If you were at AC/DC's gig at Dublin's Aviva Stadium last week, you might have noticed that there was a different drummer behind the kit.
That's because Phil Rudd, the band's long-time sticksman, was embroiled in a criminal case in New Zealand which saw him in court, charged with threatening to murder someone as well as possession of meth and cannabis.
During the trial, it was revealed that Rudd's solo album 'Head Job' had not been as successful as planned, and he had fired a number of employees after it sold poorly. It was alleged that he hired a hitman to "take out" a former employee, paying them $200,000 NZ to do so.
The 61-year-old told Australian news show 'A Current Affair' that he was "pretty stressed" about it at the time, but had "seen the errors of [his] ways... It's onward and upward from here."
He pleaded guilty to the charges in April, and today has been sentenced to eight months' home detention, with the judge warning him that any breach of his conditions would mean a custodial sentence.
As for his future in AC/DC? He's keen to rejoin the rockers at some stage, but they're not returning his calls. "I've had no contact with anybody. I'm very disappointed," he said. "But, you know, that's life. I'm sure they're having a great old time I'm sure they're really enjoying playing. I'm sure it really sounds great."
