Insiders have told Billboard that there's no truth to the rumor that AC/DC is calling it quits, though the group's management and Columbia Records, its current label, have chosen not to comment on the matter.
Last night, the Internet lit up with speculation that Malcom Young had suffered a stroke and moved back to Australia to be with his family as he was too ill to perform.
Australia's Noise11.com adds that the source of the retirement rumor was an email sent to Perth radio station 6PR from an anonymous tipster using the handle Thunderstruck. The station subsequently spread the word, setting off a flurry of reports first throughout Australia and then worldwide.
On the other hand, Australian Entertainment reporter Peter Ford told 6PR radio he had followed up on the rumor and believed the information to be correct. "It may be that … they don't actually retire as such, they just never perform together again or record again."
Some are saying that the retirement speculation runs counter to a report that AC/DC has booked six weeks of studio time in Vancouver, to work on a new album. However, that studio has been booked since at least January. so it may or may not tip the scale toward proving the rumor false.
We await word from the Youngs to put this to rest one way or another.