Pretty much the one thing I respected about EVH through the 1996 debacle is when he said if Van Halen were ever to tour with Roth again, they'd have to write and record a new album first. EVH made it clear that he didn't want to do a nostalgia tour.
It's a forward-looking approach to making music, rather than being stuck in a perpetual time warp a la The Rolling Stones. And as much as I wanted to see VH reunite and play those classic songs in 1996, I again had respect for Ed in saying he didn;t want to do a remake/rehash tour. Too many fuckin' classic bands out there already beating a dead horse into the ground going that route.
Plus, you kinda had to admire the balls it took not to take the cash grab with Roth in 1996 and go with Cherone, even if half of that decision was based on Ed's ego/thinking his talent was enough to supercede the legend of the classic lineup and a bit of denial. Ed did what he wanted to do.
Now, Ed doesn't even have that stubborness going for him, No sense of the future. Partly through his own missteps and bad choices, partly due to fate, Van Halen are now just another nostalgia act cashing in on memories because there's no drive and sense of purpose to create anything new (and don't get me started on the three new tracks. Nothing more than a ploy to move a few units of BOV2).
This tour, in effect, is telling me that even Van Halen are finally realizing their best days are behind them.
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