Seeing as how the Truth
is now out there, at least on YouTube for the time being, I couldn't resist
indulging. On first blush, it's a
pleasant surprise; it wouldn't be off the mark for me to say that I came for
the train wreck and stayed for the surprisingly decent album. I've only had a chance to listen once, so
there's no telling how it'll hold up to repeat auditions, but my feeling is
that anyone with reasonable expectations for A Different Kind of Truth should be at least reasonably pleased
with the album. Sure, it'll never
exactly knock Fair Warning off your
shelf - really, did you honestly expect it to? - but it should sit nicely next
to the old classics on that shelf. For
an album made by guys who by most accounts barely speak to each other,
and who haven't completed an album together in nearly thirty years, it's much
stronger and more cohesive than I'd ever have guessed.
I feel like it's too soon for me to offer a definitive
review, but in the meantime I'll offer some random thoughts I had while
listening. In no specific order:
* This truly sounds and feels like vintage David Lee Roth-era
Van Halen. The amount of crap they took
pre-release for recycling old riffs from unused demos didn't make any sense to
me before I heard the album, and it makes even less sense now. What, exactly, is the problem with using
material generated during their artistic peak as a backbone? I'll answer that: nothing.
* Sure, Roth's voice is a bit lower, and he doesn't scream
like he used to. He's also fifty-six years
old. In terms of his phrasing and inimitable
style, he's right in the pocket and on the money, and it's great to hear him in
such good company once again.
* None of this sounds a damn thing like the generic
arena-rock they devolved into with Sammy Hagar at the helm, thank god. I don't care
that Hagar is technically a "better" singer; he's not nearly as
clever, nor as much fun as Roth, a point this album takes about thirty seconds
to drive home.
* Wolfie's bass playing is just fine, but there's a huge,
noticeable hole in the backing vocals where Michael Anthony's voice should be. Whomever they're trying to auto-tune into
sounding like him just ain't the same.
* At fifty minutes, it feels a couple of songs too long. The brevity of the original run of Roth
albums, none of which ventured much past the thirty-five minute mark, was one of their
strengths. It's a perfect length for such explosive music. I don't know which songs I'd bounce -
honestly, none of them sound particularly weak - but in terms of achieving
maximum impact, a bit less may just have been more. Of course, taking into account the odds that they'll never make
another album given their history, this may not end up being much of a problem
in the long run.
* This could easily have been a complete disaster. It 100% is not.
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