November 20th, 2007
From: http://yourhereblog.mtv.com/
Posted by conorTV (from yourhere.mtv.com), New York, NY, at 11:28 am EST
on Thursday, November 15th, 2007
When it comes to guitar playing, I usually subscribe to the punk and indie
school of rock: Less is more. In other words, I'm not one to bow at the
altar of the almighty guitar god. And by guitar god I mean, you know, the
upper-lip-biting, finger-tapping, look-how-cool-I-am-playing-this-crazy-
10-minute-solo rock dude. Typically I think this style of guitar playing
is over-the-top and cheesy. But Eddie Van Halen is the real deal.
It was a wild night of eardrum-shattering classic rock as the Van Halen
reunion tour pulled into town on Tuesday. David Lee Roth and the guys
partied like it was 1984, at the grandaddy of arena rock venues: Madison
Square Garden. The newest member of the group -- 16-year-old Wolfgang Van
Halen -- wasn't even born yet when the band's greatest hits were made, but
he held his own on the bass.
I'm not exactly a VH superfan but I've enjoyed their hits through the
years. The MSG set included all their Roth-era anthems from "Panama" to
"Hot for Teacher" to "Runnin' With the Devil" and of course "Jump," which
closed out the night.
But it was "Eruption" that stole the show. Eddie's rendition of his
infamous guitar solo that inspired a thousand kids to pick up a guitar was
the spine-tingling highlight of the night. A truly amazing symphony of
distortion. My ears are still ringing, but it was all worth it.
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