The DLR Cast

[Seshmeister]

We really should be paying more attention to these guys who are doing a great job with a DLR podcast.

Latest episode includes an interview with John 5 discussing his work on the unreleased stuff with Roth and the DLR Band album.

[ZahZoo]

Didn't even know that pod cast existed... thanks!!

[Seshmeister]

I wonder if Von and I will be asked on?

[Kristy]

Those dudes sound old and decrypted. I can see slave SESH on the podcast but leave Von at home. Save the embarrassment.

[paltrowitz]

Those dudes sound old and decrypted. I can see slave SESH on the podcast but leave Von at home. Save the embarrassment.

Glad the show is on your radar at the very least.

Totally open to guest ideas. Pitch away.

And I'll be at 7 of the Vegas shows -- hope to see some of you there.

-Darren

[Seshmeister]

Good to see you here Darren, I'll be working my way back through some more of the podcasts.

The reference to me and Von appearing was just a little in joke as a back in 2017 we were asked the VH Unchained podcast, partly because we had reported/started a rumor which picked up a lot of traction but ended up being false.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-roth-army-opens-up/id1102231619?i=1000498306258

[paltrowitz]

Cool! Well, not telling you no or anything. Email me (Darren.Paltrowitz@gmail.com), tell me what you've got going and maybe we can tape something. If no album or book or proper thing to plug, maybe you'd be suitable for a topic-based episode. Thx.

[Von Halen]

Good to see you here Darren, I'll be working my way back through some more of the podcasts.

The reference to me and Von appearing was just a little in joke as a back in 2017 we were asked the VH Unchained podcast, partly because we had reported/started a rumor which picked up a lot of traction but ended up being false.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcas...=1000498306258

In defense of the "false" rumor, I'm sure Ed's health issues contributed to that ultimately not coming to fruition.

I have a couple of buddies going to the last Dave shows. I was invited, and politely declined. Yes, I can be polite at times. My first Van Halen show was in 1978. My last show was 2015. Even though Mike wasn't with VH in 2015, it was Ed and Dave. I prefer my last live memory of my favorite band, to be as Van Halen. I have zero interest in a VH cover band, even if it is being fronted by Dave, and even if the guitarists are phenomenal. I am very comfortable with this decision.

[Kristy]

Glad the show is on your radar at the very least.

Totally open to guest ideas. Pitch away.

And I'll be at 7 of the Vegas shows -- hope to see some of you there.

-Darren

Hardly. There are already too many podcast out there that stand as being nothing more than fronts for corporate advertisements with most being more depressing than an family funeral. As for Roth himself...I have zero respect for the guy but am fascinated how he has maintained strange currency of popularity when he has pissed away career more than once. Maybe in the classic Van Halen heyday he modernized the whole rock star personification of sex, drugs and alcohol living the wanton dream of self-indulgence until it became a parody for him. Roth to me is nothing more than a Midwestern kid who moved to California and found himself at the right place at the right time. Eddie made Roth's success for it was Eddie's wizkid phenomenal guitar playing that attracted so many to be VH fans, not Roth. The whole "Diamond Dave" shtick was clever marketing on Roth's part simply because he possessed little talent to his own. He was never a strong vocalist often noted for going off key due to having a lack of register, a mediocre songwriter who yelped and screamed between lyrical breaks in the songs.

Roth sold himself on being Diamond Dave. He was an attractive guy in the early 80's and women fawned over him and every repressed male (like Von) had homoerotic fantasies about being him. Roth saturated Van Halen with so much self-gloss to the point the rest of band grew tired off his ridiculous antics. I can see why Eddie fired him out of disgust then creative difference and direction. Roth didn't even know he had it so good until he well ran dry. Yes, you can make for arguments there there are plenty of frontman who soiled their career for the sake of egotism but nobody fucked it up like Roth. Now look out the guy. He's a pitiable wreckage of a human being. He can no longer hit any high notes without his bronchial pipe cracking like Rosanne on thin ice his stage athletics are like a nursing home arthritic yoga shuffle and wardrobe is an obvious cry for help.

So here's my question to you: why the obsession with this guy? He surely stopped being relevant back in what what I can guess is mid-1988. Can't be that is a poor man's nostalgia traveling act or that even his reunion with Eddie resurrected his sad career. Whatever Roth's alleged health issues I'll give him credit for choosing to hang for good although it stands as a decision he made to be entirely about himself and not for his most devoted followers. Roth's last hurrah to milk his fans for every red cent hew can get and then fuck off into the sunset of regret is shameful. Fans such as yourself deserve better.

[paltrowitz]

I hear ya. I was already going to Vegas -- cheaper hotel and flight combos that time of year, and my wife and I got married in Vegas so it's a city we have good memories about -- so that influenced our decision to extend our trip (we both work remotely) and go to some DLR shows.

Then he announced more shows, and my company announced an on-site week near Vegas around those new shows... so, uh, yeah, I bought in.

