When Titans Collide: AC/DC and Foo Fighters Deliver a Once-in-a-Lifetime Masterclass in Rock ’n’ Roll at MetLife Stadium

Main Facts: A Historic Pairing Born from Weather and Resilience

East Rutherford, New Jersey — There are good concerts, there are great concerts, and then there are the transcendent, myth-making events that fans pass down to their grandchildren like family folklore. On a shockingly warm October Friday evening, MetLife Stadium played host to precisely that kind of cultural lightning.

In a standard tour routing, the pairing of AC/DC and Foo Fighters on the exact same bill would be the stuff of rock-and-roll fantasy camp. However, fate—and a stubborn nor’easter—made the unthinkable a reality. A week prior, a ferocious autumn storm battered the New York-New Jersey metropolitan area, forcing the postponement of AC/DC’s highly anticipated regional stop on their "PWR/UP Tour."

When the rescheduled date landed on a Friday night, regular support act The Pretty Reckless found themselves unable to make the new calendar slot work. Enter Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters, who once again proved themselves to be the ultimate team players of modern rock. Having stepped in under similar circumstances just weeks earlier in St. Louis, the Foo Fighters cleared their schedule to serve as the opening act.

The resulting concert was a statistical and historical anomaly: a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame headliner supported by another arena-headlining Rock & Roll Hall of Fame act. Adding to the surreal atmosphere was the weather. October in the tri-state area is typically defined by crisp jackets and falling leaves, but this night gifted tens of thousands of revellers with a rare, balmy 80-degree evening. Though a quick-moving rainstorm washed over the stadium roughly 90 minutes before showtime, it vanished just as quickly, leaving behind pristine skies and an electric sense of anticipation that would fuel the stadium well into the night.

Chronology: A Blow-by-Blow Account of an Epic Evening

The Foo Fighters’ High-Octane Warm-Up

Promptly at 7:00 p.m., the Foo Fighters bounded onto the massive MetLife stage. It was transparently clear from the very first power chord that Dave Grohl was having the time of his life. Thrust into the unusual role of an opening act for his childhood heroes, Grohl and company treated the burgeoning stadium crowd to a lean, mean, nine-song masterclass of stadium-ready anthems—an all-killer, no-filler blitz of modern rock history.

The band wasted zero time easing the audience in, kicking off the night with aggressive, adrenaline-fueled renditions of "All My Life" and "The Pretender." Grohl’s voice rang out clear and commanding as he repeatedly paid homage to the headliners looming later in the evening. Seamlessly, the set rolled into radio staples like "Times Like These," "Learn to Fly," "My Hero," and "This Is a Call."

Before launching into the latter half of their set, Grohl paused to address the masses, sharing a deeply personal anecdote that connected his 11-year-old self to the momentous occasion.

"When I was 11 years old, I went to a midnight movie, and I saw Let There Be Rock," Grohl told the rapturous stadium crowd, his voice echoing off the concrete tiers. "At 11 years old, I didn’t know that rock ’n’ roll could be like that. I didn’t know that rock ’n’ roll was sweat, and blood, and fucking tears, and every ounce of energy you have—Phil Rudd breaking snare drums and Angus sucking oxygen on the side of the stage. I saw that movie when I was 11 years old, and I was like, ‘I wanna do that for the rest of my fucking life.’"

Energized by the memory, the band ripped through "Monkey Wrench"—complete with a thunderous drum breakdown—before pivoting to the emotional juggernaut of "Best of You." They closed out their truncated set with their definitive anthem, "Everlong," cementing what is undoubtedly one of the greatest opening sets in modern stadium history.

AC/DC Takes the Helm and Delivers Masterclass in Power

Following a brisk 30-minute turnover, the big screens flickered to life at exactly 8:30 p.m. with a high-voltage video introduction that sent shockwaves through the venue. AC/DC faced the daunting task of following a relentless Foo Fighters performance, but the veteran Aussie rockers established absolute dominance from the very first notes of the opener, "If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It)."

For the next two hours, the band unfurled a staggering catalog of timeless hard rock classics. Early set pieces like "Back in Black," "Thunderstruck," and "Hells Bells" transformed MetLife Stadium into a pulsating sea of bobbing heads and raised fists.

Midway through the set, frontman Brian Johnson took a moment to orchestrate one of the evening’s worst-kept, yet most exhilarating, secrets.

"We got something to tell you… a very good friend of ours asked us tonight if he could come out and join us for ‘Highway to Hell,’" Johnson teased the crowd in his trademark gravelly rasp. "We said, ‘Yes, Dave, you can!’"

