There’s a reason that July 30’s Van Halen show in Charlotte was my third. The band consistently puts on a great live show, whether David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar or Gary Cherone is the frontman.

The band opened with “Unchained,” an old Roth-era tune. This one has been left out of the catalog since Dave left the band. Welcome back! The guitar was amazing and lead vocalist Cherone’s vocals meshed well with bassist Michael Anthony’s.

Throughout the evening, the band played a good mix of songs, giving enough sampling of the current album, along with songs from the Hagar and Roth eras. In all, the band played five songs from the new album, four from the Hagar era and nine from the Roth days. Although it would seem the concert was a little Roth-heavy, it was actually refreshing. Like “Unchained,” most of the Roth songs hadn’t been done live for years. I feel sure it was as refreshing for the band to mix up the set as it was for the band.

Edward Van Halen still has the power and dexterity he’s had since the band first made it back in the late ’70s. He can still dive-bomb through “Panama” and play the powerful riffs of newer tracks such as “Without You” and “Fire in the Hole.” The guy’s honestly getting up there in age, but his playing hasn’t deteriorated at all. I think the thing that’s even more amazing is that he still seems to be having a good time. That’s true for the whole band. Everyone seems to enjoy being up there.

Drummer Alex Van Halen still also has his power at the drum kit. From the opening beats of “Without You” to the catchy beat of “Panama,” he still is a fine percussionist. I’m not a big fan of drum solos, but his solo is pretty impressive. The drummer is surrounded by a huge drum kit and uses every snare and drum to its fullest potential. The only thing that shows his age is the close-ups that reveal only wisps of hair left and the fact that he is again wearing a neck brace during the tour. Take away the visuals and the talent speaks for itself with a strong kick-drum rhythm.

Anthony still meshes really well vocally and on the bass. A lot of times, the bass is fairly invisible in the band, overshadowed by Eddie’s playing, but at times, the bass really comes out. In “One I Want,” for example, there are some little bass lines that are quick and powerful, where Anthony gets to show off his talent. My only complaint is that he didn’t get to do a bass solo like he did the two tours before.

The entire show was awesome, but if I had to pick my favorites, I think they’d have to be “Mean Street” and “Josephina.” Just like the two previous Van Halen shows I had seen, I found myself glued to the video screen often, mouth open in awe at the way Eddie Van Halen made the guitar sing. During “Mean Street,” I was totally amazed at the way both hands tapped the fret board and picked the riffs out alternately. It was quite a sight to see.

“Josephina” was really cool for other reasons, though. Cherone and Eddie Van Halen came out and sat down on one of the circus risers setup, and I realized that Eddie had an acoustic guitar. As far as I know, this is a new thing for Edward on tour. Sure, he’s used one on numerous studio albums in songs such as “316″ and “Ice Cream Man,” but it was awesome to hear his guitar playing stripped down live, without the distortion. The song is great on the studio album, but even cooler live. For being a new song, the crowd was surprisingly into it.

Originally posted atNandoNext