Wolfgang Van Halen says that he has no intention of copying VAN HALEN with his upcoming solo album.
The 29-year-old VAN HALEN bassist has spent the last few years working on his debut solo LP, which he has repeatedly said will not feature any contributions from his father, VAN HALEN guitarist Eddie Van Halen.
Wolfgang recently took to his Instagram to share a question he received from a fan about how much he sees his father’s reputation as a blessing or a curse. He responded: “That’s a great question. It’s really equally both. Being who I am, I think people at the least will be interested in what my work will sound like, which is very nice. But on the other hand, if it’s not exactly what they want to hear or if I don’t try to sound ‘VAN HALEN-y’ enough for them they’ll hate me and won’t give me the time of day. I’m fully prepared for a wave of hate when my music releases because it won’t be what people think it’ll be. I’m not trying to be my father, I’m trying to be me.”
Wolfgang went on to reiterate the last point, adding in a separate message: “It’s the main thing people are going to need to understand when they listen to my music. I’m not trying to be VAN HALEN.”
This past February, it was announced that Wolfgang had signed a deal with Explorer1 Music Group for the release of his solo album. The disc is being recorded with producer Michael “Elvis” Baskette at VAN HALEN‘s 5150 Studios in California. The announcement called the set “a collection of diverse material…original songs ranging from haunting ballads to stomping rock classics, on which [Van Halen] recorded all the instruments and vocals himself.”
Wolfgang has been posting photos and videos from the studio at his Instagram account since early 2015.
He told The Pulse Of Radio a while back that his ability to play different instruments gave him the freedom to do what he wanted on a solo project. “I mean, I feel like it’s just kind of open-ended,” he said. “I feel like since I can play drums, bass, guitar and kind of sing, I guess, I can kind of just decide whatever I want to do. I mean, I’ve always loved the whole Dave Grohl story of how he started FOO FIGHTERS — just did a whole demo album by himself.”
His father described the project in 2015 as sounding like “AC/DC meets VAN HALEN meets aggressive pop,” adding, “It’s a little of everything and sounds like a freight train coming at you. I’ve never heard anything quite like it. It’s so powerful that I’m jealous.”
Wolfgang first performed live with VAN HALEN on the band’s 2007-2008 world tour, which also marked the return of original singer David Lee Roth. He made his recording debut on the band’s 2012 album “A Different Kind Of Truth”.
Wolfgang has also toured as a member of ALTER BRIDGE guitarist Mark Tremonti‘s solo band and played bass on TREMONTI‘s second album.
Lot of respect for @WolfVanHalen.
Can’t imagine what’s been like to not only be EVH’s son, but replacing Michael Anthony in one of the greatest bands in rock history?! He’s an excellent musician, and he’s handled himself very well, given the immature assholes online nowadays. pic.twitter.com/5VmJ1V3a0c— Roth Army (@Roth_Army) July 14, 2020
