For Wolfgang's 32nd birthday today (Happy Birthday Wolf!), a never-heard-before excerpt of a 1994 Eddie Van Halen interview was released, where Eddie talks about Wolfgang - then three-and-a-half years old. The interview is by Chris Gill, who reached out to VHND today. "I did my first interview with Edward Van Halen on Nov. 29, 1994 at 5150 for Guitar Player magazine. … [Read more...]
Van Halen News
Happy Birthday Wolfgang Van Halen!
Edward Van Halen lit the fire in the group that bears his name. Now his son is blazing his own trail as a solo artist. This is the story of Wolfgang Van Halen. Born March 16th, 1991, named after the classical composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Wolfgang William Van Halen is the son of Eddie Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli, and the nephew … [Read more...]
Guitarist Tracy G On Seeing Van Halen In 1976: ‘It Just Ran Over Me Like A Truck’ (VIDEO)
Guitarist Tracy G recently recalled seeing Van Halen perform in 1976 at the Golden West Ballroom in Norwalk, California. It was literally a jaw-dropping experience. "It just ran over me like a truck and I'm just standing there with my mouth open," Tracy (Dio, Love/Hate, Riff Raff) told host Jeff Goebel during a recent appearance on Final Resonance TV. "This was a band. … [Read more...]
David Lee Roth Rolls Out Unreleased Tracks In Latest Roth Show Episode
David Lee Roth got into "DJ Dave" mode in the latest episode of The Roth Show and his playlist was packed with unreleased DLR tracks! Here's a rundown of the tracks and our best guess at the titles! Listen to the entire Roth Show episode below: … [Read more...]
Wolfgang Van Halen Says Sophomore Mammoth WVH Album ‘Almost Finished’
The wait for the second Mammoth WVH album may be over soon. Wolfgang Van Halen says his second effort is near completion. In a recent interview with Total Guitar, Wolfgang gave an update on the album, including what we'll expect to hear and what it's like using his father's famous Frankenstein guitar on a few tracks. Here is what Wolfgang had to tell Total Guitar's Amit … [Read more...]
A&E Network To Air ‘Biography’ Episode On Sammy Hagar
A&E Network will be airing five all-new Biography specials celebrating the careers of some of hard rock’s greatest legends and Sammy Hagar will be among them. Set to premiere in late 2023, each documentary will feature exclusive interviews with each of the artists and those closest to them as well as archival footage and audio. The specials will go behind the … [Read more...]
Mike Portnoy Names Alex Van Halen Among 11 Greatest Drummers Of All Time (VIDEO)
Mike Portnoy named Alex Van Halen as one of the most influential rock drummers of all time and a major influence on his own style. In a video for Revolver, Portnoy (Dream Theater, the Winery Dogs) was asked to name who he believes are the 11 greatest drummers of all time and named Alex, citing his imposing sound as one of the first things he was hooked on. "He was playing … [Read more...]
Coming Out Of Retirement One Show At A Time, Van Halen Wanted To Open For Queen
"There's a little bit of Dave in every mother f*!#er out there!" Who else can make that claim so boldly? Nobody else but David Lee Roth, of course. Dave is back with another episode of The Roth Show. Among the highlights are Dave talking about his retirement, the Van Halen studio/live recordings and how he, Eddie and Alex had reently talked about touring stadiums with … [Read more...]
Unearthed Eddie Van Halen: 1980 Jas Obrecht Interview, Part 2
Jas Obrecht's remarkably candid conversation with Eddie Van Halen continues, with lots of guitar playing! Today, Jas released PART 2 of his never-before-heard gem of an interview with Eddie Van Halen, from January of 1980. And, just like his complete 1978 and 1979 Eddie interviews, this is absolutely incredible to hear! But first, if you haven’t already heard it, you may … [Read more...]
How Eddie Van Halen Has Inspired Nuno Bettencourt’s ‘Fire’ On New Extreme Album
Extreme has just released "Rise", the debut single from the band's forthcoming album titled Six due out June 9th. If guitarist Nuno Bettencourt sounds like man on a mission on this track, it's because he is. In a new interview with Guitar World, Bettencourt said he vows to make sure that the road Eddie paved for guitarists to follow must not come to an end. "When Eddie Van … [Read more...]
Listen To Eddie Van Halen’s Isolated Guitar Track From 2015’s Remastered ‘Panama’
Ain't nothin' like it. Like a shiny machine. It's Eddie Van Halen's isolated guitar track from "Panama"! The YouTube channel Isolated Tracks has shared the audio of the track above, which comes from the 2015 remastered version of the 1984 album. The isolation of Eddie's parts highlights his brilliance in places we may not have even noticed before. From the riff to the rhythm … [Read more...]
Steve Vai On The ‘Forensic’ Approach To Co-Producing ‘Skyscraper’ Album With David Lee Roth
Steve Vai recently talked about the "forensic" approach to co-producing David Lee Roth's 1988 album Skyscraper, adding that his solos came straight from the demos. Vai was interviewed by eonmusic to promote the release of his new album Vai/Gash, which was written and recorded back in 1991. Writer Eamon O'Neill noted that the guitar work sounds very much like Vai's raw, … [Read more...]