Professionally filmed, multi-camera footage of legendary AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd performing an orchestral version of “Thunderstruck” has been released. The video captures Rudd’s triumphant return to a major stage on July 26, 2025, at Spark Arena in Auckland, New Zealand.
The 71-year-old drummer was the marquee guest for the “Full Metal Orchestra,” a high-production event that paired rock anthems with a 29-piece classical orchestra from the Auckland Philharmonic, conducted by Sarah-Grace Williams.
The newly released “Thunderstruck” footage, along with a previously released video of “Back In Black,” showcases the unique collaboration. The event featured rock vocalists, including Jon Toogood of Shihad, performing metal classics from Metallica, Iron Maiden, and Black Sabbath.
Before the show, Rudd expressed his excitement about the unconventional format. “It’s going to be massive, fueled, we’ll take off the roof…you wait,” Rudd told Stuff. “It’s going to be thumping, boom boom, bang. It’s exciting, like nothing else I’ve ever done, putting the best raw banging rock songs with a classical orchestra.”
Event organizers Duco Touring billed the experience as “Metallica meets Mahler, AC/DC a deux, and [Black] Sabbath with strings — this is a symphonic experience like no other.”
Duco Touring’s founder, David Higgins, said Rudd was his top choice for the show. “Phil Rudd was always in my mind as the dream ‘get’ as one of the world’s best known rock stars, living right here in New Zealand,” Higgins told Stuff.
The “Full Metal Orchestra” performance was Rudd‘s first major public concert in years. Despite recording the drums for AC/DC’s 2020 album, Power Up, Rudd is not part of the band’s current global tour.
In a recent, candid interview with New Zealand’s Stuff, Rudd addressed his complicated relationship with his former bandmates. “There was a time when I thought it was the end of my world,” he admitted. “I only knew life with AC/DC. Those people I thought loved me like a brother, they haven’t even picked up the phone.”
