Credit: Travis ShinnAfter you hear Wolfgang Van Halen‘s new single “Distance,” recorded with his Mammoth WVH solo project, you probably realize two things: One, that you need a tissue to wipe your eyes after hearing Wolf’s tribute to his late father, the iconic Eddie Van Halen; and two, “Distance” sounds nothing like Van Halen.
Instead of the ’70s and ’80s hard-rock style that his father was known for, Wolf’s “Distance” would sound much more at home in the ’90s alternative scene, which makes sense, given his musical influences.
“Foo Fighters have always been one of my biggest influences, so I think that’s really apparent,” Wolf tells ABC Audio. “I also really love Jimmy Eat World. The softer side of the Mammoth WVH project definitely shows that influence a lot.”
Wolf’s also a fan of Tenacious D — in fact, he once ran into Foo frontman Dave Grohl at one of the D’s concerts.
“It was never, like, a formal thing,” he says of the encounter. “It was just in passing.”
Wolf adds that he feels “Distance,” in particular, is one of the “softer” songs on the upcoming Mammoth WVH album, due out in 2021, which he says is full of “all sorts of flavors.”
“‘Distance’ is a thing that you can get, but then also there’s heavier rock and even metal-influenced stuff, but it’s all under the same umbrella,” he explains. “I think you’re bound to like something off of it, if you’re a fan of rock music.”
By Josh Johnson
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