They Reign From Pasadena

Going to the Van Halen concert at Staples Center last Saturday with the kids was quite an experience.  This is the third rock concert I've taken the kids to and they seem to be getting the hang of what it's like to feel the energy inside an arena.  Unlike the U2 concert or the LA Rising music festival last year, this one almost felt like a throwback to the way concerts used to be in the 80s and 90s at the Forum or Long Beach Arena.  I cannot think of a bigger band from Pasadena (or Los Angeles) in the last 30 years than Van Halen and while I wish I had seem them at their peak, this was still a great concert.  As long as brothers Eddie and Alex are playing, Van Halen will be great.  David Lee Roth back singing is more about showmanship and nostalgia than talent and vocal range.  But it really doesn't matter because he was still doing those jump kicks (at age 57) and obviously in good physical shape.  Eddie's son, Wolfgang had replaced Michael Anthony on bass but I don't really have a point of comparison playing live.  The band played 24 songs -- every hit from the David Lee Roth albums were played and at the end of the 2 hour set, I could not even think of a song I wanted to hear -- because I heard them all.   And that is how the concert ended.  No encore necessary.  Just rock and roll that way it was meant to be played and heard. Loud.