Dave's big solo gig !

[Seshmeister]

Probably use the same band he had at that last benefit he played ? Then again it doesn't seem like anyone cares though. LOL ! If he comes out singing out of register on half the songs I can see why. Should start rethinking the name of this website. Looks like the Roth Army is almost gone. About all I see on here anymore is people bitching about politics ( get the fuck over it NOTHING is going to change, go enjoy your life ) and that cunt Krusty running her jaw like the cunt she is. Perhaps the Rock Army ? Then again not much going on in the house of music forum either. I guess I see why bitching about politics is the main topic around here......Good luck tonight Dave. I think you might need it.

This forum is what people make of it. It's quiet enough at the moment you could steer it anywhere your imagine takes you just by posting some stuff. In fact that was the reason I was eventually forced to calm ELVIS down because one person posting 50 times a day here could turn it into some sort of anti semitic white supremacist looking thing quite quickly just by virtue of quantity of posts.

I just checked and the official Van Halen website hasn't been updated since July 2015!

That is fucked up.

Name another band in the world that posts something that gets 54 million hits and then doesn't post anything for 3 years.

[Terry]

This forum is what people make of it. It's quiet enough at the moment you could steer it anywhere your imagine takes you just by posting some stuff. In fact that was the reason I was eventually forced to calm ELVIS down because one person posting 50 times a day here could turn it into some sort of anti semitic white supremacist looking thing quite quickly just by virtue of quantity of posts.

I just checked and the official Van Halen website hasn't been updated since July 2015!

That is fucked up.

Name another band in the world that posts something that gets 54 million hits and then doesn't post anything for 3 years.

When Van Halen has done something, the thread activity on this site has shifted emphasis and placed focus on whatever Van Halen was doing at that time. The site activity shifted not from any moderator manipulation, but because that was what the membership wanted to talk about.

The problem has been that since Cherone left Van Halen, the band hasn't exactly been a hive of activity. For the years 2000, 2001, 2002, most of 2003, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2016, and 2017 there has been fuck all to talk about because the band weren't doing anything. Once Roth rejoined the group, the years that the band haven't been working mirror Roth not doing anything publicly as well.

And there are only going to be so many discussions about how great, say, the Fair Warning album was before you've exhausted all those topics, too.

Couple all of that with active membership slowly declining over the last 15 years, to be sure this site isn't as active as it was in, say, 2004. I don't think that is necessarily reflective of a failure of the site managers evolving the site to attract membership as it is just an illustration of the general public sentiment of Roth and Van Halen these days. Roth and Van Halen are way past their commercial/career peaks. Neither Roth or Van Halen have regularly put out new material in 20 years. I don't know that changing the name of this site to the Rock Army or anything else is going to cause a spike in membership or posting/thread traffic.

[78/84 guy]

At this point I think it might help membership. I guess if Van Halen/ Roth was as big worldwide as say Zeppelin it probably would be fine to leave the name the same. But as they do less & less ( that's the trend ) calling it the Rock Army might bring in more people. That brings in more topics & discussions. Hey Van Haen & Roth are getting old. So are their fans. Finding other things to do. Dedicated a section to them because that's what started it all and move forward with other band/ topics. Hell I used to be on here 4 times a week. That's down to 4 times a year. At least it seems that way. Watching that cunt Krusty derail almost every thread got old fast also.

[Seshmeister]

When Van Halen has done something, the thread activity on this site has shifted emphasis and placed focus on whatever Van Halen was doing at that time. The site activity shifted not from any moderator manipulation, but because that was what the membership wanted to talk about.

The problem has been that since Cherone left Van Halen, the band hasn't exactly been a hive of activity. For the years 2000, 2001, 2002, most of 2003, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2016, and 2017 there has been fuck all to talk about because the band weren't doing anything. Once Roth rejoined the group, the years that the band haven't been working mirror Roth not doing anything publicly as well.

Roth joining Van Halen and then them not doing much was multiple problem for this (and other forums).

People used to talk about CVH, Roth's ongoing solo career and just as importantly how much they hated (or didn't) whatever Van Cherone/Hagar were doing and when and if there would ever be a reunion.

So we went from 4 main topics to a single inactive one.

[Nickdfresh]

Dave shows all the signs of being a grandiose Narcissist. I think David Lee Roth suffers from mental illness and no I'm not joking. He was treated for hyperactivity as a child and started behaving as a narcissist as he got older. I had the misfortune of having a college roommate who was a narcissist. They can be brilliant and hard working but they are hell to be around. My roommate was popular with people who didn't have the misfortune of having to actually live with him. He was a good looking guy who kept himself in shape and was always concerned with how he looked. He was able to get hot looking chicks all the time but he couldn't stay in a relationship. He was the best bullshitter I have ever seen. From the outside such people seem great but if you have to live with them it's pure hell. I think Dave is one of these people. He's probably hell to be around. Probably explains why the guy is a loner with a dog. Only the dog can tolerate him.

