Dave explains Van Halen Tour Dates Postponement

[ALMOSTsaved]

Before, I was excited about having tickets to the possible last show in the States on the tour in New Orleans (before they added the new round of dates). Now it just kinda scares the shit out of me.

[Golden AWe]

Dave just ran out of helium m'kay?

[damngoodtimes]

After sleeping on this, I'm convinced (well, as convinced as you can get with this band), that this is related somehow to the fuckin' blowers. My guess is that Dave has some kind of medical condition that is affected by the A/C (I'm no doctor, so I won't speculate as others have about thyroids or god-forbid Parkinson's).

Keep in mind, also, that this is only a postponement, not a cancellation. They are telling ticket holders to hang on to their tickets for a rescheduled show. I believe (someone correct me if I'm wrong) that only the VIP tickets are getting a refund right now. We may disagree on that policy, but I suspect that has more to do with the large sums of money laid out for those VIP tickets; it's a bigger deal for the promoter to just hold onto your cash.

If you just think about the blower issue itself, no other bands have turned off the air that I can ever think of, and I've seen the Stones and The Who lately, where Mick and Rog are 10 years older than Dave now. Plus, this has never been an issue for Dave before now, all the way up to 2008. Otherwise, it just seems like real off-the-charts diva bullshit. And while Dave has a healthy dose of diva in him, he seems to have matured a good bit over the decades. I just can't see him making such a big deal about the blowers if there wasn't a real medical reason. So, the fuckin' blowers are going to be turned off. Now, with shows coming up in the Deep South in the middle of the summer, the band (and the promoters, mind you) were facing a HUGE issue with turning off the air.

So, whether they're going to try to play Europe or not (likely NOT), I think it was in everyone's best interest to POSTPONE the shows until the fall. Although I'm also not a lawyer, I suspect the band's contract with the venue/promoter is much more forgiving in the case of postponement than it would be for cancellation. Especially if the venue/promoter might have additional risk exposure for turning off the AC in Birmingham in August. They postponed quite a few shows in 2007/08 and I believe they ended up getting them all in, without (as far as I know) any legal issues/loss of revenue. I suspect the same thing will happen here.

If there is a medical issue with Dave, I suspect we won't ever get an official response from the band. We never officially were told that Ed went back to rehab in 2008 (Ed effectively just now admitted it in that Esquire interview). The Van Halens are very private, and I also don't see Dave as someone who wants our pity if he has some ongoing issue. He wants the show to go on and he depends on keeping his larger-than-life rockstar persona pegged at 110%. We all saw how he dealt with Ed's cancer and his "it's-not-about-your-fuckin'-hip". Dave believes the band and the image and the show comes first, who gives a shit if the guys are sick. The fans paid to see THE MIGHTY VAN HALEN, not some fuckin' episode of The View.

I doubt they go to Europe, but if they do play any shows this summer, I could see a few outdoor festivals and possibly Australia (where it's going to be winter). Most likely, we all get frustrated for a few weeks while the band says nothing. Then, sometime in June, they start rescheduling all these dates for October, November. You won't likely see a concrete reason to feel this way for a while, but my guess is that there is little to worry about. And certainly nothing that can be done about it at any rate. So, put on ADKOT, grab a beer and RELAX. It'll be OK.

Stay Frosty, my fellow soldiers! ...dgt

[TJMKID]

The insinuations from Rolling Stone, who have been negative about everything VH this year (probably due to been knocked back for an exclusive interview) are just too predictable.

Rolling Stone are being their usual douchey selves and making up shit about a rock band they never liked. Fuck 'em to hell I say.

Wasn't it Dave who famously quipped: "These critics never liked us because they wanna suck off Elvis Costello" ??

[damngoodtimes]

Here's my email, fyi...

Attention ticket holder!

We just learned that your upcoming event has been postponed:

Van Halen
Bi – Lo Center
Friday, August 10th at 7:30pm New date: To Be Announced!

Just hang on to your tickets – they’re still good and will be honored once the new date is announced!

[TJMKID]

After sleeping on this, I'm convinced (well, as convinced as you can get with this band), that this is related somehow to the fuckin' blowers. My guess is that Dave has some kind of medical condition that is affected by the A/C (I'm no doctor, so I won't speculate as others have about thyroids or god-forbid Parkinson's).

I agree that something is bizarre with Dave --- whether it's a thyroid problem or what, I dunno --- but to be wearing 3 layers of clothing and a thick scarf while everyone else is sweating like pigs is quite strange!

Check out videos from the May 2008 tour dates --- Dave is sweating onstage but at least he's bare-chested with open short-sleeve shirt and cooling himself --- and no blower rants that entire tour.

