van halen concert review

By COURTNEY DEVORES
The Charlotte Observer

Photos of Van Halen in concert
Opening night of Van Halen's long-awaited reunion with David Lee Roth literally kicked off with several of Roth's highflying kicks at Charlotte Bobcats Arena on Thursday, although Eddie Van Halen was the first to appear on stage with one of his own signature hurky-style jumps.

The last time Van Halen performed in Charlotte with Roth as its frontman, he had just turned 30, gas was $1.21 a gallon and tickets to the show at the old Charlotte Coliseum were $12.50.

Twenty-three years later, the band's original members are all over 50 and guitarist Eddie Van Halen's 16-year-old son Wolfgang has replaced original bassist Michael Anthony.

The show sold out in a matter of minutes in August, and the arena was packed when the band hit the stage around 8:30 p.m., following a short but sweet set of pop and reggae-tinged R&B by Kymani Marley.

Fans assumed after well-publicized fighting, ill will and a couple of false starts over the past 11 years that the group would never reunite. But earlier this year the Van Halen brothers announced that Roth would rejoin the fold. If the group can keep egos and tempers in check (sources say the three original members arrived on separate buses for rehearsals), the reunion could be the biggest tour of the decade.

Any animosity wasn't apparent on stage as Roth and Eddie Van Halen saddled up next to each other, smiling, during "Everybody Wants Some" and "Dance the Night Away." Roth and Wolfgang Van Halen even sang "Oh Pretty Woman" side by side.

The younger Van Halen proved to be a showy player and spot-on backing vocalist, although he didn't yet prowl the stage like a seasoned vet.

His post rehab father looked skinny, but cut, as did his brother. In fact, the original members all looked fit, though none ran around the stage like they did 25 years ago.

"You Really Got Me" started things off with the band sticking to the set list that was leaked on the internet last week. Highlights included "Beautiful Girls," "Unchained," and "Hot For Teacher." The group saved its biggest single and only #1 pop song, "Jump," for the encore.

Roth left the band in 1985, scoring several pop hits on his own. His former band outlasted his solo success, topping the mainstream rock charts 11 times without him.

But to many fans it just wasn't the same without the flamboyant, larger-than-life Roth jumping and posing out front like an uber-charismatic game show host. One fan compared him to Liberace strutting in his embroidered jackets and skintight leather striped pants.

What might be overlooked in favor of his over-the-top persona is his voice, which was in peak form Thursday. He easily met and held notes that younger singers like Jon Bon Jovi just can't reach anymore.

Of the three classic-rock bands reuniting this year, Genesis has attracted the least attention. While The Police and Van Halen sucked up the media ink, the British prog-rock act reformed and launched a European tour. A teaser concert in July, at the Live Earth event in London, stirred little excitement. Even the release of "Turn It On Again," a double-disc compilation named after the current tour, plus the first of three -- three! -- elaborate box sets from Rhino Records went virtually unnoticed.

And yet, the band's Tuesday concert at Madison Square Garden was a sell-out, filled with fans of varying ages and both genders who sang the words -- all the words -- to lesser-known works like the clattering "Land of Confusion" and the dour, multi-part "In the Cage." And whenever singer-drummer Phil Collins ventured to the side stages to get .closer to fans, they jumped to their feet and screamed as if he were Mick Jagger or Jay-Z.

How on earth did this happen?



Now that rock has moved away from the elaborate, often pompous prog of the late 1970s, it's difficult to remember how popular this stuff was. Along with Rush and Yes, Genesis (especially in its early incarnation with Peter Gabriel as singer) set the standard for serious rock art and advanced musicianship. It would be a while before punk, new-wave and even hair-metal put some of the fun and recklessness back into music.

But Genesis survived that sea-change thanks to Collins, who took over for Gabriel in 1975 and kept the band going almost through the grunge era (he left in 1991). He may be short, stocky and nobody's idea of glamorous, but he's also an uncommonly shrewd songwriter who knows how to update classic pop and soul with a rock sensibility. In other words, Collins can write a hit.

With original members Tony Banks on keyboards and Mike Rutherford on guitar, plus longtime sidemen Chester Thompson on drums and bassist Daryl Stuermer, Genesis again and again made the simple sound complex. The opening song "Turn It On Again" rode a pulsing, dance-worthy bass line. Underneath the sprawling saga of "Home by the Sea" and "Second Home by the Sea" lay some pretty pop melodies. And despite its brooding quality, "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" sounded less like a dirge than an R&B slow-jam ("we're gonna make it right").

