Van Halen
A Different Kind Of Truth
Track List Band Members
1- Tattoo David Lee Roth Vocals
2- She’s The Woman Ed Van Halen Guitar
3- You And Your Blues Alex Van Halen Drums
4- China Town Wolfgang Van Halen Bass
5- Blood And Fire
6- Bullethead
7- As Is Produced By: John Shanks and Van Halen
8- Honeybabysweetiedoll
9- The Trouble With Never Official Site
10- Outta Space Van-Halen.com
11- Stay Frosty
12- Big River Label Interscope Records
13- Beats Workin
All I can say is Van Halen have done the impossible and made a better record than anyone could have anticipated, regardless if they went into their vault and pulled out old demos, etc. I don’t think it matters, since it’s new as a whole. This album could have fit in between Woman And Children First and Fair Warning easily. Eddie is back to playing mean guitar and Alex’s drumming couldn’t be better. David’s vocals are doing ok, he obviously can’t scream and yell the high notes like he used to but he doesn’t have too. Wolf’s playing I must say in my opinion isn’t any better than Mike’s. Let me justify that by saying I wouldn’t know if Mike wasn’t playing or not, not sure if that’s good or bad for either of them, but that’s just my thoughts. I do miss Mike’s backing vocals though. Anyway the band has done great with this as their comeback record. You really couldn’t ask for better.
I will say I am not a fan of the tracks, Tattoo and Bullethead, that being said I do think the rest of the record rocks. It is also nice to have some lyrics from Dave that aren’t just about sex but some maturity in subject matter. It’s also great to hear Eddie playing again as it’s been a long time since we have heard anything new from him. Keep in mind it’s been 14 years since Van Halen III came out with Cherone fronting the band. That’s a long time not to hear anything for one of rock’s guitar inspirational leaders.
It’s obvious that you will hear similarities and ties to other songs like Stay Frosty, by far one of my favorites on the record, is the new Ice Cream Man. Maybe it’s me but I even hear a little homage to Day Tripper by The Beatles in Beats Workin. As Is to me is the best track on the record, listen to the drums and guitar work, it’s pure rock and metal, that’s as good as it gets. I also enjoy Big River. I think fans will love this record. They certainly didn’t disappoint. I do wonder how this album would have sounded if Ted Templeman produced it, since he was a big part of who they were back in the day. Overall, the more you play this one the more you like it. If you missed them, they’re back!
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