I bought my first Van Halen record in 1979 after the band had completed blowing a laboring Black Sabbath off each and every stage during the ill-fated Never Say Die tour for the Sabs. I bought the first Van Halen self-titled vinyl and was really blown away by what my young, impressionable mind was hearing. Over the years I followed and caught live the grand machine led by David Lee Roth and lost interest quickly when Sammy Hagar entered the fold and they implemented more keyboards and Top-40 sensibility to the mix. Here I sit, some 32-years after the fact, and hear the latest VH offering with Roth back at the helm called A Different Kind of Truth and get past the subpar single to find some really damn good rock ‘n roll!

Once past the subpar single in “Tattoo” I smile wide and nod to the Alex Van Halen beat as “She’s the Woman” takes me back to 1979 and recaptures my attention like all of these years never passed. Eddie Van Halen still has it in spades, and while I’m not sold on bassist Michael Anthony being left out of the fold Wolfgang Van Halen does a terrific job on bass throughout. My one thought hearing the first two tracks is Where the hell have you been, and why did you take so long?

While the wonderfully irreplaceable Anthony backing vocals are noticeably absent, Van Halen manages to make fools of all of us naysayers and issue a strong return album worthy of mention alongside Sabbath’s Heaven and Hell for sheer “Wow” factor alone. The intro guitar to “China Town” leads the way into a fast and furious Van Halen trip back in time that is still modern enough to vie for relevance. I am always one to admit when I am wrong or too much the blowhard for my own good, and this new record from Van Halen is the comeback of the few couple of years. When they took forever to put out the record I figured that, much like Guns ‘n Roses, it would be a substantial disappointment and over-hyped, but this is clearly not the case here, people. The classic rock ‘n roll found on A Different Kind of Truth is to be relished and revisited often so we no longer ignore or forget our roots. Long gone are the days of being Sammy Hagar’s back-up band, and Van Halen returns to a lost glory and shows that even the old farts can still show the upstarts what’s up at any given moment.

Eddie Van’ Halen’s guitar tone, familiar and unrelenting, is a key element to any VH undertaking, but Roth’s vocals are as strong as ever and the team seems to be firing on all cylinders once more. With all of the slagging over the years it’s nothing short of amazing that this album even came out, never mind it’s a stellar work! “Bullethead” shows that Roth hasn’t lost a step when it comes to writing the strong rock anthem; it’s a heavy song that also shows the talent and competency of Wolfgang to hold his own in one of the biggest bands in the world. Aside from the band seemingly as tight as ever, the music is really a solid piece of work with maybe one or two tracks as filler, one being “Honeybabysweetiedoll” which has some good guitar work and soloing, but the basic premise seems to jump all over a little too much for my liking, but it’ still a decent track for what it is. The next track in “The Trouble with Never” falls right back into rock mode and all is well with the world again. I will once more state that Michael Anthony’s background presence is truly missed and it shows in this track, but it doesn’t totally kill the song or the album. It would be nice to hear those highs again, though. That aside, the record is great, nothing more, nothing less. One listen to “Outta Space” and you know what rock music is really all about…or supposed to be, anyway, while “Stay Frosty” simply has to be “Ice Cream-Man” part two in both style and tongue-in-cheek delivery. It’s fun and keeps the tradition going nicely.  

I will be picking this up because I actually am sadistic enough to enjoy being proven wrong when I prejudge something without tangibility to persuade me otherwise. I would go as far as to claim that Van Halen is back in a major way.          

TRACK LISTING

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*Comments:

1.  Tattoo
2.  She's the Woman
3.  You and Your Blues
4.  China Town
5.  Blood and Fire
6.  Bullethead
7.  As Is
8.  Honeybabysweetiedoll
9.  The Trouble with Never
10.  Outta Space
11.  Stay Frosty
12.  Big River
13.  Beats Workin'

Total playing time: 49:58

Release Date: February 7, 2012
Label: Interscope Records

Van Halen - A Different Kind of Truth

Reviewer: Chris

February 8, 2012