A Different Kind of Truth

A Different Kind of Truth
A painting of a train
Studio album by
ReleasedFebruary 7, 2012 (2012-02-07)
RecordedNovember 2010 – August 2011, early January 2012
Studio5150 Studios and Henson Recording Studios, Hollywood, California
Genre
Length50:12
LabelInterscope
Producer
Van Halen chronology
The Best of Both Worlds
(2004)
A Different Kind of Truth
(2012)
Tokyo Dome Live in Concert
(2015)
Singles from A Different Kind of Truth
  1. "Tattoo"
    Released: January 10, 2012
  2. "She's the Woman"
    Released: February 28, 2012

A Different Kind of Truth is the twelfth and final studio album by American rock band Van Halen. Released on February 7, 2012, by Interscope Records, this is Van Halen's only studio album on Interscope and its first full-length album of studio material with lead singer David Lee Roth since 1984. Likewise, A Different Kind of Truth was Van Halen's first studio album since 1998's Van Halen III, as well as their only studio album recorded without bassist Michael Anthony, who had played bass on all of the band's previous albums; Eddie Van Halen's son Wolfgang replaced Anthony for the album, making this his only studio album with the band. It would also be Van Halen's final studio album before Eddie's death and the group's subsequent disbandment in 2020.

A Different Kind of Truth was recorded at Henson Recording Studios and Eddie Van Halen's own 5150 Studios and produced by John Shanks. Seven of the album's 13 songs are musically re-worked and lyrically re-written songs that had been demoed in the late-1970s/early 1980s, but never officially released. The album received positive reviews upon release, with several writers referring to it as a return to form, and multiple publications ranked it as one of the best albums of 2012. It was also a commercial success, debuting in the top ten on numerous record charts. It debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and, by the end of 2012, had sold in excess of 411,000 copies in the United States alone. The album was promoted with an arena tour.