According to blabbermouth.net, Van Halen frontman, David Lee Roth, said he thinks the band is “finished.”
The singer reportedly made the comment while speaking to Meltdown of the Detroit radio station WRIF about his upcoming Las Vegas residency, which will begin on January 8th, 2020.
Asked if he was “bummed out” that he couldn’t tour with Van Halen this past summer, as had been rumored several months ago, Roth responded, “That’s been canceled a number of times, and I think Van Halen’s finished and this is the next phase. I’ve inherited the band de facto — whatever that means. I think it means if you inherit it, carry this proudly. Van Halen isn’t gonna be coming back in the fashion that you know. And that being said, Eddie’s [Van Halen] got his own story to tell. [It’s] not mine to tell it.”
Roth’s latest comments echo those he made earlier in the month when he told the Phoenix radio station KSLX that he was “the face of Van Halen from this point on, most likely. I’m not sure what’s happening with Ed, but he’s probably not gonna answer the bell this time,” he said. “And it’s not my place to guess.”
Asked if he was implying that Eddie Van Halen had been dealing with some health issues as of late, Roth replied “I hear all the same rumors that you do and it’s not my place to guess.”
He also said that the DLR Band album, that he had recorded with guitarist John 5, may see the light of day.
“It will,” he said. “There’s been a revision of things, and I can start making real plans and start marching into the future. And, of course, you’ll start hearing that material. This is material that we wrote variously for me solo and for Van Halen, and it’s quite a bank of stuff.”
Guitarist John 5, shared a clip of the Roth material with, Masters of Shred, and it can be heard here.
John 5 will be hitting the road opening for Queensrÿche, view tour dates here.
4 Responses
Well… We’re Waiting!
It’s good to see some movement there. Like every other VH fan, I’ve been scratching my head as to what was going on.
Good for Dave for getting out there, those songs need to be played. Hopefully Ed and Al are ok. Wish all of them nothing but the best, but I don’t get the inactivity. 2 albums in 20 years or so? bummer.
1- Kudos to Dave for handling the Ed-related questions with class and discretion.
2- Looking forward to hearing that John 5 collaboration. John 5 is a monster guitarist.
….but most importantly, I hope Ed’s doing ok if he is, in fact, dealing with health issues.
I hate conjecture, but it is alarming that Dave didn’t just dismiss the rumors and say categorically that Ed’s ok. For a generation of guitar players (myself included), Ed’s been a HUGE influence on our playing – far more so than Hendrix. He and his music were also a HUGE part of our adolescence and beyond.
Booked my trip for the his last show.
Hopefully some “guest musicians” show up.