Blimp Time Hop: Van Halen At The Civic Center In 1991

After some very loud expression of distaste coming from the crowd (to say the least) for opening act Alice In Chains, the band that everyone came to see made their way to the stage.

The first thing we heard coming from the countless loudspeakers hanging high above was the industrial sweetness of Eddie Van Halen's power drill used as a slide on the neck.

The always inventive guitar hero had created a sound that we'd never heard before. It was used at the start of the song Poundcake which is the first track on the album, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge.

Now played live at face-melting volume in the Cumberland County Civic Center, the crowd was no longer stuck with being down on Alice In Chains. There was an air raid siren going off. Our Noise Boys were in the building.

29 years ago today, Van Halen was back for another incredible sold-out night live in Portland, Maine.

By 1991, Van Halen was on their third album with Sammy Hagar. There was plenty of strong material to make the crowd say, "F--k, yes!" That being said, you'll notice only two Roth era songs on the playlist, Panama and Jump.

Another thing to note is the encore. Those two songs back to back were really nice to hear. You see, Eddie's chugging riff at the beginning of Top of The World is the same one that fades in the end of Jump.

Let's watch their mind-blowing, super high-energy performance on the 1991 MTV Awards just about a month before their stop here in Portland.