Former Van Halen bandmates Alex Van Halen and David Lee Roth are set to appear at an event this week, but it doesn’t look to be the reunion many Van Halen fans will be hoping for.
The Van Halen drummer and their three-time vocalist are set to appear at a TEDxFargo event in North Dakota this Thursday, July 30, 11 years after Van Halen wrapped touring A Different Kind of Truth. That final show, at the Hollywood Bowl on October 4, 2015, would prove to be the band’s last, with Eddie Van Halen passing five years and two days later.
Now the pair, who have both been booked as guest speakers at the event, are set for a surprise reunion of sorts, but don’t expect them to be sharing the stage in a physical sense. They’ve been booked for a “virtual talk” together with artist Robert Vargas, the man responsible for the EVH mural on the side of Guitar Center Hollywood.
“Three icons. One stage. One conversation you won’t want to miss,” the event’s official announcement states. The filming, it adds, will take place this week and will be uploaded to YouTube in the coming weeks for those who can’t attend the event in person.
It should be a fascinating conversation, given the duo’s checkered past. On the one hand, Van Halen blames Roth for the failed Van Halen tribute tour. On the other, he recently praised singer’s talent and work in Van Halen, saying, “We did our best work with Dave.”
“To me, Dave was a poet,“ Van Halen said. “It was the confluence of the complete opposite ends of the spectrum that made it happen. And it was brilliant soup — until it wasn’t.”
The TEDxFargo event features more than 40 guest speakers across two days, taking place at the Brewhalla entertainment space. It’s an unlikely place to see two musicians who conquered the music world reunite alongside Eddie’s revolutionary talents.
It will also be a surprise public appearance from Roth, given that just last week he was forced to pull the plug on his current U.S. tour, which has seen him reminiscing about his early songwriting adventures with Eddie. Sammy Hagar then offered some kind words of support to the man he replaced in 1985.
The TEDxFargo announcement comes as Alex Van Halen and Steve Lukather continue to complete one last Van Halen album, which is made up of material EVH recorded before his passing. Lukather says the material left him stunned, but it looks like both Roth and Hagar have been frozen out of the project.
Bad Company frontman Paul Rogers has already declined an invitation to get involved, while former VH bass guitarist Michael Anthony believes the record doesn’t need a singer.
