Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Van Halen, A Different Kind of Truth - Review
Where have all the good times gone?
My first memory of Van Halen was my sister's cassette tape copy of 1982's Diver Down album. The So-Cal quartet were already bona fide rock stars at that point, but I was new to rock-n-roll, joining the party late. Diver Down, Led Zeppelin IV and Ozzy's solo debut "Blizzard of Oz" created the sum total of my music collection (I'll rarely admit to owning the 45 of "Eye of the Tiger"), all "borrowed" from my sister.
In '82 I was on the edge of the cliff, ready to cannonball myself into the deep blue world of rock-n-roll, and just when I hit the water, Van Halen made one of the biggest splashes in music history with "1984". The album would go platinum many, many times and became a staple in the minds of music-loving teenagers cutting their teeth in the mid-to-late 80s.
This is a round-about intro to what I intend to be a review of Van Halen's latest release "A Different Kind of Truth." But to understand Van Halen, I believe you needed to be there, at least in spirit, for the band's most glorious glory days.
My first listen through the new VH album made me smile. Not because I thought it was good, but because I could feel just a pinch of the nostalgia that makes me remember my generation's music so fondly.
The formula is there, and I mean that in a good way. David Lee Roth is back at the helm for the first time since 1984, and it works. Sort of. I mean he's older and his range isn't what it was (and it never was much anyway), but the old Diamond Dave style is intact.
Eddie Van Halen slings riffs from his guitar with playful finesse. His signature sound is here and you know it's EVH three notes into the first track.
It's all there. It should work.
I just wish there were more hooks.
And there's the rub. Some of the songs are good, but none are great. There's no "Jump" or "Panama" in this mix. It sounds like a collection of B-sides and leftovers from the band's early years. And it should. As most fans are aware, the bulk of the material for A Different Kind of Truth is from previously unreleased demos in the Van Halen vault.
"Tattoo" is the first single and is a totally passable rock tune with a lot of the VH signature elements stirred in. Released weeks before the full album, Tattoo was our first listen at the new adventures of old Van Halen. It was, to put kindly, underwhelming.
Van Halen at their best could sound giant and quaint at the same time. Polished and raw simultaneously. They were a bar band that could fill stadiums. Arena rock in a garage. There are moments here when they recapture that wonderful contradiction.
It's just not all that fun anymore.
It begs the question: has the music changed for the worse or are our expectations too high? I crank the volume and sing along with Panama because it makes me remember my youth and the reckless, carefree days when tomorrow felt to be a lifetime away.
I hoped Different Kind of Truth would hit me the same way. That's probably too much to ask.
The second single is "She's the Woman" and boasts a very classic sounding guitar riff and heavy-handed drumbeat from Alex Van Halen driving things forward. Arguably the best track of the lot, She's the Woman would have made a better opener than Tattoo.
But maybe its all about expectations. When I first heard Van Halen the sound was new. It was big. It was fun. It was the rock star generation catering to teenagers who wanted to believe their heroes were bigger than life. The Internet and constant media coverage have shown us the men behind the curtain. We know there was ice tea in the Jack Daniel's bottle.
When watching the video for Tattoo, the first thing most people can't help but utter is: "Man, they look old." And it's true. Our rock stars have gotten older, and so have we.
BOTTOM LINE: Worth listening to if you're feeling nostalgic for big arena rock, but will probably just prompt you to run for classic Van Halen efforts.
