Somewhat negative "A Different Kind of Truth" review on PremierGuitar.com"

[Panamark]

Does anyone ever read reviews and then decide to buy ?

If I did that I would have missed out on my favourite albums
of all time....

Seems like a cushy job in my opinion. Any review not broken
down track by track is a sham.

[Glitter Tot]

I thought it was a reasonable case put against the album - I disagreed with quite a few points, but I'm not interested in defending ADKOT particularly. I enjoy it, if others don't - they can be my guest. Doesn't harm me any. I've read so many positive reviews of the album lately, it's refreshing to hear a thoughtfull point of view from the other side.

Personally, the argument about the re-hashing of old tracks doesn't really wash with me. Clearly there's a gold mine in that vault, so milk it for all it's worth I say. As for Ed's tone, I agree in part. I miss the "glassy" strat tone from DD and 1984. Still, he does make the most out of his new sonic arsenal. It's an evolution right.

[Panamark]

I thought it was a reasonable case put against the album - I disagreed with quite a few points, but I'm not interested in defending ADKOT particularly. I enjoy it, if others don't - they can be my guest. Doesn't harm me any. I've read so many positive reviews of the album lately, it's refreshing to hear a thoughtfull point of view from the other side.

Personally, the argument about the re-hashing of old tracks doesn't really wash with me. Clearly there's a gold mine in that vault, so milk it for all it's worth I say. As for Ed's tone, I agree in part. I miss the "glassy" strat tone from DD and 1984. Still, he does make the most out of his new sonic arsenal. It's an evolution right.

I agree with your post. Now can you upload a high res avatar so I can see the vagina more clearly !
(Melbourne Dude !!! Carn the Mighty Blue Baggers 2012 !!)

[Seshmeister]

He's not even a decent writer...

[fourthcoming]

The only reviews that matter are the ones that come from the soldiers of the Roth Army......we all seem to be pretty damn happy with the album....that's all that matters. Great comment by Sarge.

[Bad Muthafucker]

I bought the record and have listened to it over and over. I contributed to their attempt at #1. That's what matters to me.

This fucking motherfucking asshole guy writing this review from Premier cocksuckers magazine, or whatever the fuck it's called, has also contributed, and the retardedly fucking stupid idiot that he is probably doesn't even realize it. I wonder how many people who haven't gotten the record yet will now go out an buy it just based on this fucker's article. Like the saying goes, there's no such thing as bad publicity. Dave himself used to mention it when talking about Spam, saying something to the effect of, "Sam's my boy. He's my bitch. He works for me. Every time he mentions my name, I just sell that many more records!" I kind of rememer it being on the Howard Stern show from way back when, if I'm not mistaken.

Anyway, fuck this motherfucker. I may just go out today and buy another copy. Fuck him.

[Sarge]

I can't wait for the Red Vinyl version to hit my door...

[ThrillsNSpills]

If it's a 2 record set of a 50 minute album, that's what 12 minutes per album side...

If you look at the ads for the vinyl the grooves extend to almost the whole side of the record.

So... will it be 45 speed? I read on another forum that the latest Foo Fighters album was released in 45 speed.

I guess you have to want to hear this one in the best possible fidelity to have a question like this.

[ELVIS]

I can't wait for the Red Vinyl version to hit my door...

[redfire]

I bought another ADKOT just to mail it to him... seriously. I'm going to include instructions that might help him hear this time. Because clearly, his raging vaginal pains caused problems in objectivity while listening to the best album released since 1984. Even Melodicrock bowed down to the greatness of ADKOT. And he's a professed Round Rocker fan.

[fourthcoming]

Definitely can't wait for the vinyl......someone here....maybe Elvis was mentioning listening to the cd in mono the other day.....wonder how that sounds? My record store guy ordered the vinyl for me for $40. Anyone find it any cheaper?

[ThrillsNSpills]

I can't believe anyone would give this incredible album a negative review.

[SparkieD]

There goes that fucking "cock rock" bullshit again. Somebody must love the cock an awful lot to use such stupid terminology.

[Terry]

The telling part was the end of the review, where the reviewer more or less states that he would have preferred that the Van Halens followed the example of Robert Plant, who resisted the impulse to try and reform Led Zeppelin, even if it would mean the Van Halens having to rethink their choice of lead singers and venue sizes. I took this to mean that the Roth reunion and the new record are devoid of artistic growth or merit by default, since this quality can't be present if the band harkened back to their old demos and made a conscious attempt to capture their classic signature sound.
It'd be interesting to see what this guy's take on Van Halen 3 was, since that was Eddie's baby, and was definitely a conscious choice NOT to look backward in terms of either material or a lead vocalist...and it certainly wasn't any sort of concession to what the vast majority of people wanted from Van Halen at that point, which was a classic reunion. Would he have said [Van Halen 3] was an artistic accomplishment despite being a relative commerical flop? Methinks yes.
Frankly, I find the fact that the Van Halens were willing to remake old, unreleased material refreshing. The reviewer would be correct in asserting that the Van Halens have made a specific choice to play big venues to large audiences for big money. They want to eat 'em and smile, and if you're gonna do this you have to sing for your supper. People ain't gonna feed the band if they go the Van Halen 3 route. It was a lesson the Van Halens learned the hard way when they basically gave their fans the finger in the late 1990s and did things their way. I suppose it's easy for a reviewer to chastise the band for making an album that was calculated to provide the CVH effect, and label that effort as taking the easy route to the biggest payday possible.
For me, it all seems a bit churlish to lament Van Halen for being on the course they are at present, since there's really no downside. The current incarnation and material is, in parts:
1. the best stuff to come from the band in years, classic in tone and deferential to the past yet quite experimental at times (the fact that the record grooves like a motherfucker doesn't hurt none, either)
2. a realization that Roth alongside Eddie is clearly what fans want to see; they were playing to half-filled halls with Hagar 8 years back and virtually nobody claims hiring Cherone was a success; just how many different singers should the band take on before coming to the conclusion (Roth is the best fit) that most of us reached years ago?
3. the smartest decision to be made from a business point of view...Van Halen are a major rock band, where the business and artistic components are intertwined.

Roth back in the band and A Different Kind Of Truth is simply a case of Van Halen giving the people what they want. This puts asses in the seats, sales at the registers and smiles on faces of everyone...well, almost everyone. I'm sure there are still more than a few Eddie Grunts who are bummed that the much-hoped for album of tuba solos never materialized, but that contingent ain't gonna keep Eddie living in style.

[TJMKID]

Personally, the argument about the re-hashing of old tracks doesn't really wash with me. Clearly there's a gold mine in that vault, so milk it for all it's worth I say.

I dont get the argument, either. If VH dug deep into the archives to re-work old demos --- who gives a shit? These tracks never appeared on previous albums so they are fair game to be worked up as they see fit.

Only a dummy like Sambo thinks all new songs need to pop into your head after walking into the studio ---- which explains his flashes of brilliance like "Up for Breakfast" and "Spanked".