Review: Van Halen

Photos by Jill Toyoshiba/The Star

If there is dysfunction and dissension in Camp Van Halen, none was evident Tuesday night. A few days after it announced the postponement of dozens of shows on its tour, amid rumors that band members “hated each other,” according to Rolling Stone, Van Halen headlined a show at the Sprint Center. And everything appeared hunky-dory.

There were plenty of smiles, hugs and even a kiss or two among the band during the two hour show, which was a rag-tag blend of sweet nostalgia, campy entertainment and arena-sized rock and roll . In return, a crowd of more than 8,500 bestowed upon the band a steady shower of appreciation and unconditional love.

This is the second tour for this version of Van Halen, which features founding members David Lee Roth on vocals, brothers Eddie and Alex Van Halen on guitar and drums, and Wolfgang Van Halen, Eddie’s son on bass.  He joined the band in 2007 for the Roth reunion tour, which came to the Sprint Center. Five years later, everyone is older, for better and worse.

Wolfgang, now 22, is a more steady presence in the band, though he still lacks the stage personae of founding bassist Michael Anthony. Alex is still a madman on the drums. Eddie  is still a pyrotechnic on guitar. And Roth? He’s still a man out in his own orbit, part hammy game-show host, part comedian, part rock-star diva in leather and sequins.. He can’t sing like he used to, he can’t leap and kick like he used to, he can’t remember all the lyrics, and he barely has the wind to cross the finish line of a two-hour show. Yet he gives the band what it also needs: personae and schtick -- showmanship.

Tuesday’s openers were Kool and the Gang, who are all about pairing showmanship with musicianship. Its 45-minute set was stocked with its best-known hits, like “Hollywood Swinging,” “Ladies Night,” “Get Down On It,” and “Celebration.” Throughout the set, there was plenty of dancing, on stage and in the crowd. During “Jungle Boogie,” the band’s trumpet player stopped, nailed a one-handed cartwheel and picked up his solo again. 

Roth had nothing like that in his repertoire. Instead, except for a few half-hearted kicks, most of the night he shuffled and danced like the tipsy uncle at a wedding -- not nearly as suave as he thinks he is. If there is trouble within the band it likely starts with him. His weird interaction with a female he said was young enough to be his daughter was odd, if not borderline creepy. After he perceived that she was laughing at him, he gave her a lecture on how to sex-up her fishnet stockings. Later, he gave Wolfie a history lesson on the song “Panama.” (It’s about a stripper, not the country.) But in general, he stuck to the affable showman routine, which he still does as well as anyone.

They opened with “Unchained,” from the “Fair Warning” album, now more than 30 years old. The sound was not great at first. I was standing on the floor, not far from the soundboard, and Roth’s vocals were buried in the mix. It seemed to improve gradually as the night went on; at least it sounded better on the top of the first level, where I watched the last half of the show. The band played before an enormous video screen that broadcast a mix of black-and-white live scenes from the stage and other pre-recorded footage -- a good thing for the many people in the cheaper upper-level seats.

The setlist included a four songs from “A Different Kind of Truth,” released in February. The rest was a good mix of hits and favorites: “Everybody Wants Some,” “Runnin’ With the Devil,” “Somebody Get Me A Doctor.,” “Hot for Teacher.” The crowd gave most of them huge ovations, especially “Devil” and “Teacher,” but the songs that ignited the biggest responses were the pop tunes, such as “Dance the Night Away,” “(Oh) Pretty Woman” and “Jump.”

About halfway in, Alex Van Halen put on a brief drum solo with a Caribbean beat, like something out of a Jimmy Buffet concert. Throughout the night, Eddie showed off the skills and techniques that have made him a deity among fans and fellow guitarists. Late in the show, he put on a guitar clinic that went on a little too long for which Roth ordained him reigning world champion. And Wolfgang did yeoman work on bass and background vocals. I won't say he made people forget about Anthony, but I doubt too many people were missing him badly.

