Ex-AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd is currently serving an eight-month home detention sentence but he’s already planning to get back on the road with AC/DC.
“I’m going to be back,” he told New Zealand’s current affairs program 3D from his home, where he’s serving his detention. “I’ve never been fitter; I’ve never felt better; I’ve never been psychologically or physically in better shape my whole life, and I love playing. I’ve realised who I am and what I can do and I just want a chance to go out there and show everyone who the man is.”
However, the drummer has not spoken to the band about re-joining. When asked about whether he’d be playing with them when they tour New Zealand in December he said, “You don’t want to act like something is happening and then look like a complete dickhead when it doesn’t.”
It seems unlikely that he will be rejoining the band anytime soon after he revealed in May that the band weren’t returning any of his calls, however, he still remains hopeful.
“I just want a chance to get back in with the boys and just carry on from there. This last tour bullshit, you know, sure. Last tour, AC/DC will never retire, Angus [Young] will never retire.”
As for their current touring sticksman Chris Slade, Rudd thinks he’s “a good drummer,” but insists, “he hasn’t got a permanent job. I hope!”
Rudd also discussed his conviction, including threatening an employee with his life after the launch for his solo album Head Job went awry when people turned up “pissed”. “I was under a lot of stress. When you’re doing it yourself you don’t realise what a job it is. I got in at 7pm and everyone was pissed,” he said.
“I was expecting a discharge without conviction and get on a plane and go straight back to work.”
On the topic of drug use, during the interview Rudd denied using methamphetamine even though police found the substance in his house during a search. Claiming that he’s never been drug tested, he said, “you can’t prove it.”
He says is currently being treated for depression and anxiety, admitting that he is seeking psychiatric help. “I was born with an imbalance, you know. I suffer anxiety and a lot of insecurities, depression and stuff,” he said.
The Australian leg of AC/DC’s Rock Or Bust tour kicks off in Sydney on 4th November, before making its way around the country for over a month.