As opposed to "These shows are going to be amazing, I'm going to route my life around this and specifically fly out for this" haha.

But I wouldn't mind being wrong.

[paltrowitz]

Hi Kristy:

"So here's my question to you: why the obsession with this guy? He surely stopped being relevant back in what what I can guess is mid-1988. Can't be that is a poor man's nostalgia traveling act or that even his reunion with Eddie resurrected his sad career. Whatever Roth's alleged health issues I'll give him credit for choosing to hang for good although it stands as a decision he made to be entirely about himself and not for his most devoted followers. Roth's last hurrah to milk his fans for every red cent hew can get and then fuck off into the sunset of regret is shameful. Fans such as yourself deserve better."

I hear you. A lot of people are saying the same things you are. And the little people wearing blackface in the "A Little Ain't Enough" music video is just tip of the iceberg when it comes to "oh boy, this didn't age well" in the DLR world, haha.

Every classic artist has their ups and downs, creatively and commercially. And most of those artists towards the end, it is nowhere near as great as it was. But if given the choice between "some DLR" and "no DLR," I think it's an easy decision/answer there. See the legends while you still can. Cherish the opportunities if/while you still can. Experiences over belongings.

At the very least, these shows are a celebration of sorts, and I enjoy hanging with other DLR fans. "No Big 'Ting" (see what I did there?) if you disagree, but I had saved some money, banked some vacation days, my wife also wanted to go, and it sure beats sitting around watching TV. For me, at least, haha.

If our common ground is that Dave was awesome in the 1970s and most of the 1980s, that's not such a bad common ground after all.

[Kristy]

Every classic artist has their ups and downs, creatively and commercially. And most of those artists towards the end, it is nowhere near as great as it was. But if given the choice between "some DLR" and "no DLR," I think it's an easy decision/answer there. See the legends while you still can. Cherish the opportunities if/while you still can. Experiences over belongings.

I'm not buying it especially in Roth's case where his only reasoning for doing a final farewell is out of this sense of being vague and ambivalent about his health. If this is such of a concern as Roth purports it to be then why perform at all? Dave's best days are long, long behind him. There was a while there when he was not only disillusioned with his career but the music industry itself turning his back on completely out of a sense of spite. Fame and and sudden lack of it can fuck a lot of people up in mysterious ways. His decision to become a New York EMT was a severe personality crisis knowing he could have had the commercial (as in total sell out) peaks that S P A M M Y took the band. When I saw them perform live at Red Rocks in 2015 no one look more out of place than Roth like he was an Alzheimer's nursing patient. There wasn't much fan camaraderie as there was confusion towards Roth's presence. People cringed when Roth's vocal shrieked and at a place like Red Rocks where the sound is crystal clear is was really nerve racking. Eddie stole the show and gave flashes of brilliance but there were times when he looked at Roth with discontent. It was far from entertaining when you discount Eddie's soloing.

Must be me then. I stridently believe there is a time when these fucking aging rock stars need to hang it up and by hang it up walk away from any type of performing for good. Look the examples of KISS, The Stones, even U2. The muzak is beyond stale, beyond boring, beyond self-parody. From what I've and heard of Roth's Vegas show before COVID it's certainly wasn't Roth in terms of a nostalgia act. More of a sad, wretched man doing his damnest to soothe his ego at the expense of his fan base. I'm sorry, but he's a embarrassment now and not only to himself - although the same goes for Jagger and Fuckhead Bono. Even in recent interviews Roth does not seem to have his heart into doing this. Maybe Eddie's death affected him in a way that he is not ready to process what is over is over.

[Von Halen]

Kristy, did someone hack your account? You don't generally require an editor for your posts, but this is in need of one. I would do it, but frankly, I'm too lazy.

You are correct. "Diamond Dave" is a schtick. A stage persona. Most of us wish to believe that the Diamond Dave persona is really how DLR is in real life. We as human beings do this to a lot of larger than like characters. Only to somewhere along the way meet them in person and discover the truth, or see an A&E Biography on them, that generally exposes the ugly truth. Dave is no different. Dave however is one smart motherfucker, and has done an extremely good job of keeping his private life, the real Dave Roth life, private.

I will beg to differ with your claim that Dave possessed "little talent". Van Halen more than likely never makes it out of the Clubs without Dave. Without Dave, Van Halen wouldn't have been as diverse as they were. Nothing proves my point better on this subject, than Van Hagar. Van Halen with Dave could cover virtually anything. Van Halen with Dave had the ability and chemistry to exploit different genres not just on different albums and different songs, but within the songs themselves. Van Hagar never had that ability, and had Clichegar, or any other "singer" been in VH, it wasn't and wouldn't have been the same. Dave's issue with talent was when he tried to exceed his talent. But, he often refers to rock and roll as "sport", and Dave is a competitive guy. He had to push himself and try to go places that were beyond his capabilities. That helped him, but also hurt him in the long run. When Dave got it right though, he fucking got it real right. He benefitted from the gargantuan talent of Ed. But Ed benefitted from the larger than life persona of "Diamond Dave" too. Chemistry. That band was dripping with chemistry. We may not all like every piece of Dave's work, but he's a very talented dude. Nobody could have written and performed those songs the way he did.

