ADKOT - Six Months Later

[sonrisa salvaje]

Exactly... most fans' memories now are divorce, mortgages they can't afford, drinking light beer because of their burgeoning midsections, resentful children, rising college and healthcare costs, impotence, loosepussytence, saggytitstence, baldingtence, incontinence, etc... or in my case, whores and nose candy. "I don't wanna grow up, I'm a coke and hoes kid!"

Mind The Gap!©®™

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You just summed up the sales figures for the album as well. Most people just move on from music. I hate to say that but of all the friends that i had and still keep up with, only a couple of them still actively seek out music from the people they listened to in their teens and early twenties. The side effects of moving at the speed of life i suppose.

[conmee]

S.S.

I think that is true for the most part. Music played such an important part of childhood and college, but over time, you wonder why a lot of people just start listening to "adult contemporary" or "jazz" and other non-descript shite. I guess kids, calls from creditors, 24 hour news and business reporting become the "soundtrack" for adulthood which is a shame. Not for everyone, but for many. For those of us with a passion for music or just really strong memories of Van Halen, for instance, we continue to cherish and revel in the music. But for many of my colleagues and coworkers over the past 10-15 years, music just isn't a high priority for them, or they've been jaded and desensitized by their children's music selection. Van Halen represents a carefree, fun, energetic time, and for most in the throes of middle-age, I think those three adjectives generally don't apply with much, if any, frequency. So why get all amped up with a cool album, only to put the headphones down, look around, and exclaim, "Fuck! What the hell happened to my life?!?!"

Mind The Gap!©®™

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[PETE'S BROTHER]

and not cause of the music

[conmee]

P.B.

If you're referencing back to sales figures, there's two sides to that coin... "because of the music" in the sense that it really comes from a different era. Sure the sound's been updated somewhat, but by and large, ADKOT appeals "mostly" to existing fan base, and the DLR/VH fan base in particular. So that's a shrinking market for the most part. Net-new fans there are I'm sure, but not sufficient quantities to really GROW the fan base. One could argue that given the mostly large attendance at shows indicates there are sufficient fans, but they only want to hear the classics is also valid. I think a huge part of the sales performance for ADKOT was the poor timing on Interscope's part in releasing it so close to the Grammy's which gave Adele momentum with all her wins. No, people didn't buy Adele's album in lieu of ADKOT, but the marketing engine behind Adele drowned out messaging for all the other artists those few weeks post-Grammys. Either release the album well before the Grammys, include a segment or somehow showcase Van Halen, or wait a couple weeks post-Grammys so that ADKOT didn't have to go up against post-Grammy momentum. And of course, I think the single biggest reason, more so than the music, is the fact that Michael Anthony wasn't a part of it. I personally don't miss MA enough that I wouldn't buy the album or enjoy it, but I know that being able to market a legitimate REUNION©®™ would have given the band additional momentum, regardless if the music was identical.

Then there's the "because of the music" in reference to the songs being sub-par. I think they hold up well v. the catalog for most fans. DLR's voice holds up well for his age and the abuse he's put it through, and the band is super tight, despite working with mostly ancient material from EVH's vaults. Even with an all-new album of killer original, currently written music, I'm not sure how much more successful the album would have been considering it's just not a type of music currently high on most listeners' lists and MA's absence.

But given all those headwinds and challenges, I think it performed pretty well. And in the end, I still enjoy listening to recent music with 3 out of 4 of my childhood heroes...

Mind The Gap!©®™

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[PETE'S BROTHER]

P.B.

