore Ballroom, featuring rare memorabilia, archival videos, a Bon Scott statue, and an exclusive Angus Young box set.

Which rare songs were included in the BC Place AC/DC setlist?

In addition to timeless stadium anthems like 'Back in Black', 'Thunderstruck', and 'Highway to Hell', the band performed 'Jailbreak', which returned to the live rotation for this leg of the tour alongside recent tracks like 'Shot in the Dark' and 'Demon Fire'.

Who is in AC/DC's current 2026 touring lineup?

The current touring lineup features founding lead guitarist Angus Young, frontman Brian Johnson, rhythm guitarist Stevie Young, bassist Chris Chaney, and drummer Matt Laug.

Where does the Power Up Tour go after Vancouver?

Following a two-week summer break, AC/DC resumes their stadium tour on August 27, 2026, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.