Wolfgang Van Halen, son of late VAN HALEN guitar legend Eddie Van Halen and frontman of MAMMOTH WVH, is the latest guest on Billy Corgan‘s new podcast, “The Magnificent Others”. Corgan and Van Halen sit down for a candid and far-reaching conversation about music, identity, and forging a creative path in the long shadow of one of rock’s greatest legends. Wolfgang opens up about his drive to earn every opportunity on his own merits, reflecting on the dual realities of carrying a famous name and longing simply to be recognized as a credible musician. He talks about his musical foundation — from pounding out BLINK-182 drum fills to honing a powerful and versatile lead vocal style — and how those early passions shaped the sound of MAMMOTH WVH. He dives into the band’s whirlwind experiences supporting METALLICA, the importance of maintaining a rock-solid live show without backing tracks, and the reality of navigating public scrutiny in the hyperconnected era of social media. Along the way, Wolfgang shares personal memories of his father, explaining both the encouragement and quiet expectations that fueled his ambition and helped him endure the commentary and comparisons that inevitably follow him and much more.

Regarding MAMMOTH WVH‘s live performances, Wolfgang said: “A big criticism that I was given, because nobody ever believed I was playing anything, was that I was faking and I was playing to tracks or something… It’s very important for me that we don’t use tracks. The only thing we play to is a click track.”

Asked why he and the rest of MAMMOTH WVH play to a click track, Wolfgang said: “It just kind of keeps it together. It’s just more fun. Sometimes it’s fun to not… There’s a metal band, MESHUGGAH, I love very much, and sometimes they just go into a song where you don’t even hear a count-off, and I think that’s really cool. But I don’t know — it just kind of holds it together.”

Circling back to the use of backing tracks at rock concerts, Wolfgang said: “That’s a big debate on tracks. I personally think there shouldn’t be any lead vocal tracks, there shouldn’t be any background tracks, there shouldn’t be any main guitar, no drums. For us, what you’re seeing is us, and it’s different — it’s not the album. It’s a live thing. And I think what we’ve been doing the past three years is working on being the best performance kind of band that you can see. We don’t have a show. The show is us. You come to see us play our songs as well as possible.”