Which brings me to my next point. Dave is anything but a "mediocre songwriter". The dude is a genius songwriter. Other songwriters will tell you this. Producers will tell you this. Other musicians will tell you this. I cannot even believe you put that statement into your diatribe. Dave may be a lot of things, but "mediocre songwriter" isn't one of them. Maybe you should listen to more Van Halen than what you hear on the radio.

Why the obsession with the guy? Because he's THE GREATEST FRONTMAN IN THE HISTORY OF ROCK AND ROLL! As far as Roth milking his fans, he's not forcing them to buy the tickets to the shows. They are doing it willingly. Roth has played huge festivals, stadiums, arenas, clubs, casinos, and fucking STATE FAIRS! He's never forced one person to buy those tickets. We all did it willingly! I choose not to go this time, because of my own personal way I want to leave the Van Halen legacy in my mind and my memory. If someone else wants to see Dave perform, even if he can no longer hit the high notes, good for them. They will more than likely have a good time, because those songs evoke good times and allow people to create and recreate good memories in their minds.

There is plenty to give Dave shit about. He quit Van Halen. (Wasn't "fired" as you suggest.) But his talent and contributions within Van Halen can NEVER be disputed or minimized. That music has and always will, stand the ultimate test. Time.

[Von Halen]

I'm not buying it especially in Roth's case where his only reasoning for doing a final farewell is out of this sense of being vague and ambivalent about his health. If this is such of a concern as Roth purports it to be then why perform at all? Dave's best days are long, long behind him. There was a while there when he was not only disillusioned with his career but the music industry itself turning his back on completely out of a sense of spite. Fame and and sudden lack of it can fuck a lot of people up in mysterious ways. His decision to become a New York EMT was a severe personality crisis knowing he could have had the commercial (as in total sell out) peaks that S P A M M Y took the band. When I saw them perform live at Red Rocks in 2015 no one look more out of place than Roth like he was an Alzheimer's nursing patient. There wasn't much fan camaraderie as there was confusion towards Roth's presence. People cringed when Roth's vocal shrieked and at a place like Red Rocks where the sound is crystal clear is was really nerve racking. Eddie stole the show and gave flashes of brilliance but there were times when he looked at Roth with discontent. It was far from entertaining when you discount Eddie's soloing.

Must be me then. I stridently believe there is a time when these fucking aging rock stars need to hang it up and by hang it up walk away from any type of performing for good. Look the examples of KISS, The Stones, even U2. The muzak is beyond stale, beyond boring, beyond self-parody. From what I've and heard of Roth's Vegas show before COVID it's certainly wasn't Roth in terms of a nostalgia act. More of a sad, wretched man doing his damnest to soothe his ego at the expense of his fan base. I'm sorry, but he's a embarrassment now and not only to himself - although the same goes for Jagger and Fuckhead Bono. Even in recent interviews Roth does not seem to have his heart into doing this. Maybe Eddie's death affected him in a way that he is not ready to process what is over is over.

As we can probably go back through these threads and confirm, I had planned to come to that Red Rocks show. I even offered to come bang you since I knew you'd probably be disappointed in the show itself. But, I will agree with you, Dave wasn't performing well on that tour, and I decided not to waste the money seeing VH play the greatest concert venue on the planet, for the first time in their careers. In hindsight, I should have showed up. At least you'd have only had one disappointment that night.

[paltrowitz]

Thanks for your quick reply.

I'm with you on some of this, but not all of this. For example, I interviewed Dave's EMT instructor -- not yet released -- and his move into that world definitely wasn't anything to do with a personality crisis.

For better and for worse, Dave's on-going pattern is that he gets interested in something, he does it to the best of his ability (possibly hiring the greatest coach or teacher possible), then he often moves on without comment or announcement. And us fans sometimes feel confused and/or annoyed because we didn't get an explanation. His never-made movie from the 80s, his radio show, EMT stuff, the followup book, the John 5 album, the mid-90s Vegas show, the YouTube show, the late 90s webcasts, the tattoo skincare company, etc etc. And then there's problem of "released but buried" projects (e.g. the Japanese-language short film, The Roth Project) also. He does it, he moves on, and we're puzzled.

The Vegas 2020 shows I saw were good. I watched some phone-filed videos of those 2 shows after the fact and the same shows sounded awful. In the room, it was fine. He was doing "alternate" melodies (not singing the recorded normal melody line 100%) but he wasn't straining heavily on every song or anything. He also was doing some kicks and bends. It wasn't top-notch by DLR standards, but it was fine.

It may not be the overwhelming majority of Van Halen fans -- definitely a small percentage -- but some of us are very excited for the Vegas shows and still think DLR is great. I, for starters, love the "A Different Kind Of Truth" and "DLR Band" albums.