The Messenger recently caught up with Wolfgang Van Halen to discusss his new Mammoth WVH album, and revealed the lessons he learned while playing in Van Halen with regards to being in a band. Following is an excerpt.

Q: You quickly started opening for bands like Guns N' Roses and Metallica, and developed a friendship with Dave Grohl. What do you learn from being in the orbit of those guys?

Wolfgang: "That it's important to love what you do. Especially hanging with Grohl, he just loves music, he has such a respect towards music in general and to everybody who partakes in it. It's just fun to see that untainted love, where other bullshit doesn't get in the way. The stuff I did learn from being in Van Halen was the stuff that I didn't want to carry over into Mammoth — why can't we just play music and have fun doing it and that's it? Why do we need to be walking on eggshells around certain people in order to get anything done? Shouldn't this just be easy and fun? Because music is so great. And I think that's what I've done with Mammoth, this wonderful core of people that can weather the storm together and make music and support each other and have a great time doing it."

Q: Was it tough to shed the idea that being in a band meant that there was all this other attendant nonsense attached?

Wolfgang: "Yeah, maybe that was part of a desire for me to just play everything. I think on top of wanting to prove to the world that I could play — from being told since I was 15 that I wasn't good enough or was faking it or whatever — there was another, very equal desire to not have the bullshit, because if I'm the whole band, the only person I could argue with was myself. And I certainly do that, but it's better than it being the other way."

Read the complete interview here.

The success of their first-ever headline run has resulted in two legs of the Mammoth II Tour 2024 across the United States. The first leg - scheduled for February 21 to March 10 - will mark the return of special guest Nita Strauss. That run will make stops in Kansas City, MO (February 23), Detroit, MI (February 28), Huntington, NY (March 6) among others before wrapping up in Albany, NY on March 10.

The second leg - scheduled for May 4 to May 17 - will welcome rockers Intervals as special guests to those dates. Those dates will start in Bethlehem, PA (May 4) and make stops in Norfolk, VA (May 8), Ft. Lauderdale, FL (May 12) and Nashville, TN (May 16) before wrapping up in Louisville, KY on May 17.

All headline shows go on-sale to the general public on Friday, December 8 at 10 AM, local time. More information on VIP packages and tickets to all Mammoth shows can be found here.

“2023 has been an amazing year and 2024 is shaping up to be even busier. To be able to headline more shows with Nita Strauss and then having Intervals join us later is so exciting. I am honored that I get to return to that incredible Metallica stage as well as reunite with Dave Grohl and the guys in the Foo Fighters. I can’t wait to see everyone next year,” states Wolfgang Van Halen.

New dates:

February
21 - St. Louis, MO - Red Flag ^
23 - Kansas City, MO - The Truman ^
24 - Madison, WI - The Sylvee ^
27 - Indianapolis, IN - Egyptian Room at Old National Centre ^
28 - Detroit, MI - St. Andrew’s Hall ^

March
1 - Cincinnati, OH - Bogart’s ^
2 - Joliet, IL - The Forge ^
5 - New Haven, CT - Toad’s Place ^
6 - Huntington, NY - The Paramount ^
8 - Pittsburgh, PA - The Roxian Theatre ^
9 - Charles Town, WV - The Event Center at Hollywood Casino ^
10 - Albany, NY - Empire Live ^

May
4 - Bethlehem, PA - Wind Creek Event Center *
5 - Portland, ME - Aura *
7 - Wilmington, DE - The Queen *
8 - Norfolk, VA - The NorVa *
10 - Cherokee, NC- Harrah’s Cherokee Resort Event Center *
12 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Revolution Live *
14 - Chattanooga, TN - The Signal *
16 - Nashville, TN - Brooklyn Bowl *
17 - Louisville, KY - Mercury Ballroom *

^ Headline Show - Special Guest Nita Strauss
* Headline Show - Special Guest Interval

(Photo - Travis Shinn)