Review by Mr Morbid Angel - ctms@xtra.co.nz

Second show of the tour, something like third or fourth show ever with Gary and... it rocked. I am a very new Van Halen fan and I did kind of feel like the youngest person in the hall, surrounded by 35 year olds on every side but this was an advantage because I could easily slip through the wall of dinosaurs and get right up against the barrier at the front. The hall was nowhere near capacity but then it was large and this is New Zealand. The opening band was called Destiny, a total showoff guitar band. The two guitarists were in fact so good that they almost upstaged Eddie (they were about 15 years younger though). The best of the two spent the majority of the set pulling big rock poses on the amp stack right in front of me. He did do some unbelievable shredding though (tap-sweeping like you've never seen). The Destiny set list was pretty straightforward, they did an insane Steve Vai like cover of Purple Haze and the ten minute or so instrumental solo was also a highlight. My only complaint was that the guitarists were so completely derivative of Steve Vai and Yngwie Malmsteen that their leads got a little tiresome sometimes (the one in front of me even had a Vai signature Jem strapped on him).

And then... VAN HALEN!!! Fat and forty they definitely were not. Unfortunately I'd picked the wrong side of the stage and didn't have a very good view of Eddie but I was right underneath Micheal Anthony who was just as good a showman and hyperactive, super slick Gary Cherone was all over the place all the time. Anybody who has doubts aout Gary should forget them now. His singing was right on, every single note of every song sounded great and distinctly Gary. He brought a real freshness and new approach to a lot of the older songs through his singing and presentation. My only overall complaints about the show are that where I was Micheal Anthony's bass drowned out most of the other instruments, especially Eddie's guitar and the sound in general was too thick and undefined with a little too much high end from Gary's vocals. I was in the front row though. Also the show in general didn't really click until about half way through and both the band and the crowd took a little while warming up. After that though it really was incredible. The set list consisted of almost every track from Best of Vol. 1 and half a dozen from VH3. A lot of the songs sound very different from the album versions though. Humans Being had an unusual swinging groove to it and wasn't anywhere near as heavy. Micheal Anthony sang lead on one song and handled it great (it was the only song I didn't recognise in the set, I think it was still a VH track though, I don't own the first three Roth albums). The instrumental solos were predictably great. Alex's drum solo was varied and diverse but not overly long. Eddie's solo contained all kinds of stuff I've heard and never heard before. I finally got a bit of a clue on how to play Eruption properly from watching him do it. Another highlight of the set was Josephina with only Eddie on acoustic guitar and Gary singing. This was literally about a metre and a half away from me. Of the stuff being thrown out into the crowd, I came within inches of getting Eddie's pick and Micheal's towel. The pick landed a foot short of the barrier at the front and I dived for it but the security guys threw me back and gave the pick to a five year old (it was a very tame concert as far as audience frenzy was concerned). I was third to last to let go in the fight for Mike's towel but the other two were getting pretty brutal so I decided I'd rather leave with my nose unbroken. Overall it was a very slick, very professional show. I don't think after twenty something years of experience Van Halen are capable of putting on a bad show. Gary fits in perfectly and makes the old songs sound great even though he's hardly sung them live at all.

When the band kicked off the show with "Unchained", I thought I had died and gone to heaven. Gary Cherone was simply incredible. By the time they launched into "Without You" sweat was pouring off him and it was only the second song! Van Halen nowdays are not interested in the gimmics, they are here to put on a shit hot live show and man did they deliver! The set list was exactly the same as in Wellington, except rather than doing "Romeo Delight", the boys kicked into "I'm the One". Excuse me, but I dare Diamond Dave to perform it to the intensity that I saw last night. They only other change, was that the band performed "Why can't this be love", which got a huge response from the crowd. Van Halen are performing like they are road hardened veterans. Remember this is only the second show on their World Tour,I expected a few rough edges, the fact I got none, shows how good this new line up really is.

I strongly advise you to buy, beg, or steal a ticket to the show, because these guys kick ass!

What an awesome show! Having seen many hard rock/metal gigs over the years I'd decided to take a seat but by the end of the night my friend & I were jumping in the aisles!

Like with the 1st concert, VH began with "Unchained" which is a personal favourite. Eddie's solos were right on the mark. A couple of guitarists in the warm-up band did a lot of tapping but Ed showed them the difference between speed versus speed, melody & feel all wrapped in one. The crowd was very expectant. You could hear the cries of "Yeah!" when the guitar tech played a chord or two before the gig began. Eddie also played an acoustic. I remember reading a Guitar World review where Ed said he wasn't into acoustic guitar. I'm glad he changed his mind. It provided a nice break before "Panama" & "Jump" in the encore segment & I think future songs could really benefit from it.