Out ran Dave Grohl, stepping into a fantasy scenario that his 11-year-old movie-goer self could never have fathomed. Flanked by Angus Young and Brian Johnson, a 57-year-old Grohl strapped on a guitar and traded vocal duties on the chorus of the quintessential Bon Scott-era anthem. The chemistry on stage was palpable, a genuine celebration of cross-generational rock royalty.

The main set charged forward through a gauntlet of iconic tracks: "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," "You Shook Me All Night Long," "Whole Lotta Rosie," and a towering rendition of "Let There Be Rock." The latter climaxed with an astonishing 15-minute guitar solo from Angus Young. At 71 years of age, Young sprinted, duck-walked, and convulsed across the stage with an athletic vigor that put performers a third his age to shame.

Supporting Data: Age Is Just a Number in Rock History

The triumph of the evening is brought into even sharper focus when examining the astonishing ages and physical demands placed upon these legendary musicians:

• Brian Johnson (AC/DC): At 78 years old (just weeks away from his 79th birthday), Johnson’s performance defies medical logic. Exactly a decade ago, the singer was forced to step away from the band entirely due to severe hearing loss, with medical professionals warning that his touring career was permanently finished. Yet, under the lights of MetLife Stadium, Johnson did not merely survive; he dominated, displaying a vocal resilience and pitch control that left music critics and fans astounded.
• Angus Young (AC/DC): At 71, the schoolboy-uniform-clad lead guitarist maintained a high-intensity aerobic output across a two-hour set, anchored by a blistering extended solo during "Let There Be Rock."
• Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters): At 57, Grohl bridges the gap between classic rock royalty and modern alternative titans, maintaining a relentless touring and performance schedule that has spanned over three decades.

Comprehensive Setlists

AC/DC MetLife Stadium Setlist:

1. If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It)
2. Back in Black
3. Demon Fire
4. Shot Down in Flames
5. Thunderstruck
6. Have a Drink on Me
7. Hells Bells
8. Shot in the Dark
9. Stiff Upper Lip
10. Highway to Hell (with Dave Grohl)
11. Shoot to Thrill
12. Sin City
13. Jailbreak
14. Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
15. High Voltage
16. Riff Raff
17. You Shook Me All Night Long
18. Whole Lotta Rosie
19. Let There Be Rock (with extended Angus Young solo)

Encore:

20. T.N.T.
21. For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)

Foo Fighters MetLife Stadium Setlist:

1. All My Life
2. The Pretender
3. Times Like These
4. My Hero
5. Learn to Fly
6. This Is a Call
7. Monkey Wrench (with drum solo)
8. Best of You
9. Everlong

Official Responses and Fan Reactions

Social media platforms and music journalism circles erupted following the conclusion of the concert. Photography shared widely across networks—courtesy of renowned lensman Kevin RC Wilson—captured the ecstatic expressions of fans and artists alike.

Critics universally praised the seamless integration of the two distinct sonic forces. While AC/DC represents the blue-collar, high-octane blues-rock blueprint of the 1970s and 80s, the Foo Fighters embody the melodic, arena-scaling alternative ethos of the 90s and 2000s. Together, they formed a cohesive narrative of rock longevity.

Fans who braved the initial nor’easter postponement voiced immense gratitude online, noting that the weather delay accidentally birthed a superior lineup to the originally scheduled itinerary.

Implications: The End of an Era or a New Beginning?

Beyond the immediate euphoria of pyrotechnics, guitar solos, and guest appearances, the MetLife Stadium concert carries significant weight regarding the future of AC/DC.

Because of the calendar shift forced by the earlier autumn storm, this New Jersey date officially served as the closing night of AC/DC’s North American "PWR/UP Tour." Naturally, this led to immediate speculation across the music industry: Did tens of thousands of American fans just witness AC/DC’s final-ever US concert?

The band has famously approached their touring career on a year-by-year, album-by-album basis, mindful of the physical toll exacted by decades on the road. Furthermore, the miraculous nature of Brian Johnson’s return from retirement makes every single performance feel like borrowed time.

However, as the final notes of the encore—"For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)"—faded out amid a deafening barrage of stage cannons and synchronized fireworks, Johnson offered a glimmer of hope to the anxious multitude.

As he waved goodbye to the New Jersey faithful, the frontman offered a parting phrase that resonated deeply:

"Good night, hope we’ll see you again!"

Whether this night marks the final curtain call for AC/DC on American soil or merely another chapter in an immortal career, the October night at MetLife Stadium stands as a monument to rock-and-roll endurance. It proved that guitars, drums, sweat, and community remain as vital today as they were when an 11-year-old Dave Grohl first sat in a dark theater watching Let There Be Rock—and decided to change the world.