Wolfgang Van Halen has revealed he no longer listens to his dad’s music, owing to the fact his connection to the legendary electric guitar icon runs far deeper than the average listener.
Eddie Van Halen passed away in October 2020, and the Mammoth mastermind is still feeling the weight of his absence five years on, saying that his death caused a “black hole” in his life.
Musically, Wolfgang always put distance between Van Halen’s legacy and his own songwriting in a bid to be respected and acknowledged for his talents, not his lineage. And, though WVH had his dad spiritually present at his wedding – his wife walked down the aisle to a track written about him by the late guitar hero – he’s since stopped listening to his music.
“I just don’t listen to Van Halen anymore. I understand, like, that’s the connection that everybody has. But, obviously, my connection was a little different,” he tells Drumeo (via Guitar.com) “When it comes to listening to it, I have the memories.”
He goes on to say that Alex Van Halen, Eddie’s brother and the band’s drummer, is going through similar motions. He sold all his drum gear last year, seemingly putting an end to the hopes of any reunion tribute shows with him involved.
Alex has since published an autobiography focusing on his relationship with Eddie and released the last song they ever worked on together.
“Al was already a private guy to begin with,” Wolfgang continues. “Now, it’s like, why would you want to play? [But] I’m sure he probably keeps the chops up every now and then.
“I’m so happy of the time that I was able to be in that three-piece with Dad and Al,” he adds, simply happy to have shared moments together while they had the chance.
Wolfgang has previously discussed the nerves he faces when it comes to the prospect of covering Van Halen songs live, and the lengths he goes to in order to get the sound right, but doing that has become extremely rare.
“I’m really just not interested in playing it anymore without Dad,” he explains. “And I know he [Alex] feels the exact same way.
“I’ll play it for fun every now and then. If Dave Grohl comes to me and goes like, ‘Hey, you wanna do this?’ Like, ‘Yes, Dave Grohl, I would like to do that with you.’ But, overall, it’s really a tough thing for me.”
Still, he stays close to his father’s spirit. As was the case with his previous records, he’s revealed that his latest single, The End, was partly tracked on his dad’s infamous Frankenstein Strat because it makes him “feel closer to Pop every time I record”.
The track’s music video is going to be hard to beat in 2025: it features guest appearances from Slash, Myles Kennedy, zombies, and a heart-warming nod to the Hot For Teacher video.
