Michael Anthony is gearing up for his summer tour with Sammy Hagar, and he promises that the performances will be “totally live.”
The trek, dubbed the Best of All Worlds tour, will see Anthony and Hagar – along with Joe Satriani and drummer Jason Bonham – digging into material from throughout Van Halen’s catalog.
“We’re going to play totally live,” Anthony declared during an appearance on Sirius XM’s Trunk Nation with Eddie Trunk. “There will be no tapes, no piped in vocals, nothing.”
“This is going to be 100%,” the bassist continued, adding that the band may further augment its lineup if the need arises. “We might even have another person with us to play keyboards… which we are going to do because we do want to keep it 100% live.”
READ MORE: Bands Who Have Admitted to Using Backing Tracks
Anthony’s comments come at a time when many classic rock acts have come under fire for allegedly using backing tracks and digital enhancements during their performances.
The Best of All Worlds Tour Will Feature More Than Just Van Halen Material
Elsewhere in the interview, Anthony clarified that while Van Halen material will make up the bulk of set lists during the Best of All Worlds tour, he and his bandmates also plan to perform a selection of other tunes.
“We’re mixing it up,” the bassist admitted. “It’s more than a tribute tour. Sammy had summed it up good. We’re kind of calling this a thank you tour. Thank you to all the fans.”
Anthony noted that material from Hagar and Satriani’s respective solo careers will be included, along with “some Zeppelin stuff” and tunes from the supergroup Chickenfoot. Still, Van Halen will make up the majority of the songs, including material from both the David Lee Roth and Hagar periods of the band.
“There’s going to be a few [Van Halen songs] that we haven’t done in quite some time,” Antony confirmed. “We’re going to throw all of it in there.”
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