Roth’s performance was more uneven. He toyed with his vocal delivery on a few songs, half-scatting the beginning of “You Really Got Me,” for example; he dropped some lyrics (as he did in 2007). He also shared with the crowd part of his life away from the band, which made for a peculiar interlude in the show. After “Beautiful Girls,” he came out on stage alone, playing acoustic guitar as the video screen showed footage of Roth with his herding dogs, which he talked about fondly and proudly. Then he performed “Ice Cream Man” solo, until the band joined him and set the second half of the song on fire.

There were rumors flying around that Sammy Hagar, who replaced Roth in 1985, was in the Sprint Center on Tuesday. Supposedly there is photo evidence, but i haven’t seen any (and I don't buy the rumors). Sounds more like a hoax or a case of mistaken identity. Hagar has already chimed in on the show postponements: “They're hard people to get along with, those brothers. I predicted this was going to happen.” If he had been in the house on Tuesday, however, he'd have realized that (a) everyone is getting a long well enough to make it through a show every night; and (b) Roth is the guy most Van Halen fans prefer, by a long shot, despite the flaws in his game.

All that was most evident during the finale. As soon as the keyboard intro to “Jump” was piped in, the place went a little crazy. Eddie jumped around like his favorite team had just won the World Series and Roth looked like a guy taking a victory lap. By song’s end he was waving a checkered flag, standing in blizzard of confetti. It was the perfect ending to an entertaining night, moral implied. Life’s too short for grudges and regrets. Might as well jump and dance, while you still can.

Setlist: Unchained; Runnin’ With the Devil; She’s the Woman; Tattoo; Everybody Wants Some; Somebody Get Me A Doctor; China Town; Hear About it Later; (Oh) Pretty Woman; drum solo; You Really Got Me; The Trouble With Never; Dance the Night Away; I’ll Wait; And the Cradle Will Rock; Hot For Teacher; Women In Love; Beautiful Girls; Ice Cream Man; Panama; guitar solo; Ain’t Talkin’ About Love; Jump.

| Timothy Finn, The Star

Comments

[JG]

"There were plenty of rumors flying around that Sammy Hagar, who replaced Roth in 1985, was in the Sprint Center on Tuesday. Supposedly there is photo evidence, but i haven’t seen any."

Now that is interesting. Hope the photo turns up.

[Tim Finn]

i think they're bogus. but i heard them from a few people. sounds more like it was a look-alike.

[Bob Asher]

My buddy Scott Hobart got a photo of the back of a guy who I pointed out as a "dead ringer" for Hagar. We were joking about Hagar being there and my other buddy Tilden Snow was gonna go up to him and ask him "What are YOU doing here?", but I seriously doubt it was really Hagar.

[Bob Asher]

I was down on the floor a little in front of FOH as well and I thought the sound was universally terrible for VH. Yes it got better several songs into the show, but it still sounded mostly like a mess. Sound for Kool and the Gang was much much better, but that's probably due to the nature of the band.

Kool and the Gang put down a KILLER set, and were a surprisingly perfect opener for the show.

[eric melin]

I saw a guy in the front who LOOKED like Hagar. It wasn't him. Great review, Tim. Spot on. I had a grin a mile wide for 2 hours!

[Lindsay]

This show was WAY more entertaining than the one in 2007. The band did seem like they were having fun, and I'm glad they let Roth do his thing. BTW, I thought the dog sequence was heartfelt, and personable.

[Bob Asher]

Roth's performance demonstrates that charisma and showmanship untimately trumps talent and technique. Countless performing groups could learn a lesson here. IMHO, naturally.

[Joe]

I only wish this show had been at Crossroads. I hear it's a nice venue.

[NEW]

Doh!

[KA]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYgxVgihyzI

[Troy]

honestly I think Roth was not feeling good. I noticed he carried a towel with him throughout the show and wiped his face continuously. He seemed to wear his jacket for a long time which made me think he had the bug. Doesn't matter, as usual Eddie proved he is a guitar god but come on, too long a solo. .......seriously,???