The show had its slow moments. The 10-minute drum-jam with Collins and
New York City experimental-music group Animal Collective originated in Baltimore, Md., where founding members Avey Tare (David Portner) and Panda Bear (Noah Lennox) met in school. The group (which includes members Deakin and Geologist) has been described as a "noise rock" band, but really can't be categorized because there are so many complex layers of sound, from ambient folk to whacked-out psychotic rock. The group's upcoming show coincides with the September release of "Strawberry Jam," its first album for Domino Records. Guitarist Deakin described the new album as "chiseled" and "shiver-inducing" in an interview with Billboard magazine. Some of the songs have never been performed live. Animal Collective is touring with Eric Copeland and Wizard Prison, whose Scott Colburn has mixed and engineered albums for Animal Collective and Arcade Fire. Wizard Prison's multimedia shows include video and music enhanced by a make-believe prison.

Sept. 14, Neumo's.

Endfest 16

Seattle's 107.7 The End (KNDD) celebrates its "sweet 16" with a festival at Qwest Field's North Lot, a location that won't involve a brutal commute to an amphitheater in the sticks. In fact, the Qwest Field/ Pioneer Square location is sure to give the event a street fair vibe and will allow concertgoers easy access to local pubs and restaurants before they enter the site. Headliners are The Smashing Pumpkins, who recently released "That's the Way (My Love Is)," the second single from the current album, "ZEITGEIST" (Martha's Music/Reprise). The new single follows the success of "Tarantula," which peaked at No. 2 on Billboard's "Modern Rock Tracks" chart. The lineup includes Social Distortion, Bright Eyes, Satellite Party, The Used, Hot Hot Heat, Minus the Bear and other acts. Vendors, beer gardens and other amenities are available at the daylong festival on more than an acre of asphalt. Don't forget to wear sensible shoes.

Sept. 22, Qwest Field North Lot

The Donnas (with Donita Sparks & the Stellar Moment and American Bang)

The self-described "dorky preteen girls" who formed the Donnas in the early '90s in Palo Alto, Calif., are survivors in a music world that is challenging for all-female groups. The Donnas' current tour coincides with the late-September release of the brash, loud, anthemic "Bitchin' " on the band's own Purple Feather Records, formed after the group left Atlantic. Songs include "What Do I Have to Do" (about a relationship that just isn't working out well at all), "Girl Talk" (reminiscent of the band's earlier, teen angst-inspired music), and "Don't Wait Up for Me" (a thundering, hard-rock anthem).

Sept. 22, Chop Suey

The Arcade Fire (with LCD Soundsystem)

Last year, the Arcade Fire squirreled away in a tiny church in a small town near Montreal, Canada, to record its second album, "Neon Bible." It was a relatively quiet year compared to 2004, when the band (founded by husband and wife Win Butler and R�ine Chassagne in 2003) recorded its explosively popular debut CD, "Funeral," receiving rave reviews across North America. In 2005, the former indie rock band known for its anthemic songs played a Talking Heads song with David Byrne at one of their shows, and later opened for him at the Hollywood Bowl. The band also performed with David Bowie, in concert and on national TV, and with U2 (performing the song "Live Will Tear Us Apart (Again)." The whirlwind year included tours of Brazil, Japan and Sweden.

Sept. 24, Bank of America Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion, University of Washington

Van Halen

What hardcore Van Halen fan could resist seeing David Lee Roth strut his stuff again as lead singer of one of the biggest arena-rock bands of the 1980s? When Roth left Van Halen 22 years ago, the band lost its manic magic, though Sammy Hagar served as a credible but far less flamboyant substitute. (Roth toured with Hagar in 2002 on the Heavyweights of Rock and Roll tour). Diamond Dave has had a wacky post-Van Halen career, recording as a solo act ("Just Like Paradise" was a high point), forming a Las Vegas lounge act, working as a New York City emergency medical technician and hosting a show for CBS Radio. His announced return to VH this summer was big news -- a second chance of epic proportions. The reunion tour could be one of the best arena shows of the fall -- or a monumental disaster. Even Roth warned last year that a VH reunion could be a "NASCAR-style wreck."