If you're referencing back to sales figures, there's two sides to that coin... "because of the music" in the sense that it really comes from a different era. Sure the sound's been updated somewhat, but by and large, ADKOT appeals "mostly" to existing fan base, and the DLR/VH fan base in particular. So that's a shrinking market for the most part. Net-new fans there are I'm sure, but not sufficient quantities to really GROW the fan base. One could argue that given the mostly large attendance at shows indicates there are sufficient fans, but they only want to hear the classics is also valid. I think a huge part of the sales performance for ADKOT was the poor timing on Interscope's part in releasing it so close to the Grammy's which gave Adele momentum with all her wins. No, people didn't buy Adele's album in lieu of ADKOT, but the marketing engine behind Adele drowned out messaging for all the other artists those few weeks post-Grammys. Either release the album well before the Grammys, include a segment or somehow showcase Van Halen, or wait a couple weeks post-Grammys so that ADKOT didn't have to go up against post-Grammy momentum. And of course, I think the single biggest reason, more so than the music, is the fact that Michael Anthony wasn't a part of it. I personally don't miss MA enough that I wouldn't buy the album or enjoy it, but I know that being able to market a legitimate REUNION©®™ would have given the band additional momentum, regardless if the music was identical.

Then there's the "because of the music" in reference to the songs being sub-par. I think they hold up well v. the catalog for most fans. DLR's voice holds up well for his age and the abuse he's put it through, and the band is super tight, despite working with mostly ancient material from EVH's vaults. Even with an all-new album of killer original, currently written music, I'm not sure how much more successful the album would have been considering it's just not a type of music currently high on most listeners' lists and MA's absence.

But given all those headwinds and challenges, I think it performed pretty well. And in the end, I still enjoy listening to recent music with 3 out of 4 of my childhood heroes...

Mind The Gap!©®™

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long winded mutha....oh, you're done?

i'm glad we share those three adjectives

[conmee]

Back in the day, Pojo and I would write mini-novels... when 1,000 posts was a legitimate milestone... ah, the GOOD OL' DAYS©®™....

Mind The Gap!

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[PETE'S BROTHER]

P.B.

If you're referencing back to sales figures, there's two sides to that coin... "because of the music"

nope, knew you were talkin' about folks stuck in lives they didn't really want.

just clarifyin' you weren't referrin" to how folks went thru these steps with vhIII

only to put the headphones down, look around, and exclaim, "Fuck! What the hell happened to my life?!?!"

[conmee]

I think they put the headphones down with VHIII and exclaimed, "What the hell happened to this band!?!?"

Mind The Gap!©®™

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[78/84 guy]

You just summed up the sales figures for the album as well. Most people just move on from music. I hate to say that but of all the friends that i had and still keep up with, only a couple of them still actively seek out music from the people they listened to in their teens and early twenties. The side effects of moving at the speed of life i suppose.

A lot of people moved on from music my age. People I know that loved music ! My buddy was over to watch the Wild lose with me the other night (LOL) and asked me what the hell was hanging on my wall. I told him it was the new Van Halen album. I Framed it. And he say's I didn't even know they put an album out. But had heard Tattoo & She's The Woman on the radio a few times. This is a guy that had up to 4 to 10 pairs of tickets in his dresser drawer in the mid to late 80's for almost every rock concert that came through town ! He went down and bought them and we would just pay him back. I wasn't surprised in the least he didn't know. He still listens to stuff, but it's all the old stuff. He doesn't sit on the internet looking at older band websites to see if they are still releasing stuff, and the radio sure as hell doesn't play new song's by older bands ! Not for long anyways. I gave him my c.d. He went home and listened too it and texted me that he thought it was a great album. He is to busy raising his kid, paying bills, and doing bullshit house work to pay attention anymore. I told him to keep the cd !

[bru87tr]

A lot of people moved on from music my age. People I know that loved music ! My buddy was over to watch the Wild lose with me the other night (LOL) and asked me what the hell was hanging on my wall. I told him it was the new Van Halen album. I Framed it. And he say's I didn't even know they put an album out. But had heard Tattoo & She's The Woman on the radio a few times. This is a guy that had up to 4 to 10 pairs of tickets in his dresser drawer in the mid to late 80's for almost every rock concert that came through town ! He went down and bought them and we would just pay him back. I wasn't surprised in the least he didn't know. He still listens to stuff, but it's all the old stuff. He doesn't sit on the internet looking at older band websites to see if they are still releasing stuff, and the radio sure as hell doesn't play new song's by older bands ! Not for long anyways. I gave him my c.d. He went home and listened too it and texted me that he thought it was a great album. He is to busy raising his kid, paying bills, and doing bullshit house work to pay attention anymore. I told him to keep the cd !

You are a true friend.