Alex Van Halen is working on a "new" Van Halen album made up of recorded material from jam sessions he and his brother, Eddie (of course), would have at their studio, 5150. In other words, the music isn't new, but will be to listeners. Sammy Hagar doesn't appear to be included in the project, though.
At least, not as far as being an active participant in remixing (or whatever is happening) the songs. Some of the material might include songs he did previously, but little is truly known about the project, or if it will ever be released. What is clear, though, is that Hagar, and former Van Halen bassist, Michael Anthony, feel left out of the process because, well...they are.
Speaking on the Rock of Nations podcast recently, Hagar and Anthony were asked about the potential new Van Halen work. They both said they would be happy to take part in whatever way would help Alex Van Halen finish the album, but they haven't been asked. It is unlikely they will, especially for Hagar.
Sammy Hagar appears left out of new Van Halen project
The singer and the drummer had a falling out over the failures of the band's 2004 reunion tour. Not that Van Halen ever felt as if they needed the same singer for the life of the band. Alex and Eddie obviously thought they knew how to make good music on their own, and the singer was just a tool to use. They weren't wrong, as they cycled through several vocalists.
Hagar told Rock of Nations' hosts Dave Kinchens and Shane McEachern, "There's so much stuff that Al could really choose from, if he wanted to include Mike and I. But, obviously, Al's got a reason, and he's Alex Van Halen, he can do whatever he wants...To me, it's an Alex Van Halen project, and it's not necessarily a Van Halen project, but I guess we'll see if it ever sees the light of day. But I'm disappointed that Mike and I wouldn't be invited. It's, like, what? Are you kidding me? We're still alive."
The issue there is what Hagar would see as a "Van Halen project." From what is known about the project, the new album would literally be a Van Halen work because it will feature Alex, Eddie, and Eddie's son, Wolfgang Van Halen, the person who makes up the "band" Mammoth.
If Alex needed a vocalist to fill in the songs, Wolfgang could do that. In fact, if the new sounds only include what Eddie laid down before he died in 2020 due to complications of having cancer, Alex on the drums, and Wolfgang on anything else, the project likely would be more interesting.
Will the untitled album be released eventually? Maybe. What fans wouldn't want is something akin to bootleg tapes. New songs that are produced at a high level would be great, but they just probably won't include Sammy Hagar.