It’s not “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, “but “Dirty Dudes Done Dirt Cheap.” It’s not “Bad Boy Boogie,” but “Gay Boy Boogie.” It’s not “Highway to Hell,” but… actually, well, that one is still “Highway to Hell.”
These are just a few of the tracks from the AC/DC tribute band GayC/DC, who, if you couldn’t already guess, have been putting a gay spin on the Australian rock band since 2013.
Leading the charge is bassist Chris Freeman of the queercore band Pansy Division. Having previously fronted the Gay-Gay — and aptly named gay tribute act of the Go-Go’s — Freeman recruited Steve McKnight (previously of the hair-metal band Cry Wolf), Karl Rumpf, Brian Welch, and Glen Pavan to round out the team, with Topher Ruby joining this past year on rhythm guitar. The group is ringing their “Hell’s Bells” across the U.S. throughout September and October, with stops in New Jersey and Philly along the way.
I went into GayC/DC as a fan of AC/DC; Back in Black is often in my rock album rotation, and I unironically love “Thunderstruck,” despite its appearance in every action movie trailer ever.
I like to think that I have a pretty decent grasp of the band’s sound. I view tribute acts as light-hearted love letters. They’re fun to watch, and you get to jam out to some greatest hits. Sometimes they’re a more accessible option than seeing the actual band, and they’re a great way to get your fix if a band no longer tours or has long since dissolved. However, there can only be so many Beatles tribute acts before they become a bit hackneyed.
GayC/DC is far from hackneyed. They are a tribute act that understands the assignment and the extra credit that comes with it. The way the group matches the sound of AC/DC down to the wire is incredibly impressive. You’d be forgiven if you thought their “Bottom Child” was the original “Problem Child,” or if their “Big Balls” was, well, the original “Big Balls” (the title quite obviously doesn’t need rewriting).
AC/DC is already a camp act. The mere existence of Angus Young is evidence enough. It only makes sense that their cheekiness extends to the queer scene. GayC/DC very clearly saw this opportunity and jumped on it, dialing up the camp to full glam rock. The sound isn’t sacrificed, the lyrics are punched up, and the outfits go far beyond Young’s signature schoolboy garb.
Naturally, GayC/DC takes some lyrical liberties. The previously mentioned “Dirty Dudes” spins “Just ring 3-6, 2-4, 3-6, hey” into the always hilarious “Just ring 6-9, 6-9, 6-9.” “TNT” becomes “PNP” for “party-and-play.””What You Do For Money” flips “you must be getting slow” to “you’re just too goddamn soft.” It gets progressively more NSFW from there.
What I’m particularly amused by is how some current AC/DC songs need little to no alterations to become gay anthems. Sometimes it’s just as easy as swapping “woman” for “man,” as is the case in “Touch Too Much.”
I have to give ringleader Chris Freeman his flowers. He doesn’t have the signature rasp of AC/DC frontman Brian Johnson, but he’s not trying to mimic that, nor does he need to. He’s got a cleaner and more technically polished sound that doesn’t sacrifice the camp; if anything, it enhances it. AC/DC’s riffs are so good that you sometimes miss just how devilishly dirty the lyrics are. With Chris out in front (and with some excellent mixing by Heath Ripplinger,) you get both the signature riffs and the lyrics that leave nothing to the imagination.
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