Alex's drum solo was great fun & had the drummers in the audience cheering with reverence. Yet - along with Eddie of course - it was Mike who the crowd really adopted. He sung his heart out & everyone cheered him on. In fact, it's great to see such a successful band enjoying themselves & not just going through the motions. Eddie baited the crowd by playing the beginning of "Eruption" & then stopping. Everyone cheered & he laid waste to it as if all his searing early work had only been recorded yesterday.

Personally, I loved the fact that they played one of my favourite songs "I'm the One". Very cool & quite unexpected. They didn't play "Hot for teacher" but the event was so exuberant that I don't think anyone minded. Even the newspaper critic (who isn't so keen on guitar-orientated rock shows) gave it a rousing review!

Before I saw them live I had my doubts about Gary but they've gone way out the window. He can really belt it out live, knows how to sing & is a surprisingly good mimic of Roth & Hagar especially. Not that I was an Extreme fan, I even own some Roth CDs, but Gary is excellent & that isn't a word I use lightly. He also appear so nice & level-headed in interviews. Some people may be drawn to the arrogant approach but not me. I think the band should be congratulated for their choice. He's a great showman too. I agree with what Alex said on NZ tv about earlier singers, about people speaking of the "good 'ol days" but that in 10 years, "now will be the good ol' days."

I'm looking forward to Gary's lyrical contributions on future work. I think Van Halen are moving into a phase of thinking man's rock. They did one song I didn't recognise which I presume is off the new CD. Eddie played 2 solos it reminded me a searing Gilmour a la Pink Floyd.

Overall then, a great show.

Thanks guys! It was great to see you live. Come back again!

The show started at 8.55pm with Unchained and carried forward the momentum from there. The audience seemed a little quiet however, I think because we havent had time to get into the new album so a lot of the material was unfamiliar. Gary was full of energy and a real showman in black and everyone of the band seemed happy with lots of hugs and well done mates gestures. A great drum solo by Alex and later guitar solo by Eddie the one everyone had come to see. By the time they got to Why cant this be love the audience had warmed up. 1 3/4 hrs after starting the band left making a mark as they have never been to NZ before and promising to come back.

The 64 million dollar question was whether Gary Cherone could fill the shoes of David Lee Roth and/or Sammy Hagar. Luckily for the crowd (near capacity in a reduced seating arrangement c.f. Portishead), the band practiced in the week leading up to the 2 NZ shows. We were also fortunate that we got to see them first in the world, as opposed to a tired band near the end of their global journey.

Well I'm going to be diplomatic about the question. You can't compare apples and oranges. Apart from "Humans Being" and "Jump" - and I don't entirely blame the former Extreme front man - Gary did a good job with the oldies. The songs off Van Halen III were, of course, his own.

Overall, Gary did a great job in being the front man. Dressed in all black, he played a 90s version of the rock lizard ala Jim Morrison. At the end of the night, with his brow sweating he had done enough to prove to the fans that there is still life in Van Halen. But credit must also go to the rest of the guys. Alex Van Halen proved once again why he is one of the most under rated rock drummers. Michael Anthony on bass just had a ball, playing and singing, and getting the crowd on his side in the encore by wearing an All Black jersey - which I also saw being worn by Eddie's daughter. As for Eddie Van Halen, he was the other front man judging by the chants of his name. He delivered, much to the delight of Mrs Van Halen sitting in the wings - Valerie Bertinelli, remember her in that cloying TV comedy "One Day At A time"? Like all the guitar greats, he makes the difficult seem easy. The guitar is an extension of his body and emotions.

The highlights for me included "Panama", "Talking Bout Love" (the crowd chanting the anthem - hey, hey) and the songs of the Van Halen III album.

Not a perfect concert, but a damn fine one, judging by the reaction of the band. Hopefully for fans of Eddie, it won't be too long until he's back again.

Here is a simple review of the Auckland gig, my first impression of Gary is that he's so slim like Freddie Mercury of Queen fame, dressed in a black silk suit. He started off with 'Unchained' and then straight onto 'Without U', then onto some other singles from their Van Halen III album which was well promoted. Gary is certainly pretty hyperative as he was from one end of the stage to the next, I'm a bit disappointed they didn't play my faves such as 'runnin' with the devil', 'you really got me' etc.

However things didn't really get under way till Gary started singing some of their classic faves such as 'Dreams' 'when it's luv' and the rap like 'Human Being'

With his voice sounding similar to Sammys, it didn't sort of suited favorites 'Jump' and 'Panama' which took me a couple of minutes to recognise over Eddies legendary riffs.

Stage-show was simple, just the V.H.III album cover and half-way thru the V.H. emblem. All n all it was a great gig in promoting 'Van Halen III', Eddie and the boys are a living legend

The concert started at 8 pm but I was there by 5pm. I went around to the of the stadium and there were about 5 people there having a few beers and what do you know! The band trailers were right there. Suddenly I saw GARY CHERONE walk past and we all shouted out Gary. He turned and waved. Then a camera man came out from the trailers and told us to speak into the video camera. This video was for the band to have a look at what the NZ fans had to say about them!!!!!!

As I walked back to the main entrance, I heard the band doing a sound check. At the main entrance there were no security guards as there was still three hours for the concert and this was a small venue( only about 3000 people). So,my sister and I just walked into the stadium and there was no one to stop us!! On stage we saw MICHAEL ANTHONY AND ALEX doing a sound check!!!

We just stood there in awe. Imagine the chance to see Van Halen in a sound check!! Alex had some band around his neck, I think he sprained it or something. We stood there for about 10 minutes before some security guy saw that we were not the crew and told us to leave. The opening band came onto the stage at 8.00 pm, while Van Halen was on at about 9. They started with ‘Unchained’ . We managed to be right in front and so were just one foot away from Eddie Van Halen!!!!!!!

For the first few songs Eddie tied his hair up in a Gene Simmons style of pony tail. He even did quite a few ‘Flying eddies’ even though he has hip problems!!! A little known fact: Eddie has got wolfgang tattooed on one of his arms but on the other he has got Valrie!!

Gary wore a designer black suit kind of thing and when he lifted his Shirt I saw that he has a ring pierced at his navel!!

They played quite a few songs off their new album ( about 7, I think). The format of the solo’s have changed as well. Michael was the first to solo for which he sang 'Somebody call the doctor’ on lead vocals. Later on Alex did a short solo of about 5 minutes while eddie’s solo was about 10 minutes long. Cherone did an excellent job as a front man and did not stand still for a second!!

For the song ‘Josephina’ eddie and Gary did an ‘unplugged session’, doing the whole song on acoustic guitar only!!! It sounded great!!!

Eddie did not play the keyboards at all. They used a prerecorded version. Alex’s gong was intact and he used it on ‘right now’. Sadly, Michael’s alter ego, Jack Daniels was no where to be seen (I guess being sober does have its sacrifices).

The two songs for the encore were ‘ Right now’ and ‘JUMP’. Cherone has changed the tune of the chorus slightly and instead of saying ‘ might as well jump’ and the band then saying ‘jump’. He goes "might as well"(gap) "jump". That is, he substitutes the two "jumps" for one "jump".

The concert ended at 10.50pm and I can say it was bloody awesome!!!! Cherone has lived up to his name and rightly so kept up the live reputation of Van Halen. Who ever is reading this, if you dont see on this Van Halen tour you're missing out on a concert of a lifetime!!!! SEE YA RIGHT NOW

After having the Auckland concert buzzing around in my head for a couple of days i felt compelled to write.

To all those people who are unsure of Gary Cherone and the new album, put aside your fears and open up, Gary is here to stay and the new album takes on a whole new meaning after seeing the song performed live.

I was disappointed with the turn out at the concert, Van Halen wasn't heavily promoted down here and for some reason the wrong radio station was promoting them . I'm also positive that they could have had a better turn out if they'd been here before. I was also suprised by the variety of people that were there, anyone from clean cut taking along their six year old children to teenagers to even a couple of yuppies.

Gary fitted right in with his smooth moves, made me just wanna jump up on stage and groove with him. I don't know the what a double whammy whatsit is but what i heard on Saturday I loved, Eddie played his music "with a grin not a grimace" and played it well beyond my belief.

All I have to say is ... watch out America, Van Halen is comin for ya!!!!

AN AMAZING GIG OF ALL SORTS!!!

What can I say except GARY was amazing & the kiwi crowd were amazed beyond belief to see a band they've always waited quite patiently for....and WHAT A NIGHT IT WAS!! TRULY AMAZING!!!

How can we, as music lovers, NOT appreciate these guys? Especially, Eddie & Alex, who have been through so much as family & as individual rock stars, - their resposibilty & commitment to their talents is what I admire - (and when I say "ROCK STARS", I mean it!!!!!)

I have been a VAN HALEN FAN since I was 6 years old (way back in 1986) & to tell (every 1 who reads this) the truth, well I'd say it was a moment in my life where I can proudly tell every1 I know that I was one of the few priviliged New Zealanders to attend this concert, which was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see the band I had been admiring for over a decade!!

I was also quite lucky to be in one of the front rows (i.e. closer to the stage). ALL I can say except anything is, VAN HALEN ROCKS!!!!!!!

ANY VH FANS PLEASE E-MAIL ME @ ray-wolf@rocketmail.com