Wow, my interest in the "reunion" just went from "meh" to .

How Short Is Eddie?

I loved the press conference. Dave is still one heck of a salesman.

I'm actually more excited about the tour after that press conference. If they've been rehearsing since last October and wanted to wait until they were really ready then this should actually be quite a good tour.

And I love the possibility of a new album after the tour! I know they've recorded 7 or 8 songs with Roth over the last decade in false starts for a reunion - maybe the best of that bunch will end up on the album.

I'm just hoping that Dave and Eddie can keep it together. Dave's always gonna be a hyper little kid who gets annoying, and Eddie comes across as tempermental nutcase, so we'll see how far this thing goes.

But don't forget - Warner Brothers released Van Halen from their contract a couple of years ago when they let Sammy go a 2nd time. Warners wanted either Sammy or Dave as the singer and they weren't going to release a new album with yet another new singer. Maybe that will force Eddie to tolerate Dave a little more, and maybe Dave's faltering career will force him to continue to be a little less annoying than in the past. This thing could conceivably last 2-3 years before it blows up again. Maybe.

Or it could last until halfway through the tour, which is why I'm going to see them this time around.

More pics from the press conference, including stage design:

http://www.vhnd.com/articles/070813-03.shtml

Sort of like the U2 type stage. Not sure I like it but I do like how the lights compiment the staging.

Fixed

They should have tried and patched things up and get all original members together.

If they've been rehearsing since October, why didn't they perform a few songs? At least the Police had the sense to show people what they'd be getting. Expecting people to pony up the big bucks for a "band" that hasn't played together in 23 years with a 16 yr old bassist of questionable talent is pretty ballsy.

Yeah but the same basketball-hockey issues arise with other venues they are touring (MSG, Staples, Wachovia, etc). They could always play at Comcast Center alternatively.


That's just dandy.

Good thing is that HOuston is not on this first leg, so I can hear a lot of show reports before deciding. That is, of course, assuming there will be another leg that hits the South and that Houston is on the tour.

I figure that is what happened here, scheduling problems, in Chicago.
One is at Allstate and one is at the United Center which would not make any sense since they are maybe 10 miles apart.

Do you think a musician of Eddie's caliber would put someone on stage with him that couldn't keep up? Considering Eddie's battles with sobriety, I must admit that he possibly might, but unless you've been directly involved with whatever training Wolfgang may have had in his 16 years, calling his talent "questionable" is pretty presumptuous. Just my humble opinion.

I have no idea whether the kid can play but I do know hiring family members to do a job someone is more qualified for has a long history in the entertainment industry and often one's judgement is clouded by nepotism. Isn't it presumptious of you to assume that a 16 year old kid who's never appeared in front of a large audience has the ability to perform at a professional level for 2 hours a night in front of tens of thousands of people?

Any presumptions either way are just that: presumptions. Wolfgang is an unknown factor in this equation, but if he has even a 100th of the talent his dad possesses, I think he'll still be a better bassist than Michael Anthony.

He's bringing Alex along, isn't he?

If you'll read my post again, you'll notice I didn't say whether he was qualified or not, therefore I assumed nothing. I only implied that I simply don't know, and neither do any of us. Nepotism is definitely a possible factor, but again, I don't know how good Wolfgang is on the bass. We'll just have to wait and see. Michael Anthony's vocals may be missed (or may not), but like Suprmallet said (or perhaps implied), he has never really been considered a world class bassist. Anyone who may have listed Anthony as a bass influence over the years isn't exactly setting the bar very high.

Ouch. I would imagine that was their father's doing:

[Papa Van Halen]Eddie! You let Alex play, too...you hear me?!?[/Papa Van Halen]

Yeah, as far as I'm concerned, getting rid of Michael Anthony is only doing half the job. There's a reason Michael Anthony and Alex Van Halen are considered the most dull rhythm section in rock.

Last time I checked Alex was considered one of the better Rock drummers of the last 30 years. He has a unique - and quite good - drumming style. I played drums for 10 years, so I know a little about drumming. I rate Alex very highly - and he's a perfect fit for Van Halen.

Hopefully a new bassist will bring out some of his creativity again, because from pretty much every VH album from F.U.C.K. on Anthony and Alex just plodded along on every song.

I don't think Wolfgang is going to have any say in any matters regarding the new version. He's going to do what daddy tells him to.

yeah, but why would he want to sing Sammy songs? They all suck! (well, in my opinion... "summer nights" was a good song, but all the Sammy albums had really flat, processed production which made them unlistenable no matter how "good" the songs may or may not have been)

But wouldn't a live performance be the exact way to undo any production snafus?

And "Finish What Ya Started" is as good as any DLR Van Halen song, IMO.

Personally i can't the song but as good as any DLR/VH song? Ouch.

There is quite a bit of good Sammy stuff. Of course there is crap like "When It's Love", but there is some really great songs, like "Humans Being", "5150", "Judgment Day", etc.