Wolfgang Van Halen admits he feels a lot less nervous opening for Guns N’ Roses in front of 60,000 people than he does playing a 500-capacity club on his own. During a new chat with Ultimate Classic Rock, Eddie Van Halen‘s son, who’s touring behind Mammoth WVH‘s self-titled debut, explained, “In a way, the pressure’s off with a Guns show. It’s such a huge venue, but they have the cameras and you’re popping up on the sides of the screens and stuff. But at a certain point, you’re doing your best to try to entertain people who otherwise don’t really give a s*** about you. Which, I don’t have a problem with that. That’s exactly what you’re signing up for as the opening band.”
He went on to say, “You’re the jesters to lead everybody to Guns. I’m totally happy with that and it’s a really good time. But when we headline, that’s kind of what makes me more nervous, because everybody’s paying more attention. Chances are, they’re bigger fans than the Guns shows would otherwise have. You feel more of an obligation to make sure they have a really good time, because they went out of the way (to come see your band).”
Mammoth WVH has a string of club dates sprinkled throughout the summer and fall Guns run, and Wolfgang admitted that opening night for Guns saw more than a few white knuckles hitting the stage: “A lot of nerves beforehand. I think after it happened, it was a huge relief. The first bit of the tour, having the two headliners and the first (stadium show) at Hershey, there was a lot of anxiety, just because it was the first one. As soon as I was over that hump, I started to feel a bit more relief. Now, I think I’ve gotten a bit more comfortable for the last couple of shows.”
- Guns N’ Roses / Mammoth WVH tour dates (subject to change):
August 25 – San Jose, CA – SAP Center at San Jose
August 27 – Las Vegas, NV – Allegiant Stadium
August 29 – Tuscon, AZ – Rialto Theatre (Mammoth WVH only)
August 30 – Phoenix, AZ – Phoenix Suns Arena
September 1 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center
September 2 – Austin, TX – Emo’s (Mammoth WVH only)
September 4 – Napa, CA – BottleRock Napa Valley (Guns N’ Roses only)
September 4 – Houston, TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion (Mammoth WVH only)
September 5 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion (Mammoth WVH only)
September 8 – Indianapolis, IN – Lucas Oil Stadium
September 9 – Cincinnati, OH – Bogarts (Mammoth WVH only)
September 11, 12 – Atlantic City, NJ – Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena
September 14 – Louisville, KY – Mercury Ballroom (Mammoth WVH only)
September 16 – Chicago, IL – Wrigley Field
September 17 – Minneapolis, MN – Target Center (Mammoth WVH only)
September 18 – Milwaukee, WI – Summerfest at American Family Insurance Amphitheater
September 21 – St. Paul, MI – Xcel Energy Center
September 23 – Columbus, OH – Schottenstein Center
September 25 – Camden, NJ – BB&T Pavilion (Mammoth WVH only)
September 26 – Baltimore, MD – Royal Farms Arena
September 29 – Raleigh, NC – PNC Arena
Ocober 1 – Orlando, FL – The Plaza Live (Mammoth WVH only)
October 2, 3 – Hollywood, FL – Hard Rock Live Arena
FAST FACTS
- Wolfgang Van Halen‘s debut album, Mammoth WVH debuted big across the Billboard charts. The set entered the Billboard 200 albums chart at Number 12.
- Mammoth WVH also topped the charts on Billboard’s Top Rock Albums, Hard Rock Albums, and Independent Albums lists.
- “Distance,” the debut single from Mammoth WVH, hit Number One on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart and Number Nine on the magazine’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs list.
- The album’s “Don’t Back Down” topped out at Number 10 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart.
CHECK IT OUT: Mammoth WVH on August 7th, 2021 performing “Horribly Right” live at House Of Blues Cleveland: