Wolfgang Van Halen, who initially began out as a drummer earlier than shifting on to guitar and bass, spoke to RawMusicTV ultimately month’s Sweden Rock Pageant in Sölvesborg, Sweden about a few of his early influences as a musician. He mentioned (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “After I began taking part in drums, after I was 9 years outdated, the 2 albums I performed most to have been VAN HALEN ‘Greatest Of – Quantity I’ and ‘Enema Of The State’ by BLINK-182. [Laughs] So I feel BLINK have been an early affect for me. I feel [BLINK-182 drummer] Travis Barker was a giant affect on drums for me beginning out, that I used to be, like, ‘Ooh, I actually take pleasure in this.’ … However [TOOL‘s] Danny Carey actually was an enormous… After I began listening to TOOL, I seen a giant soar up in my very own expertise. Attempting to discover ways to play ‘Ænima’ and studying methods to play ‘Forty Six & 2’ and ‘The Grudge’ and ‘Ticks & Leeches’ and stuff like that, and noticing, like, ‘Wow, I am turning into a greater drummer simply because I am making an attempt — and failing — to play all of this TOOL stuff.’ However, yeah, listening to TOOL actually upped my sport by way of understanding music and studying methods to play it and growing extra ability… And that led into my adoration of MESHUGGAH. That is like math. As a drummer, there’s nothing extra enjoyable than listening to MESHUGGAH and making an attempt to determine the rhythm, the polyrhythm that is taking place and stuff like that. I actually — I do not know — I simply take pleasure in that lots.”

Wolfgang, the son of legendary VAN HALEN guitarist Eddie Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli, performed bass for VAN HALEN from 2006 to 2020.

In November 2020, one month after his father’s passing, Wolfgang introduced the launch of his personal band referred to as MAMMOTH WVH.

“Mammoth II”, the second album from MAMMOTH WVH, will probably be launched on August 4 by way of BMG. The ten-track LP was recorded on the legendary 5150 studio and was produced by Wolfgang‘s good friend and collaborator Michael “Elvis” Baskette.

Again in December 2020, Wolfgang advised “The Afternoon Program” on the 102.9 The Hog radio station that his father was truly a fairly lame guitar trainer. “He did not train me” methods to play guitar,” Wolfgang mentioned. “He was a horrible trainer. He solely taught me methods to do energy chords on a guitar, after which I taught myself. [Laughs] I might ask him methods to play one thing, after which he would simply be himself, which is be a legendary guitar participant. He could not actually assist me join level A to level B; he would simply do it and go, ‘Do that,’ as a result of it is really easy for him. And I might simply snort and be, like, ‘Okay.’ [Laughs]

“I suppose it is the identical factor with [Albert] Einstein,” he added, referring to arguably the best scientist of all time. “[Einstein] could not tie his footwear. There is a saying the place it is, like, you are such a genius that it is arduous to impart that to others; it is simply form of what you’re. [Laughs]”

Wolfgang, who performed all of the devices on MAMMOTH WVH‘s first two albums, went on to say that he picked up guitar when he was simply 12 years outdated, “as a result of I needed to discover ways to play ‘316’, the track [my father] wrote for me, at a expertise present at my college. I feel it was sixth grade.”

On the age of 16, Wolfgang joined his father in VAN HALEN for the band’s 2007 reunion tour with singer David Lee Roth, changing bassist Michael Anthony.

Photograph credit score: Travis Shinn