In 2016, Axl Rose was, very briefly, the lead singer of AC/DC, but the frontman role almost went to Nic Cester from Jet instead.
The Aussie rock band recently appeared on Triple M’s Homegrown with Matty O and spilled the beans on Cester’s almost-role with AC/DC.
“I auditioned for Axl Rose’s job (fill-in front man),” Cester revealed, with his Jet bandmate Mark Wilson adding, “it came down to Nic and Axl.”
Nic took over: “I spent two days as their singer, unofficially. I had been living overseas for a long time and I’d come back to visit my family and staying with my in-laws. I got up in the morning and read the paper, and it said the singer (Bryan Johnson) was not in the band anymore.
“I remember saying to my father-in-law, ‘Holy shit, you would not want to step into those shoes,’ and literally 20 minutes later my phone rang and they’re saying, ‘Would you be interested to going to Atlanta, Georgia to audition to potentially fill in for this next round of dates they’ve got.’ I was just like, ‘Oh my God… I think I’ll say yes for the life experience,’ but I wasn’t expecting to get the gig, to be honest.”
Nic then called the audition process. “It was a tiny space but they were set up with their enormous backline. I remember watching AC/DC thinking, there’s no way all those amps are on… let me tell you, they were all fucking on,” he said.
“It was the loudest thing I’ve ever heard in my entire life. He (Angus Young) put me through my paces, everything was a test to see how I would handle it… the volume. He (Young) was like, ‘Okay, let’s do this song, let’s do this song,’ and I didn’t know every song so he would just go, ‘Go over there and learn it.’ It was pretty scary.”
What could have been! In other Jet-related news, the band announced last month that they’re working on their first studio album in over 15 years, which is schedule for release in 2025. It will be the very long-awaited follow-up to 2009’s Shaka Rock.
Jet expressed their excitement about their new project, stating, “It’s time… we’re pretty excited to tell you that we’re working on a new Jet album, due for release in 2025.”
Following their warmly received (and sold out) ‘Get Born: 20th Anniversary’ shows last year, the band unveiled the ‘Extended Edition’, which will take in cities and regional centres around Australia through May and June (see full dates below).
Jet 2024 Australian Tour
Ticket information available via livenation.com.au
Thursday, 9th May (SOLD OUT)
Torquay Hotel, Torquay, VIC
Friday, 10th May (SOLD OUT)
Torquay Hotel, Torquay, VIC
Saturday, 11th May
Uni Bar, Hobart, TAS
Friday, 17th May
Metropolis, Fremantle, WA
Saturday, 18th May
BASS IN THE GRASS, Darwin, NT
Friday, 24th May
Hotel Brunswick, Brunswick Heads, NSW
Saturday, 25th May
The Station, Sunshine Coast, QLD
Friday, 31st May
Sunken Monkey Hotel, Central Coast, NSW
Thursday, 6th June
The Pavilion, Kiama, NSW
Friday, 7th June
UC Refectory, Canberra, ACT
Saturday, 8th June
Bar on the Hill, Newcastle, NSW
