New EVH article from Variety - FWIW

[cber1517]

Found this at the Van Halen News Desk - let the comments fly!!!

http://www.vhnd.com/2009/02/23/eddie-van-halen-designs-a-guitar-to-get-closer-to-the-fans/

 

[Zero]

What's he selling now?

 

[Luke]

Three truss rods? Me suspects it has one truss rod and two carbon fiber rods.

He's been modifying guitars for decades, this is the latest version.

Hopefully he's on the wagon and can move on with his life.

I was right:

http://www.evhgear.com/wolfgang/guitar.php

UNIQUE FEATURES
Hard mount pickups; Magna Coatings paint, 2 Graphite neck reinforcement rods, Schaller® chrome string retainer, EVH®D-Tuna, square jack plate

 

[blood5150]

I think that they forgot the word "wallets" at the end of the interview title.

 

[daddyo]

"The tune makes effective use of his patented detuner, a metal bracket the size of a Tic-Tacs box at the tail of the guitar that alters the key he is playing in."

Maybe I need one of those?

 

[jammybastard]

You're going to being seeing a lot more of this kind of thing from Ed.
Spoke to my buddy who's a veteran Fender rep and he says that Ed has a fire under his ass to sell, sell, sell.

Here's a newsflash...there is a cheaper version of the new Wolfgang on it's way later this year as well has some higher priced "exclusive" versions.
According to my buddy they are just trying to "milk the hardcore fans right now" before they roll them out.

You heard it here first.

 

[cber1517]

You're going to being seeing a lot more of this kind of thing from Ed.
Spoke to my buddy who's a veteran Fender rep and he says that Ed has a fire under his ass to sell, sell, sell.

Here's a newsflash...there is a cheaper version of the new Wolfgang on it's way later this year as well has some higher priced "exclusive" versions.
According to my buddy they are just trying to "milk the hardcore fans right now" before they roll them out.

You heard it here first.

A-ha! Wait...did you say higher priced "exclusive" versions? I thought the prices on the current models made them 'exclusive" enough, don't ya think?

Thanks for the scoop. I hope Ed puts as much energy into recording this summer as he has doing press for this guitar.

 

[Luke]

He's marrying a chick who did PR for porn, she knows how to sell.

 

[Shnook]

He's marrying a chick who did PR for porn, she knows how to sell.

A friend told me there's an interview with EVH in the latest Hustler, but I personally haven't seen it. Using porn to promote gear seems a little over the top sleazy to me, but I haven't read the interview, so I won't speculate.

 

[Bankston]

He's marrying a chick who did PR for porn, she knows how to sell.

He'll probably tell everyone he was the first one to do that, too.

He's certainly the first mainstream artist I can think of to record a porn soundtrack under his own name.

 

[Luke]

A friend told me there's an interview with EVH in the latest Hustler, but I personally haven't seen it. Using porn to promote gear seems a little over the top sleazy to me, but I haven't read the interview, so I won't speculate.

Have you purchased a buyer's guide this decade?

 

[Shnook]

Have you purchased a buyer's guide this decade?

No, being a woman this kind of thing doesn't really appeal to me. Sorry...

 

[blood5150]

I kind of wish there was a buyers guide without all that stuff in it... If I want that I can always look on the net....

I just want pics of the gear and as much info as possible... not just a list price, minimal specs and some washed up stripper holding a guitar...

 

[Shnook]

I kind of wish there was a buyers guide without all that stuff in it... If I want that I can always look on the net....

I just want pics of the gear and as much info as possible... not just a list price, minimal specs and some washed up stripper holding a guitar...

Thank you! My thoughts exactly!

Furthermore.... I'd be embarrassed to death to take something like this up to the counter. I guess the publishers don't consider that women play guitar too. Oh well....

 

[Gigbag]

Most of the article was a semi-accurate sales pitch. However, I did like that he intends to record this summer.

I also found it interesting to see what the last tour earned (grossed):

"A 2007-08 reunion with David Lee Roth pulled in $93 million for 74 dates"

​

Assuming it cost less than a milion dollars per show, they made some decent money without any new material. I think a new album (that is better than VH III) could do really well.

 

[Gigbag]

Thank you! My thoughts exactly!

Furthermore.... I'd be embarrassed to death to take something like this up to the counter. I guess the publishers don't consider that women play guitar too. Oh well....

I am not a woman, and I agree. Separation of gear buyers guides and sleeze. Not that I mind a little sleeze, it just doesn't make me want to buy the magazine -- and often has the opposite effect.

 

[dumbell78]

You're going to being seeing a lot more of this kind of thing from Ed.
Spoke to my buddy who's a veteran Fender rep and he says that Ed has a fire under his ass to sell, sell, sell.

Here's a newsflash...there is a cheaper version of the new Wolfgang on it's way later this year as well has some higher priced "exclusive" versions.
According to my buddy they are just trying to "milk the hardcore fans right now" before they roll them out.

You heard it here first.

Or we can just buy a Music Man Axis for half the price and double the quality.

No, being a woman this kind of thing doesn't really appeal to me. Sorry...

Lol, thats just too funny.

 

[Mike Fleming]

I love Van Halen (roth era), I loved the show I saw on the 07 tour, and I'm kind of excited to hear some new music that they might come up with. But G-D, enough with this publicity tour. Every news outlet in america has run a story about evh's new reinvented guitar. And it's not even the fact that they run all the pr nonsense verbatim that gets me, that's to be expected. It's just that these guys didn't sit down, together or separately, and do one interview during or since the reunion tour; now all of a sudden we can't stop hearing from Ed but it's only about his new space age guitar and amp. so ed, if you're reading this, enough!

 

[jammybastard]

Assuming it cost less than a milion dollars per show, they made some decent money without any new material. I think a new album (that is better than VH III) could do really well.

Agreed, but keep in mind the realities of the business of VH these days.

Their manager, Irving Azoff gets 20-30% of their gross profits. Not 'NET" but "GROSS".
That's his deal for resurrecting acts like VH, The Eagles, etc...

They also burned up a lot of money on legal issues ahead of the tour.
There's a quote in the latest Guitar World with Ed and his son on the cover, where Ed says flat out that they had to deal with a number of legal issues to make Wolfie the "official" bass player in VH.
Ed's quote is something like, "You wouldn't believe how hard it was to make Wolfie the official bass player of Van Halen!"

Why? Because Ed, Al and Dave don't own the copyright on the name "Van Halen" when it comes to performing or recorded works.
Warner Bros does and has since they signed their first contract.
The band, as far as all their contracts are concerned is Ed, AL, Mike, Dave and Sam. So if they perform anywhere it has to be that combination.
They had to get Wolfie in and that meant a lot of negotiation btwn a lot of lawyers and my guess is that they had to buy Mike's position out.
Plus Warner's gets a cut of the the merch for the use of the vintage VH logo since they own that as well.

That's another reason why Ed established the "EVH" brand...he can't use "Van Halen" or the "VH" logo without Warners taking a cut.

 

[frankthomson]

A friend told me there's an interview with EVH in the latest Hustler, but I personally haven't seen it. Using porn to promote gear seems a little over the top sleazy to me, but I haven't read the interview, so I won't speculate.

and God know eddy would never do anything sleazy

bwahahahahaha

i am sooooooooooooooooooooooo done w/EVH