I think mental illness is a bit strong, but I agree that Dave is a massive narcissist to the point of being a borderline sociopath. At least according Noel Monk, Dave completely lacked empathy for anyone and was solely focused on what he wanted and how to get and came across as a petty and jealous a-hole when he was unhappy (i.e. the not getting-laid on tour with Black Sabbath in the UK due to the sausage-fest that was the Sabbath fanbase, and snapping at a roadie who did).

But Dave was also apparently a guy that really didn't need to become a rockstar to get laid and he plowed through women both before and during Van Halen and was certainly enabled to an extent. I suppose his boundless self-confidence and success comes with a price of baggage and the apparent inability sustain both romantic relationships and enduring friendships...

[Nickdfresh]

...

Juxtapose that with Hagar, who by all accounts is who he is and is comfortable with who he is.

Yes. Stupid people with big egos usually are comfortable...

[Nitro Express]

I think mental illness is a bit strong, but I agree that Dave is a massive narcissist to the point of being a borderline sociopath. At least according Noel Monk, Dave completely lacked empathy for anyone and was solely focused on what he wanted and how to get and came across as a petty and jealous a-hole when he was unhappy (i.e. the not getting-laid on tour with Black Sabbath in the UK due to the sausage-fest that was the Sabbath fanbase, and snapping at a roadie who did).

But Dave was also apparently a guy that really didn't need to become a rockstar to get laid and he plowed through women both before and during Van Halen and was certainly enabled to an extent. I suppose his boundless self-confidence and success comes with a price of baggage and the apparent inability sustain both romantic relationships and enduring friendships...

He certainly had personality flaws and add in the booze and drugs and you have a mess. I'm not saying he was mentally ill to the point of having to be committed to an institution. But he was being treated for hyperactivity when he was young and he showed the signs of being a narcissist and even a sociopath in his adult years. How he is sober I have no idea. He's a recluse and a strange person but then so is Eddie.

[Terry]

Roth joining Van Halen and then them not doing much was multiple problem for this (and other forums).

People used to talk about CVH, Roth's ongoing solo career and just as importantly how much they hated (or didn't) whatever Van Cherone/Hagar were doing and when and if there would ever be a reunion.

So we went from 4 main topics to a single inactive one.

I think 78/84 guy has a point in terms of Van Halen's audience aging along with the band. You couple that with the band having settled into once every three years hitting the road in what is little more than a Greatest Hits touring mode, and it is understandably more difficult for longtime fans of the band - the majority of whom are in their 40s and 50s - to really care much anymore about what is happening with the band presently.

I couldn't say what kind of membership traffic or level of participation is still happening at the Van Halen-centric sites, rather than whatever Roth-focused fan sites are still out there operating.

I don't even know if this site has a particular mission currently in terms of bringing on more members, or new members, or members who actually participate regularly rather than merely joining up and going silent after a few initial posts. If that is the case, clearly leaving the site the way it is probably won't result in an influx of new members if the activity over the last several years is taken into account.

I'm not being critical of the way the site is operated. I certainly don't even have the faintest idea(s) as to how to grow the site back to what it was ten plus years ago, if that is the goal.

[Terry]

I think mental illness is a bit strong, but I agree that Dave is a massive narcissist to the point of being a borderline sociopath. At least according Noel Monk, Dave completely lacked empathy for anyone and was solely focused on what he wanted and how to get and came across as a petty and jealous a-hole when he was unhappy (i.e. the not getting-laid on tour with Black Sabbath in the UK due to the sausage-fest that was the Sabbath fanbase, and snapping at a roadie who did).

But Dave was also apparently a guy that really didn't need to become a rockstar to get laid and he plowed through women both before and during Van Halen and was certainly enabled to an extent. I suppose his boundless self-confidence and success comes with a price of baggage and the apparent inability sustain both romantic relationships and enduring friendships...

I remember a few years back someone saying how they would like to hang with Dave, and I remember thinking that while I would have liked to have hung around him when CVH was active, like, say, hang around backstage while the band was touring and party...that I really didn't have any interest hanging around Dave nowadays, or even meeting the guy. I'd imagine the encounter would be uncomfortable for him, because he clearly enjoys his privacy/solitude and his own company above that of any other person. At least that's the general vibe I get from him.

Like, even if I had the opportunity to meet him in an off-the-record setting, there's plenty of questions I'd have about his career with Van Halen along with his solo stuff, and I'd be interested in hearing his perspectives about all of it. However, he'd probably go into his interview mode routine. I mean, maybe there really isn't even a genuine person underneath the image.

I've met several famous people, from politicians to actors to rock musicians, and the one characteristic all of them had for me is a sense of my being underwhelmed at the reality vs. the image construct I had formulated prior to meeting them. None of which should be surprising in the least, because all celebs are still just people.

[Seshmeister]

I find it striking that if you look at the comments on YouTube about Roth or Van Halen they tend to be more positive these days than what you would find here in general and YouTube is famously negative about everything.

I think they are a band like JFK, you'll like them more as people if you don't know too much about them.

[Seshmeister]

I think mental illness is a bit strong, but I agree that Dave is a massive narcissist to the point of being a borderline sociopath. At least according Noel Monk, Dave completely lacked empathy for anyone and was solely focused on what he wanted and how to get and came across as a petty and jealous a-hole when he was unhappy (i.e. the not getting-laid on tour with Black Sabbath in the UK due to the sausage-fest that was the Sabbath fanbase, and snapping at a roadie who did).

But Dave was also apparently a guy that really didn't need to become a rockstar to get laid and he plowed through women both before and during Van Halen and was certainly enabled to an extent. I suppose his boundless self-confidence and success comes with a price of baggage and the apparent inability sustain both romantic relationships and enduring friendships...

Give it another 10 years and then elect him president.

[Nitro Express]

I remember a few years back someone saying how they would like to hang with Dave, and I remember thinking that while I would have liked to have hung around him when CVH was active, like, say, hang around backstage while the band was touring and party...that I really didn't have any interest hanging around Dave nowadays, or even meeting the guy. I'd imagine the encounter would be uncomfortable for him, because he clearly enjoys his privacy/solitude and his own company above that of any other person. At least that's the general vibe I get from him.

Like, even if I had the opportunity to meet him in an off-the-record setting, there's plenty of questions I'd have about his career with Van Halen along with his solo stuff, and I'd be interested in hearing his perspectives about all of it. However, he'd probably go into his interview mode routine. I mean, maybe there really isn't even a genuine person underneath the image.

I've met several famous people, from politicians to actors to rock musicians, and the one characteristic all of them had for me is a sense of my being underwhelmed at the reality vs. the image construct I had formulated prior to meeting them. None of which should be surprising in the least, because all celebs are still just people.

I grew up in Sun Valley, Idaho and it's a resort town. One of the oldest ski resorts in the US. There were always celebrities running around there and some even had vacation homes there. Met a few of them. For the most part if you act like a fan a switch flips and they will treat you like a fan. If you just treat them like anyone else and have a normal conversation about something they are interested in they just are normal people having a discussion with you. That's if they have time and want to talk. One thing they don't like is if they are with friends or family at diner and you interrupt them.

[Nitro Express]

I think 78/84 guy has a point in terms of Van Halen's audience aging along with the band. You couple that with the band having settled into once every three years hitting the road in what is little more than a Greatest Hits touring mode, and it is understandably more difficult for longtime fans of the band - the majority of whom are in their 40s and 50s - to really care much anymore about what is happening with the band presently.

I couldn't say what kind of membership traffic or level of participation is still happening at the Van Halen-centric sites, rather than whatever Roth-focused fan sites are still out there operating.

I don't even know if this site has a particular mission currently in terms of bringing on more members, or new members, or members who actually participate regularly rather than merely joining up and going silent after a few initial posts. If that is the case, clearly leaving the site the way it is probably won't result in an influx of new members if the activity over the last several years is taken into account.

I'm not being critical of the way the site is operated. I certainly don't even have the faintest idea(s) as to how to grow the site back to what it was ten plus years ago, if that is the goal.

I had a friend who saw VH the last tour in Seattle. In fact he was the one who turned me onto VH. He gave me the first album for a birthday present. Anyways he's now a 50 something business man who wears nice suits and appreciates fine wines. Not really a rock and roller type anymore. He went to the VH show and was amused that there were still stoners who were middle aged. He's like I don't know where these people come from but they are fat and grey and still act like the stoners in high school. The audience is full of them. I just laughed.

[diamondclaudio]

http://www.vhnd.com/2018/04/14/pics-video-from-the-houston-grand-opera-ball-featuring-dlr/

[Seshmeister]

We had an inside exclusive here on the setlist!