Guitarist Malcolm Young of AC/DC is not expected to return to the band due to ailing health, said the group's recent biographer in an interview this week.
"I'm not expecting to see Malcolm return," Jesse Fink
told Boston's classic rock radio station WZLX. "I think the important thing is that we let Mal be and hope he can recover. But I think we should all expect that Stevie Young is in the band now."
Fink made his comments while discussing Malcolm Young's hospitalization last month for reasons that remain undisclosed. In his absence, the band announced that they'd hired Young's nephew, Stevie, to fill in on the recording of the band's 15th album.
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"I'm hearing on very reliable authority the new album is up there with (2009's) 'Black Ice' or even better," he added. "So Stevie must be a good replacement for Mal."
The Daily Mail reported that Young's absence has had a huge impact on the band, to the point that they're considering calling the new album "Man Down."
"It’s a bit negative and it was probably just straight from the heart. I like that," frontman Brian Johnson explained.
Fink just released a new biography on the brothers Young on Tuesday.
"The Youngs: The Brothers Who Built AC/DC" has received positive reviews, and explores the pivotal role Malcolm, Angus, and their behind-the-scenes brother, George, played in the creation and success of the band.
"Recent books [about AC/DC] . . . didn't offer much to change our perception of the band. Jesse Fink's study of the Young brothers takes a different approach . . . giving us a different version of many stories, especially when it comes to the wheeling and dealing behind the rock,"
Rolling Stone wrote in its review of the book,
according to Amazon.com.
2014 marks the band's 40th anniversary, and they hope to tour in support of the anniversary as well as the new album.
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