MILLER: The band America needs, but doesn't deserve right now
Much to my mother’s dismay, I have a couple of tattoos on my body.
It’s not the ones that are hidden from the public’s eye that drive her up the wall. It’s the giant koi fish, lotus flower and the “Om Mani Padme Hum” Buddhist mantra that sits openly on my right arm for the entire world to see that had her growing gray hairs at a faster-than-normal rate.
And while she wasn’t too upset with me after about an hour or so, she handled it much better than my grandmother.
After not talking to me for a week, my grandmother’s first words to me involved something along the lines of a bar of soap and scrubbing my arm until the ink came off.
It’s a hollow victory, but it’s fair to say I won because my tattoo is still there.
Don’t worry; we’re on the best of terms now.
In our society today, the taboo of tattoos is slowly disappearing. Once seen as a rebellious move, getting ink done can now be seen as a rite of passage.
Tattoos are also visible on several music artists: Ranging from county all the way to rap. Some artists even write songs about them.
Off the top of my head, The Who has a song called “Tattoo” off their third album “The Who Sell Out” which tells the story of two brothers who decide to get tattoos. The narrator’s mother — unlike my own — approves of his tattoo (it says ‘Mother’) while beating the brother for getting a naked lady.
A few other favorites of mine include Blue Oyster Cult’s “Tattoo Vampire,” Warren Haynes’ “Tattoos and Cigarettes” and Janis Ian’s “Tattoo,” which tells the story of a young Jewish girl who was tattooed during her time in a concentration camp.
But a new song about tattoos has been slowly creeping up into my favorites list on my iPod, despite my dislike for it earlier.
In case you haven’t heard, Van Halen has a new album out titled “A Different Kind of Truth” that features 13 original tracks with original — and best — vocalist David Lee Roth.
The new single, “Tattoo,” discusses tattoos in general. From the different colors they come in, to stories they tell, all the way up to how they can convey what people really want to say, but are too scared to.
Needless to say, as much as I wanted to hate the new song at first, I caught myself humming it when I would work on articles or just sitting around my apartment.
So when the new album finally came out, I picked it up and found myself liking “Tattoo.”
And that was just the first song on the CD.
After “Tattoo,” and all the way to the very last note, it reminds listeners Van Halen was once a great band and not the joke they turned into when Sammy Hagar joined the band (and then later Extreme singer Gary Cherone).
With Diamond Dave behind the microphone, Eddie plays the guitar the way the world wants him to: Using the two-handed tapping technique, natural and artificial harmonics, vibrato, and tremolo picking.
Honestly, when was the last time you heard someone say, “Man, Eddie is good on the guitar, but I wish he’d play some more synthesizers?”
Kids, you haven’t listened to “Eruption” or “Spanish Fly,” I highly recommend it.
Behind the drum kit, Alex Van Halen shows that at 58 years old, he’s still a force to be reckoned with. While his brother goes off on a few punk-like riffs on the new album, Alex shows he can easily keep up with his younger brother.
New to the band and replacing Michael Anthony is Wolfgang Van Halen, son of Eddie and actress Valerie Bertinelli. While he doesn’t bring bass riffs that punch you in the gut like Anthony did, Wolfie doesn’t fail on bass either. Should there be another new album, it’ll be interesting to see what he can do.
As for Dave, well, there’s not much that needs to be said. The rock gods made only one of him.
So if you get a chance, take a listen to a few of the new songs. Maybe even go out and get you a nice tattoo.
It’s not the best album, but it reminds people good music exists.
It also makes up for that atrocity called “Van Halen III.”
