Gary Graff of The Plain Dealer spoke to newly reinstated VAN HALEN frontman SAMMY HAGAR recently about their current spate of activity: "This is less a reunion than it is a continuation," explains the singer, who joined Van Halen in 1985. "We did not feel like we had to reinvent anything or outdo anything. Sometimes by accident you try things and they work out for you. We decided rather than go to therapy like some of these other bands and dig through the dirt," Hagar says, "here's what we're gonna do pretend like it never happened. We're gonna rise above it. The whole point of being older is time going by, water going under the bridge, whatever. You kind of forget even what happened or why you were mad to begin with. We were together a long time, 11 years. When you spend that much time with somebody, you really do have a deep friendship." "If it doesn't last, we're all gonna kick each other's ass," Hagar says with a laugh. "I think it can last, and I certainly hope it can. It's a great, joyful thing for us to get together and go out and be doing it on this scale. It's different from last time; the chemistry is the same, but the head space is different. The last time around, I thought I was a big rock star. This time, I'm humbled by it...."

Culled from Hard News