VAN HALEN - ST. PAUL 1982 SOUNDBOARD (2 CD)

Description

The 1982 Van Halen collection continues to shock collectors around the world with a string of never-before-heard leaked soundboards. This week, two titles will be released simultaneously in the latest installment of the 2025 series, the biggest and most powerful new excavation!

　This work, the first part of a two-part series, permanently preserves the “August 10, 1982 St. Paul Performance.” It is a stereo soundboard recording. The current VAN HALEN collection is an extraordinary event since its inception. Normally, a transcendent soundboard of the level of “one every 10 or 20 years” appears almost every week. Moreover, most of these are unexplored stages where even audience recordings have not been found, making them a major emergency declaration-class event. If you have noticed this article, you may have already experienced several, but you may be confused by the abundance of recordings. This week, let’s introduce them while organizing them according to the schedule at the time.

●1982
{“DIVER DOWN” released on April 14th}
・July 14th – August 21st: North America #1 (26 shows) ←★here★
・September 1st – 25th: North America #2 (17 shows)
・October 7th – December 11th: North America #3 (38 shows) ←TORONTO 1982, etc.
●1983
・January 16th – February 12th: South America (15 shows)
・May 29th: US festival appearance

　This is the overall picture of the “HIDE YOUR SHEEP Tour” accompanying “DIVER DOWN”. This time, the sound board is repeatedly firing at the beginning of the tour, “North America # 1”, and this week’s two consecutive works are no exception. Let’s further focus on the dates and check their respective positional relationships.

●Details of “North America #1”
・July 14th-23rd (7 performances)
*July 24th “BILOXI 1982”
・July 27th + 29th (2 performances)
*July 30th “LOUISVILLE 1982”
*July 31st “FORT WAYNE 1982”
*August 3rd “ROCKFORD 1982”
・August 4th: Des Moines performance
*August 6th “ST. LOUIS 1982”
・August 7th + 8th (2 performances)
*August 10th: St. Paul performance ←★This work★
・August 11th: Madison performance
*August 13th “DETROIT 1982 1ST NIGHT”
・August 14th-21st (6 performances)

　This work, recorded on such a stage, is once again extremely thick and super direct. Anyone who has experienced even one of the previous series will understand, but the sound was clearly recorded directly from the mix desk, with almost no cheers, and the instruments and vocals burst forth in a raw, unfiltered sound. Not only is it completely unprocessed and unedited, but the balance, which was not even considered for playback on home audio, is a direct reflection of the live mix. Once again, you can experience an otherworldly sense of synchronization, as if your entire body were part of the PA system. Adding to this otherworldly feeling is the pleasant fact that there is less hiss this time around. The jet black of the silent areas is deep, and the crisp outlines of the core stand out even more vividly.

　Improvements have also been made in recording. The New Excavation series was recorded by a man named “Roy,” who basically recorded on a single 90-minute tape. This meant that seamless, complete recordings were not possible, and there were pauses and cuts to change the tape or save tape. Early on in the tour, important parts were sometimes missed and the performances fell flat, but by this point, they had figured out where to stop the tape, and all the songs performed on this album have been preserved. Let’s take a look at the contents here.

●Diver Down (8 songs)
・The Full Bug／Little Guitars／Where Have All The Good Times Gone!／Hang ‘Em High／Cathedral／Secrets／Intruder／(Oh) Pretty Woman
●Other (12 songs)
・Flame of Fire: Runnin’ With The Devil／Jamie’s Cryin’／Ice Cream Man／Ain’t Talkin’ Bout Love／You Really Got Me
・Legendary Bomber: Dance The Night Away／Somebody Get Me A Doctor／DOA／Bottoms Up!
・Other: Romeo Delight／Unchained／Everybody Wants Some!!

…And so it goes like this. The set solidified around “LOUISVILLE 1982 SOUNDBOARD (Zodiac 781)” and remained fixed after that. Due to the limitations of the 90-minute tape, this work misses out on “Everybody Wants Some!!” and the reprise of the last “You Really Got Me (and the accompanying Happy Trails),” but the number of songs itself is the same as the longest “FORT WAYNE 1982 SOUNDBOARD (Zodiac 780).”

　The band’s performances have also improved. This is their eighth performance since they started using a fixed set, and the flow has permeated their bodies. It’s easy to see how the performance just flows without them even realizing it. There was a slight delay during “Secrets,” perhaps due to a minor issue with the double-neck guitar, but otherwise, there were no noticeable mistakes and the performance flowed endlessly.

　This is the latest installment in the shocking new excavation soundboard series, where the transcendent quality remains unwavering every time. While the rush of excitement may have been overwhelming, the more you listen to it, the more you can feel the ensemble evolving day by day. This is a new masterpiece that can perfectly synchronize with the subtleties of its subtleties. Be blown away this week!

★Stereo soundboard recording of the “August 10, 1982 St. Paul Performance.” This is the latest in the popular soundboard excavation series, and this time it is a masterpiece digitized from the original leaked master by the same people involved. Although the reprise of “Everybody Wants Some!!” and “You Really Got Me” is missing from the recording, the good thing is that you can basically enjoy all the songs from that day. This is a pleasure board that can be synchronized with the ensemble that has become familiar.

Disc:1 (50:30)
1. Intro
2. Romeo Delight
3. Unchained
4. Drum Solo
5. The Full Bug
6. Runnin’ With The Devil
7. Jamie’s Cryin’
8. Little Guitars
9. Where Have All The Good Times Gone!
10. Bass Solo
11. Hang ‘Em High
12. Cathedral
13. Secrets
14. Everybody Wants Some!!
15. Dance The Night Away

Disc:2 (43:34)
1. Somebody Get Me A Doctor / I’m So Glad
2. Dave Acoustic Solo
3. Ice Cream Man
4. Intruder
5. Pretty Woman
6. Guitar Solo
7. D.O.A.
8. Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love
9. Bottoms Up!