[Bubba]

Lindsay, you're right about that 'dog segment'. That was a true surprise - at first I thought that was EDDIE'S guitar solo. Then, soon it was revealed to be DIAMOND DAVE. Liked that (sort of) folk improv piece he did just prior to "Ice Cream Man". Only downside is they didn't play "Jamie's Crying" - however I do FULLY understand - maybe they want to give that tune a rest. All the same - good show!

[Jim]

I don't know if it was him or not but I do have a pic if I only knew how I'd put it up here.

[Dr Teacher]

post/upload it to tinypic.com or imgur.com (both are free and easy to use to upload pictures from your computer)(you should know/learn how to do this, it is too easy not to) then it gives you a link, post the link here.

[Nick Graham]

There were two major surprises last night - one being Kool & The Gang (if they ever play the area again, I will gladly pay to see it), and the other being the evolution of Wolfgang Van Halen. He went from being a talented but visibly nervous kid five years ago to the absolute anchor of the band last night. As Dave's vocal chords took more and more of a thrashing as the night went on, Wolfie really stepped it up vocally to pick up the slack. I know many will consider this blasphemy - he's fully grown into his genes now, and at this point has rendered a Mike Anthony return moot, both in terms of vocals and bass playing. That's not a knock on Mike - this was just inevitable due to Wolfie having freak musical genes.

Dave put on a hell of a show, but his vocal chords are clearly not dealing with this level of frequent assault well. He was (literally) sucking on lemons multiple times during the second act to try and keep them from totally seizing up. I suspect that is the primary reason for the postponement. If you read reviews from the beginning of the tour to now, you see steadily increasing mentions of Dave's vocals.

The best part of last night was that it felt like a genuine Van Halen show. In 2007, all the hugs and smiles felt very forced, and Dave seemed to be restraining his innate Daveness a great deal. Last night the band was actually joking with each other off the cuff, as opposed to the handful of carefully timed hugs and smiles five years ago, and Dave seemed completely unafraid of doing the lecherous uncle vaudeville act hat we all love him for.

Oh, and Tim, the shtick Dave did with the girl in the front row is literally word for word what he has done on several of the last tour dates. Dave fakes spontaneous very well, but those lines have been used on pretty much every night of the tour, to a variety of women.

[Hank]

""I know many will consider this blasphemy - he's fully grown into his genes now, and at this point has rendered a Mike Anthony return moot, both in terms of vocals and bass playing.""

BLASPHEMY INDDED!!!

Michael Anthony was cheated out of this/his band, and band which he helped establish, just to cater to a punkass daddy's boy. Who cares wolfy can mimic what Mike did, that is not the point.

The point? IS THERE NO HONOR LEFT IN THE WORLD? MIKE paid his dues, earned his spot, while fatfk wolfy is just a douchebagcomelatley coming in late in the game to scoop up the easy money.

Wolfy had better remember, karma is a bitch and when it bites his head off, he better not whine "oh why me, why me, what did I ever do?

Fuk wolfy Van Halen he is poser and a thief.

PS
Yeah, Dave always said "The most important thing in show-biz in sincerity, when you can fake that, you have it made.

[Nick Graham]

I'm pretty sure Wolfgang was still in grade school back when the brothers fired Mikey (which I believe was 2003-2004ish - the only reason he was on the 2004 tour was because Sammy wouldn't do it otherwise), so I doubt Wolfie had anything to do with Mike getting the axe.

Methinks you take this stuff way too seriously. More seriously than the band itself, I would suspect.

As Obi-Wan so wisely said "Let go, Luke"

[Hank]

""I'm pretty sure Wolfgang was still in grade school back when the brothers fired Mikey (which I believe was 2003-2004ish - the only reason he was on the 2004 tour""

What?

Are you intending to agree with me? because that is what you are doing. Michael was out in 2003-4 so daddy's boy could step in and cut Michael out of his fair share of the money for that tour.

And did you try to say Sammy would not tour with Michael?

[Weekly World News]

I heard a rumor Michael Anthony has been investing in several live music venues including KC's very own Crossroads.
Then it again this came from someone who thought they saw Sammy Hagar at the VH show.

