The expectation must be set pretty high when your old man was a legend of the 6-string but luckily for Wolfgang Van Halen I know fuck all about his old man apart from the following few “facts”.
- Dimebag reckons he was an absolute legend, and if Dimebag said it then must be 101 proof 100% the truth.
- He plays some solo called Eruption, or something like that, which is apparently the tits. I’ve never listened to it, so I can neither confirm nor deny.
- His band played that song Jump which has a crap load of keyboards in it, but no keyboard player in the film clip with makes you wonder what the guys playing in the rock band in tight spandex pants are actually doing.
Anyway, enough of that rubbish. I’m here to review Wolfgang’s band Mammoth WVH which has fuck all to do with how much of a legend his old man was (RIP). So, let’s get to it shall we?
Right from the get-go the album opens with some thumping tom fills and a guitar chuggin along to the beat. Shortly after Wolfgang commences some smooth melodic vocal passages. The song has a big sound, and the choruses open right up to create an anthemic vibe. As the song breaks down in the bridge a guitar solo commences which slowly but surely introduces us to some licks which I’d say were passed down through the genes. The song ends on a heavier note with some syncopated core style chugging patterns. Not a bad start to the album!
As the guitars chug along during the opening of Like A Pastime it’s quite apparent that the production on this album is fucking top notch. It’s super tight and super balanced with everything sitting exactly where it needs to be. The riffs aren’t really anything innovative, and to be quite honest it’s pretty simplistic. That’s not a bad thing, simplicity works when it is well-structured, and this song is very well structured. I feel I’ve already heard this, so it’s possible it may have already been a single. And google confirms that this was in fact the second single.
Some rumbling toms again introduce us to the next track titled Another Celebration at the End of the World. This one’s a complete fucking rocker, relentless riffing topped off with a cowbell, a fucking cowbell! It’s actually got a bit of a Slash with Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators vibe to it albeit a little heavier. Guitar solos flow freely in and out of the track as Wolfgang further shows off his guitar skills.
The band back off the accelerator slightly as Miles Above Me introduces more of a pop-rock vibe to the album. It seems like some kind of love song, or at least a story of falling short in love or maybe trying to punch too far above ya weight without ever reaching the attempted heights. I’ve also probably got no fucking idea what I’m talking about.
Take A Bow follows suit with another pulled-back groove. This time around though it’s a little bouncier with more of a progressive melodic sound. The broken guitar riffs and shifting rhythms pull me in and out of the shifting grooves. It’s very catchy, in a smooth and meandering way. As the song hits its bridge, the guitars take over and the solos ensue before dragging me back into the chorus. Big track, banger of a track!
I’ve been accused of being far from an Optimist, but fuck me, I’m optimistic about this opening bass line and the stuttered rock beat following it. I don’t do funky time signatures really well, but this isn’t ya standard 4/4 groove. Maybe some weird 7/8 thing or whatever, but who really cares, y’all aren’t gonna get it anyway, unless you’re a Tool fan who at this point is probably jacking it in the corner over polyrhythms, even though ya don’t even know what they are, but they sound cool and stuff. Anyway, now that I’ve got my little Tool rant out of the way let’s get back to this track! Absolute Fucking Banger!
Yeah, thanks for asking, I’m Alright now that I’ve got that off my chest. Speaking of chests, Wolfgang sure does have some lungs in his that just continuously belt out big strong melodies. Yeah, he goes alright, as does the rest of the band who are maybe just touring musicians and have fuck all to do with this album. Is this all just Wolfy showing off his multi-instrumentational skills? Wikipedia would have me believe so, and if so, that’s pretty fucking impressive!
At this point, I’m going to Erase Me from this album review because I’m enjoying it way too much to continue writing it. I just want to fucking listen, and that rarely happens. For those who don’t know, I write my reviews as I am listening to them, so what you get is exactly what I’m thinking and sometimes doing as the music plays, with little to no time to stop and edit, or review my thoughts. A simple spelling and grammar check afterward fixes up some of my fuckups and hopefully, Krispy nabs a couple more before it gets published.
Enough about me and my shitty gonzo writing style though, this is about Mammoth WVH who’s writing, and production style is way more controlled and perfected than mine. This album showcases the expansive multitude of Wolfgang’s talents and for only his second attempt I can only image the brilliance which we are yet to be blessed with.
Full credit where credit is due, and the credit on this one is definitely fucking due!