We can all safely assume Dave isn't cancelling these gigs simply because venues won't comply with his "no AC blowers" demands. Like you said, he isn't that much of a diva prick to attempt that level of douche-baggery.

If it's a health reason from either Dave or Eddie --- why not deal with it immediately instead of waiting until July?

The more I ponder this --- I think it's exhaustion and maybe the band just needs to be away from each other for a little while to decompress. They lived apart for the last 4 years and now they're forced to deal with each other every day.

Getting lucrative offers to tour in Europe and Australia seem possible --- but why didnt Live Nation work this shit out back in January when the band was getting tons of media exposure from the ADKOT release ???

[fwacf]

Reason for Dave's "Layer's" He takes blood presure meds.....look up the effects.....THE BAND IS FINE!

[Va Beach VH Fan]

Any Olympics rumors are completely silly. The ceremonies have been getting planned for years and in any case will have a British theme, why would they bring out a quintessential American band?

I know !! Everyone knows the headliner be Dexy's Midnight Runners.....

[Angel]

I thought Keith Moon was headlining?

[Von Halen]

I'm not buying the blower bullshit. (I hope I am wrong) They scheduled a show in Detroit in a fucking HOCKEY ARENA! We have many other sizeable venues they could have booked, including the DTE outdoor venue. Do these blowers have only one speed? In this day and age, there isn't the technology to turn them from high to medium to low? Call me what you want, but I am just not buying this reason for cancelling (postponing) this many dates, all the way out to September.

Regardless of what many of you want to believe, this is a business tour. These guys have found a way to get up on that stage every other night, and perform as a band, and make it look good doing it. They are not best friends. They are not claiming to be "soulmates". They are not hanging out with each other before, in between, or after shows. They are travelling seperately, and have seperate buses. Does any of this matter to me? Fuck no. I only care that they found a way to piece together a new album, and to get up on that stage and play a lot of the music that has consumed my heart and soul for over 30 years.

Do I care that they are healthy both mentally and physically? I absolutely do. If there is a medical issue causing this, I hope it is manageable, and fixable. If they are infighting, and just can't keep it together, I can respect that too. The only thing Van Halen hasn't given me over the last 30+ years, is an official release of one of the old live shows. Other than that, they have given me some of my greatest memories. They have accompanied me through a lot of my own trials and tribulations. Their music is in my blood, and will be until I take my last breath. Of course I am selfish, and want more from them. But if they can't find a way to do that, I am good with what they have given me so far.

Having said that. I don't have any idea what has caused this delay or end to the tour. I am asking this next question, because I don't know. If it were infighting, wouldn't they just cancel now, and not play the remaining dates? Or is that a bigger contractual issue because of where they are in the tour? Are they obligated to finish this leg, no matter what? Was the other leg easier to get out of, because they haven't started it yet, and many of the dates haven't even started selling tickets? Does anyone have any knowledge on how that works, business wise?

If it is the blowers, that will be great news, because time will solve that issue. If it is infighting, that won't be great news, because that will obviously mean time hasn't been able to solve their differences. If it is a medical issue, I only hope whoever is suffering, gets better and can be happy and have an enjoyable life.

Thank goodness I have the 7 albums. The pictures I have taken. The bootlegs. The merchandise. The friends I have made through this site. The memories...

[Momshell]

See. I knew it. Dave's shirt has been an issue for me all tour. I was onto something.

[Va Beach VH Fan]

The blowers excuse is perhaps the most ridiculous of the bunch, and that's saying something....

[GreenEyedMurder]

See. I knew it. Dave's shirt has been an issue for me all tour. I was onto something.

Maybe he never takes off his shirts now is because his chest hair has turned gray and he doesn't want to keep waxing/shaving it? Personally, I wouldn't be upset at all by the sight of gray hair...

[MUSICMANN]

If there was any trouble within the band, why would they continue the tour up to the original June 26 date in NO. Shit, they have a show tonight in St. Paul and I'm pretty sure it's gonna be a party as usual. If there were problems it would be, it's over, done, they told each other to fuck off, but that's not what's happening. I would guess it has something to do with the business end of the tour after adding in those extra dates. Who knows, they could have gotten a more lucrative European offer for that time frame and decided that they could always come back and make those dates back up, hence why the emails tells those that have purchased tickets already that the show was postponed and not cancelled, so hold on to them.

[moose]

Breaks my fuckin heart to hear this shit regarding tour dates
Fans who grew up listening to these guys are going to these much ANTICIPATED SHOWS
With their kids and friends and family as well to meet up
With buds from their teenage years only to have the rug pulled from underneath them
The fuckin drama that this bands puts its fans through regardless of whom is at the helm
is LEGENDARY....