[EVH]

Naah man, you got it all wrong. Mikey left us when we split up about 10 years ago. He and Sammy formed their own band, that was cool. When we went back out on tour Sammy wanted Mikey to play with us so we brought him along, but he knew it was for that tour only. We're still buds, everything is cool. When we got back together, we needed a bass player so I had Wolfie fill in. You think I would have a bass player who couldn't carry the load in the mighty Van Halen?Appreciate your support, keep on rockin!

Peace

[who-fan]

Great review Tim! One small correction to the set list. You left off "The Full Bug". They played it after She's The Woman and before Tattoo.

btw... did anyone notice that Dave introduced Hot for Teacher as the next song, when it was actually Cradle Will Rock?

[RogerWilco]

Great Show! Made even better by an upgrade from nosebleed upper level to ROW 12 CENTER! The guys behind us weren't too happy to learn that. I guess that the 14th time is a charm.

[Hank]

Why did they upgrade you Roger?

EVH, your fatfk son can suck it.

You still have the chops, and sound great but bringing in your spoiled brat, daddy's boy, to pick up the easy money while excluding Mike from this BIG MONEY tour is BS.

Even your new songs are OLD SONGS, written/cut long long ago with original member Michael Anthony.

With all due respect, fk your kid very much. Wolfyboy will get what is coming to him, karma has a way of taking care of things.

[Lorraine Goodrich]

Not only was it too flippin hot in the Sprint Center due to the request of DLR for his vocals, he didn't even TRY to sing the proper lyrics all the way through any one song. I am a huge fan for over 30 years and I really felt he wasn't giving even half his all. I also noticed him clutching his lower back and resting against the speaker.what's the problem there? And the dog&sheep video, who gives a rats patootie? He should have been doing intense Bikram yogafor 6 monthsprior to the tour so he could at least give us one kick,one scream..can't you do anything?? comeon Dave I paid $146 turn up the a.c. and give me a break already! Eddie saved the day, was flawless and could have gone on and on and on...

[Diane Magers]

As a huge fan who has seen VH with DLR 4 times back in the 80's, I didn't expect the drum stand flying splits and screeching vocals, but I did expect an effort. I get it, Dave's not 28 anymore! But if you are going on tour, get in shape, train, practice, rehearse, and relearn your lyrics. You owe that to fans! You are in the entertainment industry. Entertain with effort and enthusiasm! I had floor seats- I still feel like my head is full of cotton batting (LG's line)Don't get me wrong- I had a frickin' blast,and I don't regret for a minute the $150 I spent for my seat... but "come on Dave, give me a break!" I was your vocals, I did your kicks, and I did your random screeches in the aisles of the Sprint Center. I missed your jumps, but I learned about your competitive sheep herding? I love you Dave- really, but Eddie was still on spot and had all his faculties.

[Sylvester]

MEOW!!!

[Lorraine Goodrich]

ROW 26 HAD A BLAST!! THANK YOU DIANE MORSE FOR YOUR ENTHUSIASM, YOUR KICKS, YOUR VOCALS AND ESPECIALLY YOUR JUNGLE NOISES DURING THE QUIET PARTS!
LIGHT IT UP!!!!!

[Kurt]

The main thing that matters is that all that went to the show had a good time but, surprised that the attendance was low. It's happening more often that shows aren't drawing real big crowds and KC could get a reputation for not supporting artists. The main reason is probably due to lofty ticket prices and it's getting out of control for some of these shows. Here are some examples.

Van Halen - 8,500

Sade - 7,000

Motley Crue - 8,000

[Diggity Dawg]

I know they get this kinda info from the venue, but 8500 seems kinda low. The place looked fuller than that to me.

Had a GREAT time at the show.

[Nick Graham]

8,500 wouldn't shock me based on other recent shows VH has done, but that would indicate the Sprint Center was about half full, and to my eyes it looked about 80% full.

[RogerWilco]

Looked about 80% to me too. Got the upgrade at the top of the escalator, got the info thru a text fraom a buddy. I figured this would happen. Tix too high for the show me state. They are selling well elsewhere. As for Dave's vocals, he never was much for getting the words right that I can recall.