AC/DC's ANGUS YOUNG: MALCOLM 'Kept Going As Long As He Could'

AC/DC's new album, "Rock Or Bust", which arrives on December 2, is the band's first without founding guitarist Malcolm Young, who was forced to retire earlier this year due to being stricken with dementia. His brother and bandmate Angus told The Pulse Of Radio that the whole situation has been heartbreaking. "It is," he said. "I'm his brother, but also the rest — his immediate family, his wife and kids and everyone, you know. But he kept going as long as he could, he said, you know. I mean, he was still writing until he couldn't do that anymore. You were hoping, you know, that he would get better. The physical side of him, he got great treatment for that, so he's good with all of that. But the mental side has just deteriorated, you know. So he himself said, you know, I won't be able to do it anymore."

The first song heard from the new album, "Play Ball", was unveiled late last month.

Angus revealed in a recent interview with Rolling Stone that his brother began showing symptoms of his illness on the band's last album, 2008's "Black Ice".

Angus also said that Malcolm was in treatment during his last tour with AC/DC, from 2008 to 2010.

Malcolm is currently in full-time care at a facility in Australia and did not play on "Rock Or Bust", although all the songs on the disc are credited to the two brothers.

Malcolm's replacement in the band is his and Angus' nephew Stevie, who replaced Malcolm on tour in 1989 when the latter dealt with his alcoholism.

AC/DC has also not announced whether drummer Phil Rudd will join the band on its world tour next year. Rudd was arrested earlier this month and drug and murder-for-hire charges, although the latter were dropped.